Gambia l,

First of all, before supplying you with any information on/about Matarr
Njie, I would like to make the following observations/comments.

Indeed, it was very difficult to get any information, from the Gambia, on
Matarr Njie, apart from official confirmation to th effect that he is
presently out of the country, studying in Malaysia.

This is largely because of the fact that both as a high school student and a
civil servant in the Gambia, Matarr was very reserved, quiet and, above all,
APOLITICAL. In short, he was an introverted person.

Consequently, not many people in the Gambia today remember or know him, and
even most of those who worked with him in the civil service knew very little
about him, because, as I stated earlier, while in the Gambia, Matarr was a
very private person.

In fact, up to now, many civil servants who knew and worked with him  are
not convinced that the taciturn Matarr Njie they knew would be the same
Matarr Njie, insulting people on the L.

Anyway, in spite of the fact that it was/is not easy to get any information
on Matarr Njie, due mainly to the reasons cited above, I was, nonetheless,
lucky to contact a highly-placed government official who did have some
information on Matarr Njie; and he, the official, was more than willing to
supply me with the information, because he trusted me.

Also, I, myself, did know Matarr in the Gambia. He and I used to meet at the
late Ousman Koro Ceesay's office in the then National Investment Board
(NIB). I don't know now, but during those days, he used to put on very thick
antiquated glasses and, consequently, I had always laughed secretly,
whenever I saw him wear those 17th century glasses (laughs!)

Anyway, Ousman Koro Ceesay used to tell me in those days how bright Matarr
was, which I noticed for myself during many conversations we shared in those
days.

Having said that, I would also like to reassure Matarr in particular, and
all the members of the L, that as I write this piece, I can put my hand on
the Holy Qur'an that I am writing it, without any rancour or ill feelings
towards Matarr.

I will try to be fair to him, and to the best of my knowledge, all this
information on Matarr is true. Notwithstanding, people on the L can verify
it themselves, since this is an era of accountability, transparency and
probity.

So here it goes:

To begin with, I must say that prompted by the fact that Matarr's age had
been raised many times on the List, I found it necessary to find out his
age, so that the issue can be put to rest once and for all!!

However, before disclosing his official age, I must say that I, personally,
had thought that he had already reached 40. But, according to Gambia
Government records, Matarr is 37 plus.

He is from Farrafenni, and he completed his GCE O-Level at Nusrat High
School in 1981. Having finished fifth form education at Nusrat, he proceeded
to Gambia High School, the same year, where he finished his A-Levels in
1983, according to government records.

While at Gambia High school, he used rent/stay at Ousainou Touray's compound
in Tobacco Road in Banjul, just opposite the compound of Buba Saho, the
former Gambia Airways employee. Ousainou Touray used to work at the Gambia
Family Planning Association. Mr Touray had also worked at the then
Senegambia Insurance Company.

Someone who lived in the area at the time Matarr was there, expressed
"surprise and shock", when he saw some of Matarr's postings to the L,
because according to this person: "Matarr was very courteous, well-mannered,
considerate and affable during those days. To be frank with you, Mr Ceesay,
Matarr has changed considerably, but I understand that he does have some
mental health problems nowadays. In fact, he was hospitalised at one
point"....

Please take note that I am merely quoting verbatim what I have been reliably
informed by someone who knew Matarr very well.

Anyway, shortly after he finished his A Levels in 1983, he joined the then
Gambia commercial and Development Bank, where he worked for some time before
finally joining the Gambia government as a civil servant. I was unable to
establish the year he joined the Government.

I am told that he did work in the Ministry of Education, when BB Dabo was
Vice President and Education Minister and, during this period, he was said
to be a "very loyal civil servant".

He also worked at the Personnel Management Office (PMO), where, at one
point, he was one of those responsible for training. In fact, at the time he
left Banjul, he was working at the PMO.

While at the PMO, he was sent by the Gambia Government, to undergo training
in Public Administration and Management in Glasgow, Scotland. Again, I was
unable to establish the year he went to Scotland and how long he was there.

He returned to the Gambia, having successfully completed his programme in
Scotland, and rejoined the PMO. Again, through the Gambia government, he was
given another scholarship and, this time, he went to study at the Curtin
University in Australia, where he graduated with an MBA in 1996, according
to official records.

After he finished his MBA in Australia, he again secured, under the auspices
of the Gambia Government, a Malaysian government scholarship, which enabled
him to do a Master of Economics degree at the University of Malaya,
Malaysia.

He finished his masters in economics in January 1998, and was supposed to
return home, but he overstayed, giving the excuse that he was still doing
further studies. There are reports that as a result of his refusal to return
home, after his programme had finished, the government decided to terminate
his services.

Some reports say that Matarr had been using the L, to show his total support
for Jammeh, so that he can get back his post when he returns home, or to
ensure the security of his job.

Anyway, I did ask my source to confirm or deny these reports and, in reply,
this is what he had to say:"Well, Mr Ceesay, according to our records,
Matarr is currently doing further studies at the Faculty of Economics and
Administration, University of Malaya, Malaysia."

My source added:"I, personally, don't know whether or not, he still an
employee of the Gambia Government. Anyway, if you want any information about
his programme in Malaysia, you can contact Professor Zahara Yahaya, the Dean
of the Faculty, on 037564767 or on 037593600."

I have more to write, but I am stopping here since I am sending this piece
from a cybercafe, and they charge too much money for every 30 minutes.

Ebrima ceesay,
Birmingham, UK.

Momodou njie, I did enjoy your comments on the Amadou Samba/Daily Observer
issue. Since you are living in the UK, it would be great to meet or talk
with you on the phone. I am also a soccer fanatic, but I support Arsenal,
not Manchester United. You can call me on my mobile phone: 0958 51 57 67, so
that we can have a long and proper chat. If you get me on the mobile, I'll
give you my house phone.

Ndey Jobarteh, the party was great!! I didn't know you can dance "Ndaga"
better the late Ala Seck of Super Etoile. Sandra needs to take some lessons
from you at some stage.


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