FOROYAA NEWSPAPER
Issue No. 41/ 2004, 24-26 May, 2004
Editorial
THE PRESIDENT AND FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS
In Ghana, the truth and reconciliation commission has been sitting to review
the violations, which occurred during the Rawlings era. The type of issues
being raised are due to the exercise of power without respect to democratic laws
and principles. For example during operation no compromise some people
unilaterally proceeded to seize properties and sell them at prices determined by
them. Today the prices have increased again without any compensation to the
victims. In short, expectations were raised without achieving results. People
still find themselves in hell fire despite the claim of good intention. In the
same vein, a cleansing exercise, which would have been done voluntarily and
in good faith, is circumscribed by dictatorial commands to restrict freedom of
movement and business activity from 9 to 1 p.m.
Now a Press, which is already represented and required to sign bonds
amounting to D100, 000 is being compelled to register under a law which simply asserts
that no person should disseminate information through any medium of mass
communication without registration as a media organization or practitioner, a law
which excludes the state media which is an act of discrimination. Violation
of property rights and personal liberties, restriction of movement and forced
labour are all attributed to tyrants. This goes along with the personality
cult of leaders, who consider freedoms and rights as idealistic concepts, which
they should merely pay lip service to. The conception of fundamental freedom
as dreams that cannot be achieved instead of codes of conduct for democratic
governance is the beginning of tyranny.
Africa is entering a new phase of its history. The only way we can claim an
honourable place in contemporary history is when we have governments and
people who take fundamental rights and freedoms as guides for personal and official
conduct. Governments, which hold such rights and freedoms in contempt, are
not fit to preside over the affairs of modern nations.
The Gambian people should now ask President Jammeh what his ideology is? He
is fond of mentioning Communism, Socialism, Liberalism and even Confusionism
in describing the political shades in the Gambia. Now one should ask what type
of ism is he practicing in the Gambia that is responsible of such
undemocratic attitude manifested by continuous issuing of threats to the existence of
democratic values and institutions?
In a democratic society it is such issues that should become election
platforms. The people will ultimately have the right to make leaders pay for the
transgression of their rights. This is why each should concentrate in telling
the government what is best and leave them to decide to follow or turn their
back at sound suggestions. There should be no despair. The future is to be
determined by the people.
Halifa’s Letter To The Bar
On the Need For A Constitution (Validation) Act
Which Constitution Is The Constitution?
As a National Assembly Member I have been impressed by the seasoned debate
that must be developing among legal professionals and scholars. The law is the
bedrock of a constitutional order. Without its development and correct
interpretation the rule of law is derailed by ambiguities, uncertainties,
inconsistencies and impunity.
I have followed the debate on the appointment of Honourable Gibou Janneh as
acting chief justice. In my view the debate should go further than it has and I
would like to have your opinion on my plan to promote the drafting of a
constitution validation bill for review and passing by the National Assembly so
that it becomes law when assented to by the president. This will enable the
Gambian people to have the authentic version of the constitution. At the moment
there are three-printed versions of the constitution and all of them have serious
defects. It is my opinion that there is need for a Constitution (Validation)
Act to rectify the anomalies once and for all.
In fact, the opinions expressed by different members of the bar have been
affected by the different versions of the constitution. In my first contribution
to the debate I looked at one version, that is the most recent publication of
the constitution. Section 139 (1), which establishes the criteria for the
appointment of chief justice, reads: “ A person shall be qualified for appointment
as chief justice if he/she is qualified to be appointed judge of the supreme
court or has been a judge of a superior court of a common law country for not
less than ten years.”(emphasis mine)
In this provision once the person is qualified to be appointed a judge of the
Supreme Court he could be appointed chief justice. On the other hand, if a
person has been a judge of a superior court of a common law country for ten
years one could be appointed as chief justice.
On the other hand, section 139 (1) of the first printed version of the
constitution reads:
“A person shall be qualified for appointment as chief justice if he/she is
qualified to be appointed a judge of the supreme court and has been a judge of a
superior court in s common law country for not less than ten years.”
(emphasis mine). This provision makes it mandatory for the person not only to be
qualified to be appointed a judge of the supreme court but must have been a judge
of a superior court in a common law country for at least ten years prior to
appointment. The two constitutions are speaking two different languages
regarding qualification for appointment as chief justice.
This duplicity in the law should not be tolerated by legal practitioners, the
administrators of the law and the makers of the law.
I am currently doing a research on the inconsistencies of the different
versions of the constitution in preparation to make a case for the drafting of the
Constitution of The Gambia (Validation) Bill.
The bar association would do this nation great justice if they start to
expose and challenge these inconsistencies in the courts in order to give
legitimacy, vitality and dynamism to the whole rectification process.
While anticipating a principled stand on the subject
I remain
Yours in the service of the nation.
Halifa Sallah, National Assembly Member
Serrekunda Central Constituency
Court Turns Down Juwara’s Bail Application
The Gambia Court of Appeal presided over by Justice Gibou Janneh has turned
down an application for bail filed by Lawyer Borry Touray seeking the release
of Lamin Waa Juwara, Secretary General of the National Democratic Action
Movement (NDAM), from prison custody.
The application which was heard by Justice Gibou Janneh in chambers was filed
by Borry Touray shortly after Juwara was convicted and sentenced to six
months of imprisonment by Justice M.A Paul for uttering seditious words contrary to
the criminal code, laws of the Gambia 1990.
Lamin Waa Juwara has already served two thirds of his prison term at Mile Two
Central Prisons. Borry Touray has also filed an appeal at the Gambia Court of
appeal challenging the conviction of his client. However, that appeal is yet
to be heard by the court.
APRC Seeks Compromise In LRD
The arrest, detention, trial and subsequent conviction and imprisonment of
Baba Jobe has definitely impacted on the political situation in Jarra,
particularly Jarra West. Anger, bitterness, frustration vacillation and feeling of
betrayal are the order of the day. The fate of Baba Jobe is the talk of the “
Bantaba”. Rumours and speculation of his release and a deal are rife.
It is in this context that the new APRC mobilizer, Mr. Bala Garba Jahumpa and
his delegation landed themselves in Jarra. Before his arrival meetings of
APRC stalwarts were held at Kaira Konko. Former Commissioner for North Bank
Division, Modou Soma Jobe, Phoday Lang Sarr, Salifu Poui and others called for
reconciliation and dialogue. They called on the youths to come out in full force
in support of the president during his “dialogue with the people” tour. They
also declared their loyalty to APRC and called on others to emulate them. In
particular Modou Soma Jobe said, “One should have faith and accept what comes
on one’s way.” A similar meeting was held in Kiang Kaiaf.
After the departure of MPs Sarr, Cham, Kambi and others the SoS for Works and
Infrastructure Mr. Bala Garba Jahumpa also came and had a meeting at the
office of the Commissioner at Mansakonko where people were transported from the
six districts with their Chiefs as team leaders.
Mr. SOS also in his words called for reconciliation within the party and
reassured the members that the president’s moves are geared towards the betterment
of the poor.
He spoke of the arrangement for the 22nd July celebrations to be
decentralized and also called on the people of LRD to welcome the president’s forthcoming
dialogue with the people tour. Commissioner Sainey Suso also made similar
contributions.
A speaker at the meeting told the SoS that there is a lot of hypocrisy going
on within the party; that this is why the party seems to lose popularity.
CONTINENT BANK: Options
FOROYAA’s office has been flooded with letters and depositors of the defunct
Continent Bank who have become angry, frustrated and disillusioned with the
lack of progress in recovering their monies. In this issue we publish an edited
version of one of the letters for the authorities to understand the plight of
the depositors and be prompted to redouble their effort to ensure that the
depositors regain their hard earned monies.
The critical situation of these depositors has led FOROYAA to conduct an
investigation into the circumstances surrounding the delay in payment of their
monies and what needs to be done to recover them.
When the bank became bankrupt the Central Bank closed it as it is empowered
to do by law. By March last year the High Court put the Continent Bank under
receivership and appointed KPMG as the liquidator. When KPMG took over
receivership the bank had only 3 million dalasis in its coffers while the total owed to
depositors amounted to 75 million dalasis.
KPMG issued public notices urging debtors to come forward and repay their
debts but little progress was made. In July and August last year 22 cases were
filed in court in a bid to recover a substantial sum of money that would enable
the firm to pay something to the debtors. The cases that involve debtors owing
more than one million dalasis are as follows:
Alhagie Kanteh D2.8 million
GAGS Construction D10 million
KSK Enterprise D4.4 million
Atom Construction D5.2 million
Phoday Lang Sarr D1.6 million
Sinchu Farms D1.3 million
Alhagie Marong D1.3 million
Global Travel Agency D2 million
Sanneh & Ceesay D5 million
Momodou Dian Diallo D1.1 million
Total D34.7 million
So far judgment has been delivered on only one case. GAGS has been ordered to
pay the D9.994 (approximately D10 million) it owes. If payment is not
effected within 30 days the properties of GAGS will be sold. The snag here is that
experts estimate the properties of GAGS to be less than D1 million.
The remaining 21 cases are yet to be dealt with.
Another problem we discovered in our investigation is that some monies will
be difficult to recover or will not be recovered at all. Some like Babanding
Sissoho owe D8 million. When his hotel was sold the amount owed to the bank was
not considered. Now, Babanding Sissoho is not in The Gambia.
Loans were also issued without addresses being taken. For example, Bensi
Contract were issued with a loan without an address being taken. The liquidators
cannot trace them to recover the D900,000 they owe the bank. There are many
cases of this nature. Furthermore overdrafts were issued to many individuals in
small amounts of a few thousand e.g. D10,000. These overdrafts, which have no
security, amount to D20 million. Staff loans amount to D1.6 million.
Progress Made So Far
What progress has been made so far? When the bank took over D3 million was
there. From the time of appointment of receivership to date, 16 million dalasis
has been collected bring the total balance to D19 million. This is only 25 %
or ¼ of the total sum owed to depositors. If this sum is shared the depositors
cannot earn more than a quarter of what is owed to them. Don’t forget that tax
and expenditure will have to be deducted before the amount is shared.
Options
What options are open for the depositors to be paid a substantial sum of
their monies if not all? The following help to facilitate the process:
a) We have seen that the total debt involved the ten major cases for
which the total sum claimed exceeds 1 million dalasis is 34.7 million dalasis.
It took about an hour to deal with the GAGS Construction case. When we asked
an officer of court whether the delay is due to the pressure in the courts she
opined that the courts are sleeping. Whatever the case may be one thing is
clear. Cases of the nature filed are not expected to take long because witnesses
are not called. The judge relies on affidavits and can dispose of a case
within an hour or two. It is also self-evident that it may take 10 to 20 hours to
dispose of the remaining 9 cases. In short, within matter of days, orders for
payment can be issued by the judge. If payment is not made within 30 days the
properties can be sold. In this way it is possible to recover D34.7 million
between June and July. When this is added to D19 million it would give a total
of D53.7 million, more than 70 % of the sum owed.
b) Accruing Interest: At the moment the D19 million deposited in
the Central Bank is not attracting interest because the Central Bank declines
to do otherwise. If this sum is invested in treasury bills it can accrue
interest at the rate of 31 % amounting to almost D6 million in a year or about D1.5
million in three months. When D1.5 million is added to D53.7 million the total
is D55.2 million i.e. 74 % of the total amount owed. In other words, it is
possible to recover ¾ of the amount owed in 3 months.
c) Your Representative Should Honour Their Words: Between them
National Assembly members owe the bank over D6 million dalasis. For example, Phoday
Lang Sarr alone owes D1.6 million. Recently he repaid a pittance of D1000 out
of the total sum of D1.6 million. If representatives make effort to pay back
the monies they owe within 3 months this will make it possible to recover more
than 80 % in 3 months. These National Assembly members should be reminded of
section112 paragraph (b) which states, “ All member shall regard themselves as
servants of the people of The Gambia, desist from any conduct by which they
seek improperly to enrich themselves or alienate themselves from the people, and
shall discharge their duties and functions in the interest of the nation as a
whole and in doing so shall be influenced by the dictates of conscience and
the national interest.”
d) Payment By Central Bank: Some experts argue that the Central
Bank is responsible for monitoring the banks and that they should take the
responsibility to provide a portion of the money for immediate payment to
depositors. They can then recover this sum from the liquidator since the recovery of
debts is taking time and depositors cannot wait for a long time.
To conclude, if these options are explored it will go a long way in resolving
the problem.
The Media and the Media Commission Act
After the ultimatum given to media houses to be registered or cease operation
and the media blackout, there was consultation between the stakeholders. This
led to an understanding between the department of state, the national media
commission and the media houses.
The following letter written by the executive secretary of the National Media
Commission was addressed to all media houses:
“Following a meeting of various stakeholders the National Commission wishes
to inform you that the period of registration of media Organisations/media
practitioners has been extended to three months. This is to enable the parties
arrive at a resolution of the matter of registration through dialogue. We wish to
state once again that the doors of the National Media Commission are always
open to all parties...”
Radio 1 FM, The Point, The Independent, Gambia News and Report, The Nation,
FOROYAA and the Gambia Press Union responded with the following letter.
“Dear Sir,
“We the undersigned representatives of the Media houses concerned do wish to
acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 17th May 2004 conveying your decision
to extend the deadline for the registration of media organizations and media
practitioners for a period of three calendar months.
“We appreciate the indication that your doors are open for discussions, which
are of mutual benefit to all parties. You would recall that your press
release is a by product of the meeting we had with the chairperson of the Media
Commission, the Secretary of State for Information, Communication and Technology
and other stakeholders. We would wish to note that the extension of the
deadline was not only designed to restrict the dialogue to the question of
registration but to incorporate the totality of our views as stakeholders in the
revisiting of every aspect of the Media Commission Act. We therefore anticipate that
the issues and understanding reached during the discussion as reflected in the
minutes attached under this memorandum will be the basis of future discussion
among all stakeholders.”
Meanwhile, consultation between the parties continues.
University Of The Gambia Science Club Biogas Project
The Science Club of the University of The Gambia was established in May 2002.
Its main goal is to promote science and technology education and embarks on
the following.
Research Activities
·Field excursions – both nationally and internationally.
Environmental Activities
·Organizing free tutorials for both students of The University of The Gambia
and outside.
In that light, the science club embarked on a gas project, which started on
the 13th of September 2003. This research project was conceived by members with
the advice of the lecturer of the University of The Gambia, Dr, Paul Mathews
and with the expert assistance from Allabatu Jatta of the Department of
Livestock services (DLS). The research plant is located at the University
Administrative Building Grounds on the MDI Road.
The principal aim of the research project is to use animal of domestic waste
to produce gas, which can be used to generate light and heat for domestic use
particularly in rural communities.
The Biogas research project will be a prototype for members of the club and
other interested students of the university to learn from its appropriate
technology and will in turn sell this technology in any community they may find
themselves after their university education.
This Biogas research project is viewed suitable for The Gambia because of the
following advantages associated with it:-
· It is an appropriate technology that can be easily accepted
· All materials involves are available locally
· Environmentally friendly
· Potential substitute for fuel wood as more than 80 – 90% of
energy for household in The Gambia comes from the forest, which may not be
sustainable
·Sustainability:- The raw materials of this research project is readily
available in this country with less cost if any.
·The decomposed raw material serves as a ready organic manure for farmers and
this can cut down the cost on chemical fertilizer for farmers.
The Biogas project, since inception has produced encouraging results because
at the first test, it generated some gas.
However, since research is an on going process, it has been realized that the
present set up of the plant has to be improved upon to maximize gas
production. It is this important expansion that requires extra funding, since all the
financial resources of the club have been used to come up with the first phase
of the project with the support of the Social Development Fund (SDF).
In this regard, the executive and members of the science club of the
University of The Gambia is soliciting financial support from individuals,
institutions, organizations, government departments and the business community for
expansion of this important research project in our academic endeavour. We do hope
that helping (students) in the University to carry out such a research means
opening a wider gateway in the expansion of the knowledge of Science and
technology in this country. We therefore solicit your kind assistance on behalf of
the club and the university of The Gambia in general.
University of The Gambia Science Club
Account Number at TRUST BANK: 1127420801, West Field
Or contact number:
(220) 99-190-69
(220) 99-884-39
(220) 99-560-93
(220) 99-316-64
Issue No. 42/ 2004, 27-30 May, 2004
Editorial
CONTINENT BANK THE WAY FORWARD
The mother of a young person currently in Germany was almost in tears as she
explained her terrible experience with the Continent Bank. They induced her to
convince her two sons to move their accounts to Continent Bank claiming that
it is a people’s bank, which gives loans without any bottlenecks to help its
customers.
Now the price of cement has gone up to D190 per bag. One of the sons wanted
to start building a house since last year but the more than ¼ of a million
Dalasis deposited at the bank is in limbo. The mother who was seen as a wealthy
person goes about to look for assistance to support her dwindling business. She
asked the son to speak to us to know that she has not misled them.
We had to reveal the sad news to the children that because of gross
mismanagement under the naked eyes of the Central Bank the Continent Bank was driven to
a crisis situation where it had only 3 million in its coffers while it owed
depositors 75 million Dalasis. We told them that the bank has been liquidated
or put out of business and its assets are being managed by a company called
KPMG.
KPMG filed 22 cases in court and judgment has been made for one of the major
debtors known as GAGS Construction. They are ordered to pay nearly 10 million
Dalasis. So far KPMG has been able to collect only 16 million Dalasis in
addition to the 3 million it received from the bank when it took charge of its
assets.
The first problem is that the courts are not functioning to handle the
emergency with speed. The delay in reaching a judgment is preventing KPMG from
recovering the sums owed through legal actions. Moreover, some of the debtors no
longer have assets that could be sold to recover the amount owed.
The second problem is that the amount collected is deposited at the Central
Bank, which does not pay any interest. In the face of rising cost of living the
depositors are being disadvantaged. It is necessary for the measures to be
put in place to enable the KPMG to invest on treasury bills or deposit the money
in an interest bearing account so that the sum collected will not depreciate
in value because of inflationary pressures.
The government needs to examine the possibility of getting a soft loan to
compensate genuine depositors while providing the enabling environment for KPMG
to recover all debts with speed.
The depositors are desperate and government should do all it can to address
their concerns.
Halifa’s Letter To President Jammeh
On The Media Commission and Media Organizations
Mr. President, Kwame Nkrumah has alluded somewhere that Africa needs a new
leadership that is neither greedy nor pompous. This is a call for accountability
and humility. It also sums up the qualities necessary in a leadership of a
sovereign people who are more public trustees of people’s power and wealth. Any
leader who is greedy or pompous is not fit to preside over the affairs of a
sovereign people.
In my view, the recent comments attributed to you regarding what should
happen should there be an impasse on the question of registration of media
practitioners and organizations after 90 days do not tally with high grade reasoning
or democratic conduct. Democratic leadership is government by consent and not
by individual whims and designs. A mature and democratic leader must be
interested in the opinion of all stakeholders in a given development before coming up
with an informed perspective which should guide policy making. In my view,
you allowed emotions to cloud your vision and spoke the language of the heart
instead of bowing down to the dictates of a well-informed mind. It is of no
surprise to me that tirades and foul language took the place of critical
appreciation of the fundamental issues being grappled with by the media practitioners,
the members of the commission and your technical advisers. The constitution
has made it very clear that the responsibilities of departments of state should
be “entrusted to competent persons with relevant qualifications or experience”
. One would have thought that before you make a comment on development that
took place in your absence you would have wanted to be briefed by your
technocrats where competence is now being put to a test by a high grade professional
and intellectual debate. Let me proceed to examine the points at issue:
First and foremost, you gave the impression that media organizations are
trying to evade registration when other organizations are registered. This
constitutes a misconception of the true state of affairs. For your information, all
newspapers are registered by the registrar general’s office. In fact it is
unlawful to publish a newspaper without registration and the signing of a bond
since the colonial period. The issuing of decree No. 70 and 71 was accompanied by
the raising of the bond from D1,000 to D100,000 or almost £2000. In fact, the
reason why there has not been the proliferation of newspapers in the country
is because of the sum involved in the bond which requires the pledging of
compounds whose values are over D100,000. In addition to this, proprietors,
publishers and editors are required by law to provide certain facts to the Registrar
General before the 31st of January of each year. All newspapers have been
adhering to this. Needless to say, a signed copy of each newspaper is submitted
to the registrar general on the day of publication to serve as evidence in any
court case.
What more does the state need as far as registration and rule of law is
concerned. All the instruments are there to make publishers, proprietors, and
editors accountable for their publications. Therefore, newspaper proprietors are
not trying to evade registration. What they are doing is to challenge the
unconstitutional provisions of the Media Commission Act.
It is common sense that when legal reforms are made they should be for the
better and not for the worse.
The National Media Commission Act first came into force in August 2002.
However, it did not take long for your technocrats to acknowledge to many of its
unconstitutional provisions, which led to either a repeal or modification of
more than 26 provisions of the Act. This should have been enough to repeal the
Act and open up consultation with all stakeholders to prepare the type of
enactment that is envisaged by Section 210 of the constitution which aims to build
up a Media Commission designed to serve as a truth and reconciliation
commission between journalists and the public or the state to avert court
intervention, which takes time and resources.
Mr. President, many of the provisions that are left are still
unconstitutional. Let me recall an obvious one for your critical appreciation. Section 4 of
the Constitution states that “This Constitution is the Supreme Law of The
Gambia and any other law found to be inconsistent with any provision of this
constitution shall to the extent of the inconsistency, be void”. Section 39 of
the Media Commission Act states that “Where any provision of this Act is
inconsistent with that of any other law, the provision of this Act shall prevail”.
In that sense the Act stands supreme. This constitutes gross contempt of
constitutional dictates. This is why many of the provisions of the Media
Commission Act are being challenged at the courts.
To make matters short, it is necessary to concentrate on the issue of
registration. Section 13(1) of the Media Commission Act states that “No person
shall, after the commencement of this Act, engage in the dissemination of
information by mass communication unless registered as a Media Practitioner or Media
Organization, as the case may be, in accordance with this Section”.
Media Practitioners interpret this to mean that no person shall engage in the
dissemination by mass communication unless one is a Media Practitioner or
Media Organization. This is in gross violation of Section 25 of the
Constitution, which states categorically that every person in the Gambia has right to
freedom of the press and other media. It reads “Every person shall have the right
to freedom of speech and expression, which shall include freedom of the press
and other media”.
The Constitution empowers every Gambia under section 6 to defend the
constitution. It makes provisions under section 5 for those who consider certain laws
unconstitutional to bring an action in the courts for a declaration to that
effect. Mr. President this is what the Gambia Press Union has done. Section
13 (1) is badly drafted and does not speak the language of Section 25 of the
Constitution.
It is therefore abundantly clear that there is a reasonable and justifiable
ground for asking the Media Commission to hold it’s breathe until the courts
preside over the action of the Media Practitioners.
From an administrative point of view your technocrats are being asked to
explain why a colonial law would accord to newspaper proprietors the right to
register their establishments and remain so unless deregistratered for breaking
the law while the Media Commission Act calls for annual registration which could
lead to administrative interference to bar registration as in the case of
Citizen FM. The Gambian Constitution asserts that laws can be made to serve as
guards and fences in the exercise of fundamental rights and freedoms. However,
it makes it mandatory that such laws must be reasonably justifiable in a
democratic society. Nothing is more undemocratic than to give an administrative
authority to determine who will disseminate information by mass communication
on an annual basis without any regulation to restrict abuse of authority and
with full immunity from civil proceedings. Section 38 reads “No civil
proceedings shall lie against a member or staff of the Commission for anything done in
the exercise of his or her official functions under or pursuant to this Act.”
Mr. President, the Media Practitioner is simply telling your government the
conditions under which the media should operate in a democratic society. You
may listen or you may dismiss the concerns with contempt. One thing I would
like to assure you is that there will be no vacuum if reason fails to prevail.
We will not hesitate to launch a Political Organ to ensure that the citadels
of tyranny are razed to the ground. On this score there will be no compromise.
We hope you will come to learn that the ears and mouth of a leader is a
collective property. Those who cannot think and act in the collective spirit
should not preside over the affairs of nations. Under a genuine democratic
atmosphere you must acknowledge the possibility of living under the leadership of an
alternative government just as others accept to live under your government.
With that spirit you would try to create the environment which the best dictate
of your mind and conscience permit while others try to prove that they can do
better. In the final analysis it is the Gambian people who stand to benefit
from the competition for best practice among diverse political forces.
We hope you will combat your opponents through examples of best practice
rather than by foul language..
This is what will promote liberty and progress.
Halifa Sallah.
Baba Jobe In Court
Bereft National Assembly Member, Ramzia Diab, together with Majanko Samusa of
the NCP and other cronies of former Majority Leader Baba Jobe were present in
court on Tuesday to witness the seven million Dalasis civil suit involving
Guaranty Trust Bank and the following defendants, Momodou Fofana, Baba Jobe,
businessman Salifu K. Jaiteh and the Youth Development Enterprise (YDE).
Baba Jobe appeared in court on Tuesday in normal attire under the escort of
prison wardens. When the case was called, the lawyer for Guaranty Trust,
Sheriff Marie Tambedou stood up to say that talks have commenced between the parties
involved except the third defendant Salifu K. Jaiteh, noting that dialogue
between parties centered on how to settle the matter out of court.
“We therefore crave your lordship’s indulgence for the matter to be
adjourned to enable us conclude settlement talks between the first defendant, Momodou
Fofana, second defendant, Baba Jobe and the YDE”, Lawyer Tambedou posited.
For his part, Lawyer Edu Gomez told the court that he received instructions
from his client to enter into a meaningful and fruitful talks in order to
resolve the issues in the suit peacefully, amicably and expeditiously.
“In the meantime, I will apply to this, court for a period of not more than
seven days from today’s date to formally file a memorandum of appearance on
behalf of my clients,” he remarked.
Surahata Janneh, the lawyer for Salifu K. Jaiteh, told the court that he
received no instructions from his client.
Justice Savage granted the application made by the parties and adjourned the
matter till 14th of June 2004.
SUKU SINGHATEH’S CASE CONTINUES IN COURT
The civil case involving the embattled Youth Development Enterprise and
National Assembly member, Suku Singhateh, resumed at the Banjul High Court on
Monday before Justice Savage.
Despite the absence of Suku Singhateh in court, the matter was called and his
lawyer Ousman Jammeh announced his representation for him. Ousman Jammeh told
the court that the parties have agreed to settle the matter out of court. The
matter was adjourned by the presiding judge.
Edu Gomez, the lawyer of the plaintiff, Youth Development Enterprise informed
this paper that Suku is cooperating so far and has in fact paid part of the
debt owed to YDE. He said they have agreed to settle the matter out of court
and Suku has promised to pay.
The Youth Development Enterprise which has been ordered by the Banjul High
Court to pay the debt it owed the GPA and the Customs and Excise Department,
recently instituted legal action against Suku after he defaulted in repaying a
debt totaling over two million Dalasis due to the plaintiff.
The Supplementary Registration Of Voters 2004
Preliminary figures of voters registered during the Supplementary
Registration of Voters held between 19th April to 17th may 2004 are listed below for each
of the Seven Administrative Areas in the country.
Banjul 1499
Kanifing 8044
Brikama 14,687
Mansakonko 5296
Kerewan 6734
Janjanbureh 8994
Basse 10,669
Total 55,923
Lists of the registered voters will be published on the 1st June 2004 by
constituency for public scrutiny in accordance with Sections 19 and 132 of the
Election Decree. Where there are omissions from these lists or objections against
any names listed, a person may with 14 days submit an appeal at any of the
IEC Offices in the prescribed “NOTICE OF APPEAL” form, for the matter to be
considered in a Revising Court.
Please note that the next Supplementary Registration of voters will take
place in 2006 prior to the Presidential Elections.
Gabriel J. Roberts
Chairman
Independent Electoral Commission
7 Kairaba Avenue
Latrikunda
P.O. Box 793
Banjul
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