This was culled from the Independent: About 60 ministers in seven years President Jammeh's hiring and firing syndrome Since the country's political status quo changed in July 1994, fifty nine ministers have been changed - either fired re-deployed to other ministries or died while in state service. The pattern of hiring and firing by President Jammeh had ensured that an average of one minister is fired every six months. Of the ministries whose name has since changed to departments following the transition to democracy in 1996, the Attorney General's Chambers has been the most embattled by the hiring and firing syndrome, with seven individuals serving from July 1994 to date. Following Amie Bensouda's short-lived stint as acing Attorney General before she was re-deployed Fafa Mbai was appointed. He was to be sacked later for alleged tax evasion and dubious monetary transfer involving huge sums into his personal accounts. He made way for Mustapha Marong who was also re-deployed. Musa Bittaye who was a July 22nd executive member took over the department for just a little over three months before Hawa Sisay-Sabally was appointed. Fatou Bom Bensouda served before she was replaced by Pap Cheyassin Secka whose stint was one of the most controversial in the wake of last year's student unrest and the flurry of constitutional amendments that continued after his sacking. The departments of Finance and Trade are the second most affected by the spate of cabinet reshuffles with each registering six ministers in as many years. The two most eventful stints at the Finance ministry has been the appointment of Bakary Bunja Babo then regarded as a political survivor of the putsche, which saw the old order written off and Ousman Koro Ceesay who died in the most mysterious of circumstances just days before he was supposed to read the 1995 budget. Bakary Dabo was sacked and subsequently detained for an alleged part in the November 11 1994 coup which was bloodily put down by Jammeh loyalists in the army. He absconded under pretext of going to Dumbutu his home village for a gamo. For Koro Ceesay he was found burnt in his official car hours after he and other state officials saw off the president who was attending an OAU summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Another eventful department had been the Interior under Sadibou Hydara who was arrested with Sana Sabally for their alleged attempt to usurp power in January 1995. Hydara was detained and allegedly tortured. Although the government citing hypertension or high-blood pressure as the cause of his death some believed he died as a result of torture. Meanwhile Lamin Kaba Bajo had replaced him as Interior minister before he was re-deployed to the Local Government department. Major Momodou Bojang replaced him for one of the most unforgettable incidents. Bojang would perhaps be remembered more with hjis war of words with BBC stringer Ebrima Sillah whom he threatened to lock up over the Ahmadiyya controversy. In 1999 Satang Jaw who since 1994 had kept her position as one of the few women ministers resigned from the education portfolio, advancing some concern for her health. She was replaced by Ann Therese Ndong-Jatta. Bemba Tambedou was removed as Works and Communication minister while he was on a familiarisation tour of institutions under him. He was accused of being "inactive". Ebrima Ceesay replaced him and served for the rest of the transition. He was a casualty of Jammeh mass firing which saw the likes of Dominic Mendy taking a forced exit. The Health department's first minister Fatoumatta Tambajang was given the sack in connection with the January 27 1995 attempted palace coup and replaced by Kumba Ceesay-Marenah. She was also sacked when she was allegedly found in the house of Abou Denton former Accountant General in the ousted PPP regime. She was accused of "insincerity". Nyimasata Sanneh Bojang replaced her briefly but was handed her marching orders for alleged financial mis-management, nepotism and favoritism. She was replaced by Isatou Njie-Saidy. Lamin Kaba Bajo was sacked last year for an alleged official misconduct involving the controversial Sinchu Yahi land deal. He denied any wrongdoing. The office of the vice chairmanship (vice president) has not been left out of the rash of cabinet reshuffles. Sana Sabally the maverick vice chairman of the then AFPRC fell from grace in January 1994 after an alleged palace coup he reportedly masterminded to unseat Jammeh. His sacking and subsequent arrest followed reports that he was cursed by Gambisara elders whose wrath he incurred in the heat of a mosque crisis there. The crisis was said to have sparked a so-called AFPRC power dynamics with opposing camps of the same council pitted against each other. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ --------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------