Africa-Press – Gambia. The public outcry arising from the sale of state’s forfeited “Jammaeh assets” lays bare the lack of transparency and poor governance of President Adama Barrow’s administration. This administration appears to encourage inefficiency, corruption, and mismanagement of the country’s scarce resources.
During the long dark years of the Jammeh dictatorship, Gambians took great personal risks in which many lost their lives, and suffered in countless ways to put an end to the ruthlessness and brutality of one of Africa’s most cruel dictators. President Adama Barrow is a product and the principal beneficiary of that “blood and sweat struggle” by Gambians.
With high expectations, the country was poised for a new beginning that should be characterized by administrative efficiency, good governance, economic prosperity and real democracy. Unfortunately, almost 8 year since being elected on the country’s reform ticket, president Barrow has not only reneged on the implementation of key reforms, but has instead taken the opposite direction in maintaining a Jammeh-era administrative style and system. A system that encourages cronyism, corruption, and administrative malfeasance. For whatever reasons, President Barrow opted to snub competent Gambian professionals and chose to rely on discredited members of the old dictatorship and well-known sycophants with dubious credentials, and very little or no record of public service experience.
It is therefore not surprising that his administration continues to be bedeviled by persistent allegations of serious fraud and corruption. The dissatisfaction over the President’s governance style for many Gambians, reached a climax with the publication of a report by the “Republic” newspaper which outlined alleged fraudulent dealings in the disposal of the seized assets of former President Yaya Jammeh.
It will be recalled that the government has never been transparent with the manner and method of the sale of the Jammeh assets. The administration’s Minister of Justice, when once asked to publish the names of buyers of the State seized assets, refused, and strangely cited dubious legal privacy rules. The properties seized from former President Jammeh belong to the Gambian people, and they have a right to know who bought their property, the proceeds of the sales and how the money recovered from the sales was used. Anything less, risked the suspicion and anger of the population as was the case in the current situation.
Faced with public outrage, and the threat of possible social disturbance, the Barrow administration announced a “Presidential Televised Address to the nation. The Ministry of Justice hurriedly produced a list of names of purported purchasers of Jammeh’s assets. Looking at that list, one cannot help but feel sorry about the level of incompetence that prevails in Barrow’s administration. The list produced does not even meet the standards of a Village Development Council’s (VDC) administrative document. GFA believes the president’s address to the nations was also a missed opportunity. Instead of addressing the issues of corruption and lack of transparency alleged in the “Republic’s report, President Barrow decided to, as it were, kick the can further down the line with the announcement of waiting for an audit and a parliamentary inquiry report.
The most extraordinary part of the Presidential address, however, was the President’s admission that it was only last week, 4th May 2025, that he became aware of alleged criminal malpractice of such serious magnitude happening under his watch. This begs the question: how much else does he not know about what is happening in his administration? For all these failings, GFA holds the President ultimately responsible, because he is the one Gambians voted for, and entrusted the affairs of the Gambian state to. Many of the officials in his administration are appointed by him, and serve at his pleasure. The buck therefore stops at the Presidency, period! GFA expects President Barrow to face the Gambian people and tell them what exactly happened in this unfortunate and avoidable saga.
Long Live The Gambia
Long Live GFA
Ma-Jonka House
Kanifing South 18th/May/2025
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