Africa-Press – Gambia. Malamin I.L. Bojang, who served as Chairman of the Kerewan Area Council from 2018 to 2023, has admitted before the Local Government Commission of Inquiry that he failed to address procurement irregularities during his tenure.
Bojang’s admission came during questioning by Lead Counsel Patrick Gomez, who cited the 2022 compliance report from the Gambia Public Procurement Authority (GPPA). The report revealed that the council executed 662 procurement transactions valued at D9,770,545.26—of which 650 were conducted through single sourcing, with only 12 processed via request for quotation.
“So this is not a competitive process,” Counsel Gomez noted. “Because even for this request for quotation, they will just go and get three quotations. Sometimes they just be the ones to bring these fictitious sources, and the intention will be defeated,” Counsel Gomez told Bojang.
He emphasized that procurement should involve independent assessments and competitive bidding to ensure transparency and value for money. “This should be a cause of alarm,” Gomez told the former chairman.
In his initial response, Bojang said he relied on the council’s procurement officer, whom he described as “very strict,” to handle procurement-related issues. However, Gomez pointed out that the CEO and Finance Director—both senior to the procurement officer—were the actual decision-makers.
“So if they are strict, and they are not being empowered, their strictness will go to no issue,” Gomez argued.
Bojang conceded, agreeing with the counsel’s assessment and acknowledging that there was no transparency, no market surveys, and no opportunity for competition in the council’s procurement practices. When asked directly if these issues were ever addressed during his tenure, Bojang replied that they were not, admitting they should have been.
In his testimony, Bojang also lamented what he described as the limited powers of area council chairpersons. “The act is biased in giving responsibility to the Chairman,” he said. Adding that the Act focuses on the roles of the Minister, CEO, and general council, while the chairman is only mentioned once.
Counsel Gomez stated that he had no doubts about the witness’s integrity but urged him to inform the commission if he believed there were limitations to the powers of a council chairman. He encouraged him to present his argument clearly to the commissioners.
“Chairman cannot pass any penalty during the council meetings since the chairman presides over the meeting. So when somebody misbehaves, does the chairman have the right to send the person out?” he asked.
Gomez clarified that while chairmen cannot impose penalties, they do have significant powers, including the authority to introduce standing orders. Citing Section 33 of the Local Government Act, Gomez emphasized that the law provides chairpersons with tools to govern effectively—if properly understood and applied.
“Rules of procedure section 33 of the local government act. This is not just your problem; most of us don’t have the culture of reading, so we assume positions we don’t read,” Counsel Gomez said.
The section was read aloud to Bojang, who thanked the counsel for the clarification.
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