Africa-Press – Gambia. Former Janneh Commission Secretary Alhaji Mamadi Kurang has told the ongoing parliamentary inquiry that about 400 cattle allegedly slaughtered during the sale and disposal of former President Jammeh’s assets remain unaccounted for, with gaps in custody and valuation still unresolved.
Appearing before the committee, Kurang faced pointed questions from Counsel Dibba on how livestock assets identified by the Janneh Commission were valued, managed and protected from loss. Kurang, who served as the commission’s executing officer, maintained that he acted strictly on instructions given by the commissioners and the lead counsel but stressed that some issues were beyond his responsibility.
Kurang explained that the order to value the cattle arose from a report by the Registrar General, who informed the commission that a soldier had allegedly slaughtered 400 cattle without authorisation. Despite this, Kurang said the Gambia Livestock Marketing Agency (GLMA) the body officially given custody of the livestock by a court ruling did not visibly exercise control on the ground.
“It wasn’t my responsibility to make sure they are in charge,” Kurang said, adding that when he visited the sites he only saw herdsmen and soldiers. He confirmed that GLMA staff were present for tagging and valuation but not for daily custodial duties.
Kurang also highlighted flaws in the valuation process. He told the committee that herdsmen relied on “meat value” estimates instead of market prices that would account for breeding potential and other factors. He raised concerns that calves, for instance, were undervalued by using only their immediate meat weight rather than their future worth as breeding stock.
“When I asked about weighing instruments, they said they could estimate by experience. They had no weighing scale, only a small calculator to multiply kilograms by a standard rate,” Kurang explained.
He gave an example of a calf tagged at just 8kg and valued at D1,440, illustrating the risks of underpricing.
Kurang said cattle were kept at Kanilai, Farato and Banjulinding, with Kanilai holding the largest herds spread across three sites. Despite tight security described as a “battalion of soldiers,” he confirmed that no one has accounted for the exact circumstances surrounding the missing cattle.
“It’s true, there were security men and herdsmen, but how the cattle were lost or slaughtered, I do not know,” Kurang admitted.
The session closed with Kurang acknowledging that gaps in custody and valuation could have affected the state’s ability to recover full value from Jammeh’s seized livestock. The committee is expected to continue probing how state assets were handled and why such lapses occurred.
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