Africa-Press – Gambia. Abubacarr M. Tambadou, the former attorney general and minister of justice, told a National Assembly special select committee on Monday that leases held by former President Yahya Jammeh in the Tourism Development Area had been revoked well before the Janneh Commission completed its inquiry into Jammeh’s finances.
Appearing for a second time before the committee investigating the sale and disposal of Jammeh’s assets, Mr. Tambadou said the ministerial task force established after the commission did not review the Tourism Development Area properties because the government had already taken action.
“Even before the Janneh Commission concluded its work, the government had canceled the leases held by former president Jammeh to land in the TDA area; the land had reverted back to the state at that point,” he said.
Aji Sainey Kah, the committee’s lead counsel, pressed him on whether the cancellations applied to all of Jammeh’s TDA leases. Mr. Tambadou said he had submitted a list of the revoked properties but could not confirm whether the action covered every parcel.
“I don’t recall now whether it comprised all of the land within the TDA area, but there were certain parts that were the subject of these leases, which were canceled,” he said.
He said the decision to terminate the leases was made by the cabinet. Asked how that decision aligned with the existing freezing order and the ongoing work of the Janneh Commission, Mr. Tambadou said the freezing measures were not based solely on the commission’s findings.
“There is a misconception,” he added. “The freezing order was also premised on investigations initiated by the Attorney General, which extended beyond the borders of The Gambia.”
Mr. Tambadou said that in 2017, the cabinet directed him to apply for a variation of the freezing order on the TDA properties because Jammeh had failed to fulfill the lease conditions. The first application was rejected, but a second request—submitted with additional information—was approved by a new High Court judge.
“With the leases canceled and the land legally back under state control, the ministerial committee had no mandate as such to discuss or decide on those TDA lands,” he said.
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