Africa-Press – Gambia. Talib Ahmed Bensouda, Mayor of the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC), has described the ongoing Local Government Commission of Inquiry as a political witch hunt aimed directly at him.
Speaking in a recent interview, Mayor Bensouda said he believes the sequence of events surrounding the commission demonstrates that it was established with the intent to target him and his administration.
According to the mayor, tensions between KMC and the Ministry of Local Government date back to 2021, when a ministerial commission of inquiry was set up to investigate the council. He explained that KMC challenged the decision in court and won, yet the government later created an interim management committee—an action the Supreme Court subsequently dissolved after another legal challenge.
“They hoped they would defeat us in the election, then we won. Then the presidential commission of inquiry came for all councils. Then I think to Gambians, everybody knows it was a witch hunt, and it was specifically targeted towards me,” Mayor Bensouda stated.
He alleged that prior to his appearance before the commission, a number of unfounded accusations were circulated to tarnish his reputation and damage his credibility. Most of the issues raised at the inquiry, he argued, relate to administrative procedures rather than corruption or misconduct.
“The same administration appointed by the government. All it was, Talib oversaw an administration that was not following the process. Well, this is what we have been arguing for the longest time. I went to the local government select committee. I have written several letters about reforms needed to decentralize power and give mayors an executive role,” he said.
Bensouda added that without executive powers, mayors cannot be held responsible for administrative lapses committed by civil servants they neither appoint nor have the power to dismiss. “If they had given us those powers and today there is an administrative issue, I can take ownership, but I cannot take ownership of an administrative issue for people I did not appoint and cannot fire,” he stressed.
The mayor said he feels vindicated by the commission’s proceedings, claiming no evidence of wrongdoing has been found against him despite extensive scrutiny.
“I have been one of the most scrutinized politicians in this country—perhaps the most scrutinized. I’ve faced several investigations and audits, and the commission of inquiry was just the icing on the cake. Yet, not a single allegation has been proven,” he said.
When asked whether he believes the commission will be fair, Mayor Bensouda said his team is always prepared for any outcome. “For us, we always have a strategy, a political strategy, a media strategy, and a legal strategy,” he explained.
Regardless of the commission’s outcome, Mayor Bensouda expressed strong confidence in his administration’s performance. “We perform better than most councils in the history of Gambia, in my opinion, and we set the benchmark for local government. Today, looking at KMC, we set up a pace that every council is copying, and I think we have created big shoes that future councils will struggle to fill,” the Mayor said.
He added that his team remains unfazed by the commission’s proceedings. “So we are not worried about what the commission will say or what the government will do because we are ready for any eventuality.”
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