A Cry From Mile ll
The Gambia’s transitional justice programme promised ‘Never Again’, but for those trapped within the walls of its prisons, it is more or less the same old story.
The Gambia’s transitional justice programme promised ‘Never Again’, but for those trapped within the walls of its prisons, it is more or less the same old story.
They left for the oil-rich Kingdom of Saudi Arabia with giggles and big dreams for their babies and sick parents. But they were brought back quietly, broke and traumatised.
Millions of dalasis allocated to compensate victims of President Jammeh’s abuses have yet to reach them, even as some die from treatable health conditions. At the same time, the fate of money generated from the sale of Mr. Jammeh’s assets remain shrouded in mystery, including the multi-million dollar U.S. mansion.
Mr. Tambadou’s appearance on Monday is expected to be closely watched, as it marks a key moment in the National Assembly’s ongoing investigation into the management of assets seized from President Jammeh.
Malagen has obtained the results of the UDP’s rare selection process for the party’s presidential candidate. We sat down with the no-nonsense official overseeing the shortlisting to break it down. The party is expected to announce later today its candidate to face off against President Adama Barrow in next year’s presidential election.
Some said that is so because top gov’t officials who reportedly benefit from contracts they award on behalf of security institutions are blocking draft laws meant to modernise and give these agencies greater autonomy in how they operate.
The death of one-month-old Baby Sarjo comes only weeks ahead of a crucial Supreme Court ruling on whether the legislative ban on the circumcision of girls violates the rights of those who want to keep the practice. Her 30-year-old mother said she wasn’t aware when her baby girl was cut.
The Government has quietly divided and doled out a large tract of land - equivalent in size to more than 30 standard international football fields - believed to be carved out of the Tanji Bird Reserve by President Jammeh. The new owners - well, those named so far - include lawyer and politician Essa Faal; a Senegalese businessman and financier of President Barrow, Khalilou Wague; and a Gambia-based Indian businessman, Nandkishore Rajwani, who reportedly uses different names to amass land from the state.
The government made more than 126 changes when revising the draft constitution. About half of these concern provisions related to anti-corruption, human rights and checks on the president’s power. Almost all of them were gutted, and now Mr. Ibn Chambas is pushing to succeed where former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan fell short
The contest in Banjul on Saturday between recent former allies, the ruling coalition and a former ruling party backed by the opposition, promises to be a hard-fought battle - a symbolic test of political strength with a year and a half until the presidential election. Kaddy JawoKaddy Jawo heads Malagen's media monitoring and factchecking desk. She is also an investigative reporter. When the United Democratic Party (UDP) defeated its arch-rival, the ruling National People's Party (NPP) in the Kiang Masembeh by-election, its officials declared the victory a sign of what could happen in the 2026 presidential election. Yet the main opposition...
