(JollofNews) – State prosecutors in the Gambia have filed criminal charges against former Gambian spy chief and eight other for the murder of political activist Solo Sandeng.
Yankuba Badgie, Saikou Mar Jeng, Haruna Susso, Baboucarr Sallah, Lamin Darboe, Lamin Lang Sanyang, Louis Gomez and Yusupha Jammeh are charged with conspiracy to commit felony contrary to laws of the Gambia and have since been remanded at the Mile Two Central prisons.
Mr Sandeng, national organising secretary of the then main opposition United Democratic Party (UDP), was arrested on 14th April 2016 by security officers after he led an ‘unauthorised’ street protest against the former regime of President Yahya Jammeh at the busy Westfield junction some 12 kilometres away from the capital, Banjul, and displayed a banner with the slogan: “We Need Proper Electoral Reform”.
After his arrest, he was moved to the feared National Intelligence Agency’s headquarters in Banjul where he was tortured and killed within a few hours.
The Gambia government has admitted his death in custody and medical records said he died as a result of breathlessness. His body is yet to be released to his family for burial and in a media interview in May, ex-President Jammeh rejected calls for an investigation into Mr Sandeng’s death, as it was “common” for people to die in detention or while under interrogation.
The former spy chief who was axed earlier this month by President Adama Barrow, was arrested along with other operatives on Monday.
They are the first senior Gambian officials to be charged in connection with right abuses committed with impunity by the Jammeh regime.
Mr Jammeh, who ruled the Gambia from 1994 to January 2017, is currently leaving in exile in Equatorial Guinea.
Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful. Best news out of the New Gambia. Clearly if found guilty they cannot be put to death but they must server a LIFE-TERM. Let us hope that their testimony leads to charges being laid against Yayhya Jammeh himself – since he is alleged to have given the orders for the killing.
GOOD LEADERSHIP IS MEASURED BY ITS COMPASSION AND EGALITARIAN QUALITIES NOT ITS CRUELTY TOWARD ITS PERCEIVED OPPONENTS:
Let us all be mindful in our seemingly gleeful celebration of the news of the arrest of one Yankuba Badjie alleged to have Being involved in the alleged killings of those arrested by NIA, the Gambia’s Internal Security Service. Being arrested and charged is not Synonymous with guilt. The Officials should also be mindful in their Public and Private Comments and Opinions about the Case as well as the guilt or lack of it. Any Country with a rudimentary Legal and Judicial System will find it impossible to find an Acused guilty in a Fair and Impartial Trial, if the Officials within the Government imply, infer, implicitly or explicitly that the Acused are guilt without the benefit of a Trial within a Law Court. It would render any Verdict Prejudicial, Tainted and “Spoiled Fruit”, and thus, Should be thrown out and Nullified. That does not mean that the Acused cannot be tried again. Far from it. They can be. However, they cannot be tried for the Same Crimes that they were found not guilty of. This is due to the Double Jeopardy Rule. They may be charged on other Charges, if and when such Charges are deemed Prosecutable based on Solid Evidence, not on Conjecture, Hear say, and Rumour. The evidence must be Corroborated and meet the Legal Standards required by Law. There is a tendency to get into a Mob Rule State and “Rail road” alleged Accused persons of Crimes such as Torture, Murder and Extra- Judicial killings as a means of Settling Scores. Such Kneejerk, Impulsive and Unlawful approach to addressing and resolving alleged Abuses need to be Avoided so as not to create and generate an Opposite and Equal Negative Reaction to what otherwise, would be received by most Fair minded Gambians as a “Lawful Exercise” of the available means of dispensing “Justice”. Party Militants and Mouthpiece of any and all Political Parties should be Cautioned about their Unconditional and Unrestrained, No holds barred and Wholesale Condemnation and Demonization of all Jolas and all former President Yaya Jammeh’s APRC Officials and Supporters. Gambia is not a One Party State and has never been such a State. The fact that a given Party or Ethnic Interest Group Party is in power, does not Greenlight that Party or Ethnic Interest Group to engage in a Witch hunt of its Own. That would be a grave mistake and would come to hunt us all. Let’s Conduct ourselves in a manner that is Consistent with Compassion, Due diligence and Honesty, Wrapped in Accountability, Transparency, Responsibility and Care toward all Gambians. In our Collective grieve and guilt, let us as Gambians endeavor to exercise Restraint, Common sense in thought and behavior, least we become what we Accused others we sit in judgement of doing. That would be a travesty of Justice and Color our Gambia in a perpetual color of grieve and pain. We do not want to Pass on such a Legacy to Gambians yet unborn. Gambia is more than the Sum total of One Individual, One Ethnic Group, or Region. One Gambia One People, One Destiny.
You have the brass neck to preach compassion and considered this noble act of bringing these people to justice as cruelty to opponent is an insult to all good thinking Gambians irrespective of their tribe,religion or gender. How far are you going to take this foolish? What happened to you my friend? Families are still frantically searching for their loved ones dead or alive and you gloating about honesty, transparency,responsibility and care towards all Gambians, aspects totally absent during the 22 years of Yahya Jammeh’s misrule. Where was your voice my friend, during those dark days of our country’s history. I will remind you of the tragic situation of Daba Marena. He was arrested 11 years ago,never charged of a crime, never appeared in any court and his family still dying to know if he is alive or death.These and countless other illegal incidents perpetuated by those controlled by the state against innocent Gambians for the last 22 years can’t be allowed to go unpunished. Those blinded by their loyalty to Jammeh and hatred for Mandinkas,those good preachers of 2017 should know that justice delayed is justice denied. Those educated among us should be our role models, not our hate mongers, should enlightened not to divide. Sidi Bojang — We Mandinkas still love you. We don’t hate that’s why we are Mandinkas.
Natty Dread, Buba Sanyang, and your fellow travelers who hold to the Provincial, Ethnocentric Diet and Philosophical believe that Criticism of the Adama Barrow, Mai Fatty and Ousainou Darbo regime’s False Starts, and Alarming Narrow Minded Policy Pronouncements full of Mishaps and Near Disasters; are “mandika hating” Individuals”? Even, you can’t be serious. Either you are indulging in Self-delusional exceptionalism, or you lost a few of your Marbles. From the get go, you and your Anti- Coup d’etat Makers of 1994 and then Against former President Yaya Jammeh’s APRC and especially former President Yaya Jammeh himself, mostly after he was identified or known to be a Jola, the Extremist within your Camp started hauling and throwing any and all insults, and demonization, character assassination, and obstruction boardered on Tresson. In fact, No less than Four or more Treasonous Acts were undertaken against the APRC and former President Yaya Jammeh’s regime by your fellow travelers. If the Narrative is confined to the allegations of the alleged Crimes Committed against all Ethnic Groups in the Gambia during the Second Republic and Not an attempt to pick and choose the “Good mango”, “Bad mango”, approach toward the Perpetrators on one side and the Victims on the other, I would not have been heard from. However, that was not and is not the Narrative you and your Outfit of Ethnic based Militants who were and still Fed and Pushed to Peddle Insidious and Subliminal messages Packed and Loaded with Deadly and Noxious Propaganda Against the Jola because of former President Yaya Jammeh’s tribal affiliation. This Brew is Spread and Shared with any and all who usually do not analyze the Raw and Crude Insidious and Subliminal messages before Parroting the same to Gambians and the International Community for years and especially the past months to the present. I respond to Malfeasance, Dereliction of Responsibility and Duty, and Despotic behavior of anyone and from all those who would like to SILENCE Constructive and Instructive Criticism and Pushback. It is childish, immature, and also telling and revealing, when Access to the Seat of Power and the benefits associated with that access is defined and implemented in terms of Ethnic Group numbers within the population of the Nation. Such manner of governance based on the Ethnic Group at the Top while the rest of the other Ethnic Groups are used as “Window Dressing” Props has been tried and tested and found Wanting and Self-delusional and Defeatist in the Long run. This is an ago old Marginalization and Despotic behavior in the Gambia and Africa in general. It makes a mockery of the idea of a Nation, or of Equal Ethnic Groups and Interest working for a Common Agenda and Purpose. It Undermines the idea and philosophy of the National Anthem’s Proclaimation of “For The Gambia, Our Home Land….” and not “For The Gambia, Mandika majority land, or Fula, Jola, Serere, Sarahule, or Wollof Home Land….”. I estimate that close to Half of the current Gambian population were born during or very close to the 1980-81 before or after The bloody Coup d’etat. This significant fact, is not usually analyzed and laid out in its right Context to most of the current Gambian Pundits, and the Up and Comming Political Party Militants who may or may not even be old enough to have a Reliable and Trustworthy Sources of Information and Narrative that lays out a dispassionate over view of the Gambia of 1965 to 1970, and from 1970 to 1980. This is also due in part to the Conservative Government of The David/Dauda Jawara’s 32 years in Power and its Aversion and Distrust of Intellectuals and the Intelligencia. Thus, there was no attempt to Create Centers of Education and Research such as Colleges and Universities in the Gambia until APRC and former President Yaya Jammeh’s regime. Information was Tightly Controlled and Disseminated on many occasions was Manipulated and Disseminated on an “as needed” basis. There was only a single Radio Station in the Gambia (Radio Gambia) and No Television Station. Until a Private Pirate Radio Station off of the Gambian Coast succeeded in getting a License to Operate in the Gambia came on Shore and built Radio Syd, the only Radio Station was Radio Gambia. For a long time, even Radio Gambia was Not Available Nor Received in the Provinces. The young Militants currently hawling and tooting about one how great the First Republic under David Dauda Jawara’s PPP 32 Years Regime cannot be expected to be informed of the Facts and Realities of the Period “Years of the “Void”. The only News Paper, The Gambia News Bulletin was about Five or at the Maximum Seven Pages and was Published Weekly and not available beyond the Metropolitan areas and a Select Provincial Trading Centers with a few individuals who can afford the Subscription or Sale price the limited information offered. The Production quality was Poor and not Consistent. One edition would be OK and another would require the reader to wash their hands to clean the ink that sometimes coats the readers’ fingers. The uninformed novice readers learn quickly that they should never ever place or put “The Gambia News Bulletin” in a light colored Pants Pockets as was the Common practice with Magazines such as Time, The Times of London, Ebony other News that would be read and passed on from friend to friend for eternity or until it is in tatters. Back to the Poor quality of the Gambia News Bulletin, the Uninitiated reader who makes a mistake and puts or places the Folded Gambia News Bulletin in the earlier indicated places of their clothes would render the clothes or Uniform discolored and ready for a Washing. These are facts and Reality I grew up in the Gambia. Not “Alternative Facts” that are being Spun by some who should or ought to know better about the other Reality of the First Republic under David/Dauda Jawara’s PPP Regime especially from 1975 to 1994, but either Don’t or Deliberately engage in Subterfuge and Denial of the Truth. Independent, Professional Multi Media such as News Papers, Radio Stations and Television came into the Gambia following First, when George Best of Liberia who had to leave Samuel Doe’s Liberia for Gambia where he was Offered Temporary Assylum, who Set Upp Shop in the Gambia by Re-Establiblishing his Private News Paper, “The Observer” which is the current “Gambia Observer”. It was under APRC and former President Yaya Jammeh’s regime when an explosion of News Media Outlets Sprung up in the Gambia. Not before. That does not mean that all media were permitted to operate the way they desire to operate without government setting guidelines. That did not happen and should not. I venture to wager with anyone who can Verifiably Show me any government worth its Citizens’ Trust and Mandate, that does not have some Agreed upon Guidelines for the Media in their Republican dispensatiin. Again, I am not a Partisan Militant for any Party in the Gambia, nor for any Politician yet. I have never Supported any Politician or Party in any Material way or form yet. Now, however, that is going to change. I will Support and Electronically Canvas for a given Party or better yet, Candidate who Provides a Policy Platform that Outlines and Demonstrates an In-depth, Widespread and Effective Development Blue Print for the Next Presidential Elections following the “Hang-Over” from Mishaps and Near Disasters of the current Adama Barrow, Mai Fatty and Ousainou Darbo regime. Gambia is more than the Sum Total of One Individual, One Ethnic Group or Region. One Gambia, One People, One Destiny.
Yes Sidi N Bojang, don’t worry justice will prevail, this guy was tortured to death just for political believe. So the law comes fair and balance to them. Compared to jammehs time and his regime such justice is hard to find jammehs time. Conclusions killing and rape is a very serious crimes any where in this world except where dictatorship is present.
There is one thing,that i could not understand, why jammeh invented jungullars?
What justification does jungullars has to do to the people of gambia? Did gambia need such kind of people to be a jungullar?
@Sidi N Bojang, you sound very tribalist, and I warned you about tribal confliction and the danger of its. I wonder where do you lived? In the gambia or outside gambia. As for me I have both mandinkas and jolas and wollof in my system follows with fulas, I will be only honest to tell you that ethnic conflict doesn’t score political platforms it worsen situations,as far as I know mandinkas are still a large ethnic groups so what best for us is to make some kind of political discussions which will bring a better society than going back to jammehs era were he used to openly insulted mandinkas and even wollof. Again Sidi N Bojang all these are on record just mind am not here to threaten you, just to point out areas were you may not seeing it.Ethnicity is very sensitive, gambia was born to love each other, happy together smile together and respect each other and follows the rule of law, bottom line is to be fair and honest to each other and to ensure justice guide all of us.
Just the first lunatic sentence in bold writing is an indication of guilt in your person with regards to atrocities committed against Gambians and non-Gambians alike, during the terror regime of Yaya and cohorts.
@Sidi, the government in place is NOT out for Witch hunt against anyone. The coalition government is here for all Gambians irrespective of ethnic tribal line. However, for 22 years, our country had been ruled under a tyrant, who had no respect for humanity. Anyone who in one way or the other contributed directly or indirectly towards torturing and/or killing of innocent Gambians and foreigners, MUST face justice. This got nothing to do with witch hunting against any jolas or anyone from other ethnic tribes. Hundreds of people are “missing” and their loved ones needs answers. You should be in their shoes and then then would understand the pain. The government will see that truth prevail and all those involved must dance to the music for the tortures and killings…
How I wish you wrote this article 22 years ago for the brutal dictator and his hench men you seems to be defending to read…….
I hope they all go down like lead, if found guilty! In my mind, henchmen represent the worst of the worst of the worst, and they were henchmen – and they know it too! I feel sorry for their women folks though, as they would have suffered the oppression of being married to the dumbest of people, whom they no doubt knew were up to no good, but were powerless nonetheless to take any stand against their men, and who will now suffer the indignity of being associated with alleged killers!
Samba, some people are despicable and blinded by hatred. So they cannot see the truth even if the truth hit them between their eyes. It would have been funny to read some of the comments here in defence of Yahya but it is not funny. There are still Gambians who are yet to know what happened to their loved ones. Mothers, fathers, wives and children still waiting for their daddies to come home. If anyone thinks it is moral to just write some twisted fabricated commentaries to distort the truth then they are mistaken. It is not an allegation that Solo Sandeng died in state custody, it is a fact. And this was confirmed to the whole world by none other than Yahya Jammeh. Yankuba Badjie as the DG of NIA has a duty of care to Solo and any other person arrested and detained by his agents. It is his duty to make sure that there are systems and procedures in place to protect the human rights and dignity of all detainees, that due processes are followed and that they have prompt access to medical attention if they need one. He did not only failed in his duty of care he has also treated Solo’s family with contempt by not giving his body to the family for a proper Muslim burial. The state should add the unlawful disposal of human remains to his charge sheet.
Right very right
No more nonsense
No more nonsense
Finished with nonsense
The “DEVIL & INCARNATES will always be in denial”; such as “IBLIZ(A) kanilai Lucifer & the syndola empire ALMUNAFIQUN HYPOCRITES”…
Humanity & truth which is God HIMSELF must & will always triumph & prevail upon falsehood, blatant aggression & transgression no matter how it takes whenever & wherever issues come to play…
The Gambia is liberated from potential EVIL kanilai FIEFDOM intended doom; this must be consolidated upon for humanity upliftment & progressive advancements into catch up with rest of decent world…
In any just society, whence one never involved in unlawful transgression against others, one can always live at peace with oneself, & community at large without any worries…
But WHOSOEVER committed felony against Gambia in the humanity crimes committed under the MURDEROUS OPPRESSIVE kanilai FIEFDOM will all face the Truth & Reconciliation screening for rightful redresses as necessary…
Nothing less is expected…
Long live the Gambia…
Guys, don’t waste your precious times and energies responding to hate mongers. Yankuba Badgie, Saikou Mar Jeng, Haruna Susso, Baboucarr Sallah, Lamin Darboe, Lamin Lang Sanyang, Louis Gomez and Yusupha Jammeh, these are the people arrested and charged. Only a hypocrite will attempt to portray this as a witch hunt against Jolas. Of these eight how many are Jolas? But even if they are all Jolas so what? Victims of Jammeh’s atrocities should not be denied justice because we do not want to hurt the feelings of Jolas. The people who committed these crimes did not commit them in the name of Jolas. Now that they are about to face justice their hypocrite sympathisers want to use the tribal card to deny victims justice. We, the people, should never let that happen, for without justice there can never be peace. I am pretty sure that a good majority of Jolas have never and will never condone the crimes committed by Jammeh and his cohort. Looking at these surnames, it is evident that those arrested belong to different ethnicities. Where is a Jola dimension in this? Lamin Lang Sanyang and Yusupha Jammeh can be either Mandinkas or Jolas. I am Sanyang but I am a Mandinka. It is absurd to say that the arrest of Yankuba Badjie and co. is a vendetta against Jolas because Yankuba’s mum is a Mandinka. Her name is/was Binta Daffeh. I am appealing to all progressive thinking Gambians to ignore comments from hypocritical, despicable, dishonest hate mongers whose only wish is to see a Gambia that is up in flames. Such people are provoking peace loving Gambians to react violently just to see their prophecies of doom fulfilled. But they will never succeed, they should learn from history. Jammeh has tried it and it became his downfall. Anyone else who tries to divide us will end up just like Jammeh. In the Gambia almost every compound has a family member who is married to or from a different tribe or religion. That is why we have strong unbreakable bonds.
Sidi, ramble on for eternity. I have better things to do. I have no time or energy to waste on a bitter twisted old man. Let your bitterness consume you alone.
Our unity, peace, security and justice are our basic foundation to lasting development and the reinforcement of our democracy. We should do our best to defeat CORRUPTION, without which we are bound to fail
PEACE IN GAMBIA OR UNION FORCE WITH SENEGAL Unity, peace, security and justice can not exist in The Gambia, our country Senegal will never have peace. Ethnic rivalries in the Gambia if they are not outdated and a tribal regime still rule Senegal will be forced to ask for a federation Senegal can not be indifferent to conflicts between Mandinka / Diola Mandinka / Wolof Mandinka / Peulh.
If there is an ethnic armed conflict in The Gambia, Senegal will militarily intervene and no longer withdraw from that country. In fact, there will be a union or a federation
Damel, take your psychiatric medication and go to bed. Try and see your psychiatric in the morning to increase your dose. Any attempt to annex Gambia militarily will be the beginning of the end of peace in Senegal.