“The GPA Management has monitored online publications purporting that the institution is sponsoring the construction of a police station at Mankamangkunda and wish to posit as follows….”
No! Incorrect… None is “purporting” anything here. It is a fact. There is evidence to support the online claim. And yes, “the institution is sponsoring the construction of a police station at Mankamang Kunda”. The Press Release confirmed it. It is the GPA which is trying to hoodwink the public or engaging in obfuscation.
“….The IGP had sent a request to the GPA for the financing of the construction of 3 police stations in URR, namely, Bakadaji, Mankamangkunda and Fatoto……”
Everything is unprocedural, if not wrong, about this If the IGP wants to construct police stations, the institution to send such a request to is supposed to be the Ministry of Interior which is the line Ministry of the Gambia Police Force.
This also smacks of very poor planning on the part of the IGP. When preparing its budget for the 2019 fiscal year, the IGP is expected to know and indicate in its budget the number of police stations he intends to build in 2019, the number of officers required, the overheads for these and every other expenditure to be incurred. This is because it is the responsibility of the State to provide security for its citizens and the IGP to ensure the State fulfils such an obligation. Poor planning on the part of the IGP is not supposed to ignite a SOS intervention from another State entity.
After all, since we are in the second balance of 2019 and the Call Circular for 2020 budget is already out, what is the haste in constructing 3 new police stations when there is no money in the kitty of the Police? Why can’t it wait for 2020? Citizens would be right to speculate that political expediency, and not community spiritedness, is what has precipitated this support.
When GPA constructs these police stations, would it also provide vehicles and fuel, stationery, equipment and all for their effective operation? And other allowances for the Police officers who would be posted thereto? A Force that doesn’t have money to construct 3 police stations cannot be expected to have funds for their running costs. Certainly, the IGP can only factor these in its 2020 budget. Or seek financial support from another State entity or benefactor.
“…which the Authority had considered under its CSR along the lines of similar interventions in the health, education, agriculture, sports and other sectors….”
Really? Corporate Social Responsibility (CRS) from a public enterprise set up by the State to provide citizens the relevant goods and services? Is GPA a business entity, solely profit making? What “social responsibility” is there to give back to its customers? Section 7 of the Ports Act (Vol.10 Cap 68:01 Laws of the Gambia) clearly spells out the “Duties of the Authority” while Section 7 outlines the “Powers of the Authority”. If there is any “CSR” mentioned in the aforementioned Sections, there are mainly related to the duties of the Authority, in particular staff welfare, staff skills development, provision of accommodation to staff, providing loans to increase efficiency of service of staff.
We know that under the Jammeh Government, public enterprises, corporations, MDAs, etc., competed for attention by sponsoring or funding every type of project, from beauty pageantry to youth camps to APRC meetings to furnishing of hospital wards to football tourneys. Some did most probably out of fear of reprisal; others, to outdo each other in the Most Favoured Enterprise status.
Unfortunately, these support are called “Corporate Social Responsibility”, both a misnomer and a disservice to the term. The support had no direct benefit to either their customers or the communities whose affected by their services or profit making ventures.
In a new democratic dispensation, i expect the GPA to not only do the right things but to also, and most importantly do things right. Instead of funding the construction of police stations or doing whatever it thinks are its Corporate Social Responsibility, the GPA should think of expanding and enlarging the port services, to downsize the congestion in Banjul and increase its volume, renovating wharves to revitalise the river transportation services, strengthen the capacities of its workers and improve its current services. It should concentrate on the effective implantation of its Master Plan, if it has one, and leave CSR to the private sector and others.
“….The design, tender and supervision was contracted to GAMWORKS under a Delegated Management Contract (DMC) and the construction works were awarded to the 3 most responsive local firms that submitted bids…..”
Ok. But your press release earlier claimed that online publications were purporting that you were sponsoring the construction… And you contracted the “design, tender and supervision” to GAMWORKS and you also awarded the construction works to the “3 most responsive local firms….? Who is actually sponsoring the construction if not GPA? How dare you got so actively involved in what you aren’t sponsoring? Certainly not out of being busybody. You have a vested interest.
“….Notwithstanding, the appropriate governance procedures were followed at the level of the Ministry of Finance and the GPA Board of Directors and decision was obtained for the relevant payments to be offset against the liability that the GPA owes to Government, which is normally settled in bi-annual installments….”
This is the cunning part. GPA owes the Government some money or payments and instead of paying that directly into the State’s coffers, it is offsetting that liability by constructing 3 police stations in where they are least needed. By building the Police stations, GPA is admitting it has the resources to pay its liabilities. Why it did not pay directly but waited until it got a request for support from the GPF should be a subject of audit enquiry. I smell foul play here.
I cannot understand why the Ministry of Finance did not ask the GPA to pay its liability directly into the Government accounts and the Ministry then decide whether or not the request of the Police meets its guidelines and rules for state funding. The building of the Police stations shouldn’t have been used as bargaining chip for GPA’s failure to pay to government on time. A dangerous precedent has been set, if it isn’t a tradition already.
“…The request for the financing of these projects did not ensue from directives issued by the Office of the President….”
Well…. It doesn’t have come from the Office of the President. This is political sycophancy in the open. And yes, GPA can claim that it has done such services in the past, to please the Executive. What can explain the choice of Mankamang Kunda for a Police station?
“….It is hoped that the above will serve to shed light on the handling of the URR police stations project….”
Nope….. It is now murkier, if not darker. You have dimmed the lights…. GPA is established for a purpose and management and the Board must work to fulfilling that. Gambia may be better placed as a seaport in the subregion but we have competitors too and how we expand and what services are available and their efficiency will determine how long we enjoy the luxury of our location. Corporate Social Responsibility won’t give us the game.
I hope that the Management will come out with better explanation. Hoodwinking the public is a disservice…. Public office is a public trust….
A good response to the press release by the GPA. In fact, the GPA press release has exposed the management even more, thereby making their attempt to cover up rather laughable.
The government and its ministries should take their hands off the public corporations to let them grow. No sensible investor would put money in any of the public corporations (NAWEC, SSHFC, PORTS, ETC) as long as there is lack of transparency and accountability in the way we run our public institutions.
The GPA management should be ashamed of themselves.
You can’t just puzzled it out how these nincompoops like running back door deals in the heart of government? Is it because they lack the necessary qualifications to understand procedure? Why is a police chief or whoever from the police department be acting like a damn property developer?
Oh .., now I understand what police chiefs may have in stake from such dubious and rogue transactions that are absolutely not there competence. They want to get closer to money and material during the construction of those buildings. How can a population rely on a police force of rodents?
One may have thought endeavours have taken us somewhere before some so-called public figure of a c*** would prove himself to be that dumbest of asses.
Hey, I love Gambia but hate many of its people in public offices. Most of the should be in their farms farming. Most of them can’t do anything better than that. ****!
The blame of mismanagement in our public institutions lies squarely on all those who voted a watchman/real estate commercial dealer president.
Real estate dealers, akin to swindling, stealing and defrauding, know no language beyond amassing money by any means. That’s the true portrait of Barrow, the Chief Thief. Adama Barrow knows nothing, money and just money!
Why blame the police, the GRA and other institutions for corruptible acts, while the Chief Ali Baba and wife Fatumata Bah are amassing millions from the poor taxpayers’ money?
I cited the GRA boss, I think one Yankuba, for corruption by donating a brand new vehicle to Barrow in the early 2017 but nothing was said about that on this forum.
I cited the corrupt cases of Barrow’s office renting at SeneGambia, Fajara, the refurbishing of the state house, the lavish expenditures in Senegal, at the UN, at Mankamang Kunda and just recently, Fatumata Bah’s trip( with family and friends) to Mecca.
The norm in the Gambia is simple; when public employees observe a systemic behaviour of nepotism, corruption and tribalism at the top, they entrench the same culture in their domain of control/influence knowing full well that nothing, absolutely nothing will come out what they do. They know Gambians home and abroad are naive, numb and “Allah-fearing”.
An anecdote of state entrenched corruption: I have a niece back home who wanted a Gambian/ECOWAS passport(D3,050) a Gambian/ECOWAS IDCard(D450). She had to buy and fill forms which are done by an officer though she could do it herself. The officer receives D25 for filling each form for each applicant. Each form costs another D25.
To continue the process from the two different issuing offices, you have to slot D300-D400 in the forms to facilitate the process or your application will be unnecessarily delayed for weeks if not months.
Imagine travelling to get your results only to be returned home if you haven’t introduced any bribe money in your forms.
You’ll not receive your passport ID card without spending a handsome D4000(passport) and D600(ID card), the least.
I wanted to refuse sending money but my niece’s urgent case in a deplorable corrupt situation just put me on my knees. Who do I blame?
Where do the poor taxpayers stand?
This trend will continue unabated because none of the officers is AFRAID of BALUWO at the her/his place of work!!!
1) Has Ousainou Darboe paid his overdue tax arrears of over D400,000 he evaded?
2) Has Fatumata Bah returned the D25 million?
3) The Chief architect of the Faraba Banta killings, Landing Kinteh is Ambassador to Turkey. And what about the victims’ families?
I cannot enumerate all the failures of the INEPT administration.
I’m more determined than ever before to march the streets of Westfield, Serrekunda, Banjul, Latrikuna Sabiji, Gunjur, Brufut, Tanji, Lamin, Kartong, Faraba Banta, Kerewan, Katchang, Bakau, SeneGambia, Brikama, Basse, Bureng, Brikamaba, Farafenni, Soma, Barra, Bansang, Janjanburay, Lamin Koto, Pasamas, Fatoto, MoriJabuKunda in December until the CORRUPT, INEFFICENT, TRIBALIST bunch of the Barrió IDIOTS quit!
Those assertions I thinks are irrefutable and that the early bells should have been note worthy. Readers however are very likely to be evasive with their reading attitudes if they should see crystal clear evasiveness, bias and bigotry through what is being cited. Sincerely, I am of the view that a PhD is as important a title as a Hollywood Oscar. What makes the difference is how the holders handle those titles in their hands and on their heads.
Besides all the above, one can vote for something now and next regret it. I don’t mean the meaning of ‘regret’ culturally and traditionally. I mean “regret” politically. The latter, clearly is politically reversible, when culturally and traditionally i think maybe is irreversible. If I for instance voted for some angel like face and find out is a @Babu like soul, what can I do?? Participate in elections and vote him out. If he refuses defeat after himself conceding, metal birds will fly over his head and their thunder will make him flee like a lightening Bolt, to exile in a big rat’s hole.