My Lords,
Even if you were to wear robes woven by the mercy of Father Christmas himself—even if your vision were lined with the generosity of saints—you would find not wrongdoing, but a performance. A tempest dressed in scandal. A case full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.
They urge you to view Mr. Essa Mbye Faal through the prism of Malegan’s exposé:
“Tanji Bird Reserve Carved Up for Sale: Inside Deals to Turn Protected Land into Profit.”
But beneath its salacious title, no illegal foundation stands firm. Only speculation stitched into a theatrical narrative.
Even in a courtroom of goodwill, the facts refuse to take center stage.
Mr. Modou Nyang, a vigilant voice among citizens, spoke sharply:
“The so-called Sobeya folks certainly do not give a hoot about ethics, professionalism, and moral standards.
This guy didn’t see anything wrong in gifting a property to a witness of the TRRC, where he was lead counsel.
Nor does he find it unethical to meet government officials—including a minister and sitting president—to talk about acquiring properties while investigating wrongdoing.
Faal, the top-grade attorney, sees no conflict in acquiring property tied to suspects his tribunal was meant to scrutinize.”
If those claims hold even an ounce of truth, they warrant reflection, not silence.
Yet Mr. Faal answered. And his answer deserves its place.
Through the APP-Sobeyaa Party, he issued a rebuttal, firm, methodical, and unapologetic:
He insists he never received the final allocation or vacant possession of any property in the Tanji Bird Reserve.
He says his application was encouraged by senior officials, including Minister Hamat Bah and President Barrow.
He paid a $125,000 non-refundable levy, yet never took ownership.
He claims the site was outside the protected reserve, and no expansion into the reserve was ever legally gazetted.
Most importantly, he publicly disclosed the land application during his candidacy.
If this is truth, it must be weighed. Justice is not theater—it is scrutiny. Not of reputation alone, but of the process and the principles behind it.
This is not a Republic where the sun is said to rise from the North, and we nod in loyal obedience.
My Lord: This is The Republic of The Gambia—where truth must not be scripted, and citizens must never be extras in their own story.
This case is not a scandal. It is a distraction. It is, simply, Much Ado About Nothing.
Let that be the final curtain.
