Battle lines are about to be drawn at the KMC as prospects of more than 170 council workers, losing their land acquired under a council arrangement, loom larger.
However, JollofNews has learned from credible sources that the KMC mayor Talib Bensouda has decidedly side-stepped the issue as tensions escalate.
Nearly seven years ago, 175 lowly-paid workers of KMC, including drivers and watchmen, started paying a monthly contribution of D1500 to the Staff Welfare Association of KMC on the promise that after reaching a certain threshold, they would be allocated land to build their homes. Most of these staff could not afford their own homes and were understandably excited about the opportunity and, therefore, started paying.
This medium has gathered that D1.5 million was raised from the monthly staff contributions and real estate agent Alieu Danso was contracted three years ago to provide land. Some of the affected KMC staff members accused staff welfare association president Modou Njie and the association’s treasurer BB Darboe of financial malpractice by allegedly diverting half-a-million dalasi of the association’s funds, though Mr. Njie has categorically denied this.
He promised to convene a meeting today at 2 PM, but some aggrieved members of the staff welfare association have also threatened to convene a parallel meeting today at the same time.
After waiting for three long years to be allocated their land without any end in sight, some of the disaffected staff have now resolved to present their case to the lands and regional governments minister Hon. Hamat Bah next Sunday.
Some of the staff accused Modou Njie and BB Darboe of colluding with Alieu Danso to delay the land allocations.
“Modou Njie cannot exert adequate pressure on Alieu Danso because he ate,” one of the aggrieved staff members alleged.
The members have also been insisting on clarity over the D800,000 that Njie, Darboe and one Manga reportedly said they gave to the council’s technical director to demarcate the land in question, a claim denied by the director.
Sources close to Mr. Njie hinted this medium that this and other germane issues are what the staff welfare association leader intends to discuss this afternoon. It has yet to be seen whether members will heed his call to a meeting today as the crisis of confidence over his leadership deepens.
Meanwhile, sources close to the KMC mayor told JollofNews that the affected staff are “monumentally” disappointed at the “carefree” manner with which the KMC mayor “had been approaching the whole issue”.
“The mayor said let the affected staff deal with the issue as he is preoccupied with other pressing issues,” one of the disenchanted council staff members told this reporter.
Efforts to reach the KMC mayor for his reaction proved futile.
