Senior legal practitioner Lamin J. Darboe has hailed the High Court’s judgment declaring the removal of former Auditor General Modou Ceesay unlawful, describing the ruling as a major victory for constitutional governance and the rule of law in The Gambia.
Speaking to journalists shortly after the judgment was delivered in Banjul, Darboe dismissed the government’s longstanding claim that Ceesay voluntarily relinquished his office by accepting a ministerial appointment, insisting that the evidence presented before the court proved otherwise.
“The idea that he resigned, the idea that he was not forced from his office, that’s all complete nonsense,” Darboe said. “We know what happened. Why would you send the police to the office to remove the officeholder of that office if the relationship is not acrimonious? He was removed forcefully from his office.”
The court found that the deployment of the Gambia Police Force to remove the Auditor General from the National Audit Office was unlawful and ordered the Office of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to pay D4 million in damages.
Darboe described the judgment as an important constitutional milestone, saying it reinforces the independence of public institutions and limits executive interference in offices protected by the Constitution.
He stressed that the President does not possess unfettered authority to remove holders of constitutionally protected offices simply because of policy disagreements or strained working relationships.
According to Darboe, the ruling sends a clear message that the independence of oversight institutions must be respected and that constitutional safeguards cannot be overridden through executive action.
While welcoming the damages awarded by the court, Darboe argued that the compensation does not adequately reflect the seriousness of the constitutional violations committed.
“The IGP is not going to pay, the police is not going to pay; it’s going to come from the national treasury, from the consolidated fund,” he said. “So, it’s unfortunate. We, the country, are paying so much money for the unfortunate actions of senior, senior people within the government of The Gambia.”
He expressed concern that ordinary taxpayers, rather than the public officials responsible for the unlawful actions, would ultimately bear the financial burden of the court’s award.
The legal dispute arose after Ceesay reportedly declined a surprise appointment to the Cabinet, maintaining that accepting the position would compromise his constitutionally guaranteed nine-year tenure as Auditor General. Following his refusal to vacate office, state authorities deployed police officers who declared him a trespasser and escorted him from the National Audit Office.
The High Court’s ruling effectively brings to an end one of the country’s most closely watched constitutional disputes, reaffirming judicial protection for independent constitutional officeholders and underscoring the limits of executive authority under Gambian law.
