The National Assembly Member for Banjul North, Momodou Lamin Bah, on Tuesday strongly criticised President Adama Barrow over the recent removal of Auditor General Momodou Ceesay, describing the action as unconstitutional.
Speaking during the National Assembly’s third ordinary session of the 2025 legislative year, Hon. Bah said the president cannot continue to run the country “based on sentiment and ego.” He called the dismissal of the Auditor General “very devastating and unacceptable.”
The Banjul lawmaker cited Section 158(5) of the Gambian constitution, which outlines the process for removing an Auditor General from office. “Forcefully removing the Auditor General from office, that is not correct,” he said, urging the president to reverse the decision and reinstate Mr. Ceesay.
Hon. Bah also raised concern over recent arrests of young people by the police, criticising the conduct of the Inspector General of Police and the force. “What the IGP and the police force are doing is not right in this country,” he told lawmakers.
He further called for a suspension of parliamentary business until the matter of the Auditor General’s removal is addressed. “If we are serious as lawmakers, we should not work right now because a very important office is being seized by the President and shouldn’t sit here and act like we don’t know what is happening,” he said.
“Let us not be hypocrite, we are the representatives of the people,” he added. “You know exactly what I am talking about and the issue of integrity. I don’t know for others, but for me, I will never joke about it.”
