A public storm erupted this weekend following controversial remarks made by social media commentator and youth activist Bubacarr Bob Keita, who claimed to have had a tense and combative phone conversation with President Adama Barrow. But in a swift and detailed response, the Commissioner General of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), Hon. Yankuba Darboe, has issued a public statement debunking Keita’s version of the phone call encounter, calling it “a deliberate distortion of the truth.”
In a statement, CG Darboe explained how he facilitated the phone conversation between Keita and Barrow and categorically denied Keita’s claims. According to the Gambia’s revenue mobilization boss, the phone call in question was neither private nor heated, but rather a moment of reconciliation initiated in good faith.
“Mr. Keita’s claim of a private, contentious phone call with the President is categorically false,” said CG Darboe. “The conversation he references was initiated by me at my residence, where Mr. Keita had come seeking reconciliation with the President.”
Darboe further explained that his only connection to Keita is through family, following the latter’s marriage to his younger sister Fatoumatta Darboe last year. “Prior to that, I did not know Bob Keita personally,” he added.
According to the GRA boss, the call was made in his presence, and its purpose was clear: Keita was to offer an apology to President Barrow. No political discussions or references to Senegalese opposition leader Ousmane Sonko were ever made, contrary to Keita’s public account.
“I swear by the Holy Quran that no such statements were made by President Barrow,” Darboe affirmed. “The President, a man of dignity and restraint, accepted Mr. Keita’s apology graciously and even instructed me afterward that no further action was necessary, as he had forgiven him.”
This statement contradicts Keita’s portrayal of the call as tense and politically charged. Darboe characterised such assertions as “entirely fictional” and warned that misrepresenting such a serious matter undermines the integrity of the Presidency and sows seeds for unnecessary division.
The GRA Chief said a face-to-face meeting between Keita and President Barrow was considered but ultimately deemed unnecessary by the President himself, who chose instead to let the matter rest.
As this latest drama unfolds across Gambian social and political circles, the public is left to weigh both narratives. What remains clear, however, is that Mr. Darboe felt compelled to speak out in defense of President Barrow and to provide what he describes as “the truth” behind the widely circulated claims.
Editor’s Note: As this is a developing story, JollofNews invites both Mr. Keita and the Office of the President to provide any additional clarifications. Our newsroom remains committed to fair and balanced reporting.
