National Assembly Member for Foni Kansala, Hon. Alimami Gibba, has questioned the appointment of Brigadier General Sait Njie as the new Deputy Chief of Defence Staff (DCDS) of the Gambia Armed Forces (GAF), alleging that the senior military officer was absent without official leave during The Gambia’s 2016 political crisis.
Speaking on Tuesday during an appearance on Coffee Time with Peter Gomez on West Coast Radio, Hon. Gibba strongly criticised the appointment and claimed that Brigadier General Njie left the country during the political impasse that followed the 2016 presidential election.
According to the lawmaker, the officer’s departure during the crisis amounted to being Absent Without Official Leave (AWOL), an allegation he said should have serious implications under military law.
“Where the current Deputy CDS, Brigadier General Sait Njie, is concerned, he is an AWOL soldier. He left The Gambia and ran to Senegal during the 2016 political crisis,” Hon. Gibba said during the broadcast.
Hon. Gibba further argued that, under the Gambia Armed Forces Act and military regulations, an officer found to have gone AWOL could face severe disciplinary action, including court-martial proceedings.
“In the military, the moment you are AWOL, you are automatically dismissed; you should be sent to a court-martial,” he argued.
The Foni Kansala lawmaker also suggested that several serving military officers occupying senior positions could potentially face questions about their eligibility if the provisions of the Gambia Armed Forces Act were applied strictly.
Brigadier General Sait Njie was appointed Deputy Chief of Defence Staff of the Gambia Armed Forces on June 30, 2026.
