The once-very-hardworking Gambian women, who served locally-prepared juice flavours to tourists on the beach in Kotu and enhanced guest experience, are now without jobs thanks to a reported ministerial directive and, they have been running from pillar to post for salvation of their livelihoods.
These women, who were reliant on the juice pressing business as their only source of livelihood for many years, were made redundant after the tourism minister Abdoulie Jobe reportedly ordered them to cease operations.
JollofNews reporter saw some of the women on Monday evening at the Kotu beach with some looking pensive while others were talking about how the government should allow them to pick the crumbs of the tourism cake.
“I pay all my fees on time to the Gambia Tourism Board and I don’t know why I’ve been asked to vacate my business location,” one of the redundant lady juice pressers was heard saying.
Talking to these women, one would realise that they were the bulwark of their households. They fed, clothed and educated their children with the income they generated from their businesses.
Despite their crucial role in the family, they have now been left to watch their children suffer from want and lack as they could no longer provide for them.
According to sources, the tourism minister Abdoulie Jobe came for a body exercise at the Kotu beach, and all of a sudden decided that all the juice pressers must go.
“This move is not only capricious, summary and insensitive, but it also smacks of power abuse with powerless and vulnerable women as victims,” one concerned Gambian told this reporter.
The women were reportedly making desperate effort to meet Mr. Jobe with a view to pleading with him to allow them to also benefit from this year’s tourism season as they’ve been reportedly left out of last year’s.
JollofNews made several attempts to reach Mr. Jobe, but he could not be reached. The communications officer at the tourism ministry Lamin Njie could not be reached as well as he had travelled to Beijing.
