The calamitous supply of electricity in the Gambia has been a perennial issue since the establishment of NAWEC which was originally called GUC and then MSG yet the matter remains conclusively and effectively unaddressed. Not only had there been poor, limited and erratic supply of energy but that electricity voltage itself has been low generally yet expensive both for the Government and the citizen. Until now vast majority of Gambians have no access to electricity hence hampering the ability of citizens to enjoy quality living standards while retarding national development.
With the advent of the new government Gambians have expected that the Barrow Administration would finally address this matter once and for all given the high level of inefficiency and corruption in this sector since the First Republic which got worse under the APRC regime. Not only had Yaya Jammeh directly interfered with and illegally benefited from personalizing NAWEC and exploiting energy supply but also many communities were directly denied electricity supply on the basis of their support for the opposition or simply for not voting for APRC and Yaya Jammeh.
Both in his campaign manifesto and since coming to power, Pres. Barrow and his Government have continuously said that the issue of electricity supply and NAWEC are major concerns for them. Yet more than 12 months after taking over power the situation of NAWEC and the happenings in the energy sector raise more worries and questions than offer better answers and solutions. It appears that fundamentally there has been no system change yet in this sector as indications point to massive inefficiency and patronage hence corruption that must be addressed.
Information now being circulated that the Senegal agreement leaves much to be desired requires that the National Assembly institute a parliamentary enquiry in order to protect national interest. Much as Senegal is a unique neighbour of the Gambia, yet the Gambia is a distinct country that has its national interests that must be protected. Hence any deal with Senegal or any country requires to be negotiated with the best interest of the Gambia in mind. Therefore the terms of the agreement for energy supply from Senegal must be reviewed to determine how beneficial or detrimental it is to the Gambia.
From sources inside NAWEC and the energy sector as a whole, it is claimed that the Senegal deal is not beneficial to the Gambia both for the short and long term interests of the Gambia. The fact that Senegal supplies electricity to the country potentially compromises national security since Senegal has the ability to unilaterally blackout the Gambia at any time. The supply of energy and its importance to national security is such that such supply must be controlled from within the country, preferably from entities that are national private entities or from a national company such as NAWEC. Therefore the need for the National Assembly to investigate the Senegal deal is urgent and necessary especially given the reports that are now emerging that better and cheaper deals where rejected in favour of Senegal. Why?
Secondly the governance and management of NAWEC and the operations and operators in the supply of energy must be looked into with urgency. Already NAWEC has indicated that it has a debt of millions of dalasi. This clearly shows that NAWEC is a not a viable or profitable entity that warrants the company to be either sold or closed down otherwise a clear and more pragmatic solution must be found to maintain it as a national asset.
The truth however is that NAWEC must be able to operate profitably, efficiently and accountably. But NAWEC has been unable to be such a company simply because of lack of transparency and accountability hence corruption since its inception. The basis for such perennial poor performance and corruption is simply and squarely a matter of poor leadership right from the Office of the President, to its line ministry to the National Assembly to its Board of Directors. There is no reason why public enterprises should not be profitable and efficient if there is effective and strategic leadership to ensure efficiency, transparency and accountability.
Hence if Barrow wishes to address the issue of NAWEC he must first of all review the role and function of the Office of the President in this matter. This means he needs to review his own vision and modus operandi in terms of the running of public enterprises as set out in the laws. Until the governance and management systems, processes and personnel of NAWEC are properly constituted and operated in line with the law then this company will not do well but will continue to be a waste of public resources without providing efficient services to citizens.
For example, the composition of NAWEC’s board needs to be reviewed because it comprises individuals and businesses that have vested interest in the energy sector. Hence there are clear conflicts of interest within the Board hence undermining the efficiency and accountability of NAWEC as well as the supply of energy in the country. Furthermore there are individuals and businesses close to the corridors of power that have vested interests in the energy sector hence use their power and influence to drive this Government towards deals and agreements that benefit them first and foremost at the detriment of the Gambia. This must stop!
Pres. Barrow must realise that the issue of NAWEC and the energy sector is about his own personal legacy as President of the Republic. He must be able to have the wisdom to see through and behind the words and actions of so-called advisers, board members, ministers, directors and indeed all players in this matter to identify the best interest of the Gambia and stand by that. He must not allow individuals to take advantage of him in order to profit themselves at the detriment of the Gambia.
The Gambia has the capacity to ensure 24 hours of uninterrupted power supply provided Pres. Barrows demonstrates the necessary leadership to ensure firm decisions that are transparent, accountable and participatory. We could not enjoy uninterrupted power supply since Independence for no reason other than the failure of leadership by Dawda Jawara for 30 years and Yaya Jammeh for 22 years. But Barrow can address this issue within 12 months if indeed he is ready to show the necessary strategic leadership. It does not have to take him 5 years to set this country on the path of ensuring a 24-hour uninterrupted power supply. Unfortunately so far, he is not showing that leadership.
The ball is in his court!
For the Gambia, Our Homeland.
Madi,all the comments you made in your article are right. The problem of electricity should have been solved within and not outside of our country. In the long term we are unnecessarily exposing our weaknesses to our neighbor in terms of inefficiency and dependency. If we are to federate SeneGambia, that binding must find us on a sober mood and aspire for a win/win situation,otherwise we shall be dwarfed to a level where Gambians will see themselves colonized by a French speaking country. African integration is overdue but it`s makeup must follow tangible principles and protocols with desired symbiotic leadership.
There is nothing wrong for African states that have excess power/energy to sell across their borders. I know similar power sales takes place in other west African states ie Ivory Coast Liberia and their Mano River Group members, in Southern Africa and East Africa. Are we going to reject the power generated from Guinea as part of the OMGV power project because it’s generated from Guinean Dams?
I participated and lost the opportunity to provide temporary power that went to Senelec. Fact is all temporary power is expensive and Nawec is in such a poor financial state to do much. A regular power station will take at least 2 years to put into full use in my experience and talking to many experts.
In my view the Government wanted to provide adequate power to the people as quickly as possible and deal with higher costs down the road.
Andrew Pjalo
Please read the text I’m attaching separately. It speaks a lot about the deliberate laissez-faire attitude of your CORRUPT, CORRUPTIBLE, SELFISH, TRIBALIST, INCOMPETENT and VERY BAD administration under an illiterate British Argos watchman foolishly/impishly dressed in presidential garments.
It’s annoying to learn that about 27 people will squander our meagre resources in 15 days in New York at a conference that will NEVER bear fruit on our national development.
There are many ways to CORRUPT a people. This is one of the ways. The IDIOTIC excuse of attending a conference to amass personal benefits from per diem emoluments, hotel and travelling expenditures.
Please NEVER ask me again to consider my anti-Barrow administration. I simply detest this CORRUPT and care-free idiotic administration that is bent on amassing wealth personally when our social and economic conditions are rapidly failing. What is the hell coming out of these uncultured bunch of very SELFISH people?
The flat-faced Fatumatta Tambajang is just CORRUPT. Corruption, tribalism are her embeded characters. She will never change. I only pray for the next government to sent this EVIL woman to the gallows.
From our learned Andrew Pjalo and i hope the horse is made to drink from this well spoken words of wisdom from a very learned and thoughtful brother. Andrew’s wise words below:
”There’s the saying that you can only take the horse to water but you can’t make it drink. So this is an attempt to gently nudge you into sobriety for clearly you act delusional many a time.
So Babu, count on your level of refinement, fairness and do as the health minister did by biting the bitter pill too. Stop going to bat for Yaya Jammeh because I truly believe that you are above that level albeit that I’ve never met you in person.
Under the APRC, a lone general that has never seen the inner workings of a college classroom, masqueraded as a SAMAYO in Kombo Serrekunda Nding would, on the strength of a hand written note, draw a Million Dollars from our coffers? Doesn’t that trigger alarm bells in your head?
So Babu, in a nutshell, I want you to wake up to the smell of the roses, get out of your glee dance before you fall off of the cliff. Oh and by the way, employ your time wisely, shun insults, mud slinging and carry your thinking cap with you so you may leave a legacy for your kids. Clearly what you believe may leave you a legacy in the short term would taint you forever. But, as always, YOU DON’T HAVE TO CARE!
You can as well sit in your neck of the woods and go raving, ranting and stoking your ego while valuable time drifts by you like is the case with the hapless, anti Ahmadi clerics in The Gambia. A reminder that I’m a thick skinned optimist.
Babu, what’s the real object of your dissent and your anti New Gambia stance.
I will state that at your professed level, that is your claim to have been educated and call Europe home, I would expect you to show more finesse in your approach to sensible discourse. The position of Yaya Jammeh or nothing else is akin to Jingoism.
We cannot be seen to do business as we always have if we look to achieve different results this time around. That is an untenable situation. Frankly, your position and narratives are becoming absolutely sour, unintelligent and devoid of substance.
Gambia:
How Greedy Public Officials Wasted Millions At A New York UN Women’s Conference; When The Gambia Is Struggling Economically!
March 14, 2018
3084
In The Gambia, the government of president Adama Barrow can hardly meet its set developmental goals agenda for the country, and yet it can waste millions on financing official overseas conferences; paying exorbitant per diem allowances to government officials, while access to electricity, water, medication, good sanitation, good roads, and employment continues to hunt the impoverished West African nation, the Freedom Newspaper can reveal. As we scribble this report, we are told that the Vice president Fatoumatta Jallow Tambajang, is in New York with a high-powered delegation attending a UN Women’s conference. She flew with 27 people to the New York UN Women’s conference. Keep in mind that this is a country, which is developmentally challenged. Almost all the sectors of national development have collapsed. Rebuilding the country is not a top priority for the regime. Officials are obsessed with raking per diem allowances at the expense of the poor taxpayers.
It is going to cost the Gambian state nothing less than twenty million dalasis minimum to foot the hotel, transport and per diem bills for the Gambian delegation. The new Gambia is making some public officials rich. Some of the delegates have no reason to be in New York in the first place. The Gambia is becoming a waste spree nation. Public officials cannot differentiate personal development and national development. Perhaps, they are deliberately taking poor Gambians for a ride. But for how long, will such a free ride lasts?
President Adama Barrow is presiding over a government without vision. It is unfair for this administration to use our meager resources to line their pockets while the average Gambian cannot afford one decent meal a day. Many kids are going to be bed hungry, while our education and health infrastructures are decaying. This is absurd Gambia.
The greedy officials tried to justify their illegal travels by seeking a travel clearance from the office of the president. As evident on this document, the permanent secretary at the office of the Vice President made the request on behalf of the VP.
The conference begins on March 12th and ends on March 23rd. During this time, they will be dining at expensive restaurants at the expense of the nation. They will be away from the country for the next 14 days. This is what we call “Conference Tourism.” They will not only line up their pockets, they will also waste millions in the United States before their home return.
There should be travel freeze. Such funds should be channeled to sectors that are badly in need of funding.
Take a look at the Health sector, for example. Acute drug shortages have been reported in our health facilities. This has contributed to the rising maternal mortality rate in the country. Infant mortality is also on the increase.
The energy sector continues to be in a mess. Business are closing due to lack of electricity.
Teachers and government workers are also poorly paid. This has contributed to corruption and lack of productivity at the workplace. Nothing is functioning in the new Gambia-besides the corrupt officials, who are determined to live by any means necessary.
There is no much difference between Barrow’s administration and that of Jammeh. Corruption takes in different facets. Unjustified travels; claiming bogus per diem allowances; overbilling the government amounts to corruption.
The amount of aid money, grants and loans that came into this country since Barrow ascended to the presidency is unimaginable. It is just too much. Yet, the government cannot tell its citizens what the numbers are.
A government that waste and misuse the meagre resources of its citizens is not fit to rule. It has no legitimacy to rule.
The Gambia and her people cannot afford high maintenance public officials. You are appointed to serve; therefore let justice guild our actions. One year on, there is nothing to celebrate in terms of development and other than improving the living standards of corrupt public officials.
New democracies such as Ghana, and Liberia are thriving while the Gambia is stagnant developmental wise. Let go the personal enrichment and aggrandizement and develop the country for the sake of our people. We rest our case.
Babu,
I struggle to understand what really motivates your opposition to the Barrow Administration. You should like a disgruntled individual: the kind that has got his inheritance taken away from him.
Were you going to become a royal in the Gambia, if Jammeh had crowned himself king.
What was going to be your title: Prince Babu Soli Jammeh Or Lord Babu Soli.
You’re yapping about per diems and travel allowances here, but come, didn’t Jammeh officials travel? We know today because there’s transparency. During Jammeh era it was all shrouded in secrecy, wasn’t it?
Even the monies gained from mining went undeclared.
I’m not condoning such wasteful practices but I’m just disgusted by your double standards attitude.
Latest news!
Hon. Halifa Sallah was sent out of the House by the egocentric Speaker during debate time.
Bax,
Don’t try to understand me. I always address the APRC stalwarts, die-hard members, the Executive and well-wishers of our great PATRIOTIC Party to give them more encouragement, enthusiasm and motivation to go stronger and try helter skelter to convince the Gambian people that this government is CORRUPT, CORRUPTIBLE, TRIBALIST, INEPT, INCAPABLE, INEFFICIENT,VERY SELFISH and utterly USELESS. To convince the electorate to return our Party to power. That’s my task nowadays.
With Ousainou Darbo, Adama Barrow conniving with Europe and the USA to deport our women/men; with Fatumatta Tambajang travelling with 27 women to squander 2 million dalasis on a USELESS conference in the USA; with persistent electricity/water outages/shortages; with rising prices in all basic essential commodities; with rising crime rates; with farmers waiting for two months to receive their money from groundnut sales; with teachers struggling on very poor salaries while CBG workers increase their salaries and fringe benefits two-fold; there is NO reason why any sane person should continue supporting a USELESS administration with very UNQUALIFIED selfish people.
Bax, my political objective is to see your BAD government out!
Babu…
I must say the APRC has surprised many since they were defeated, but I don’t think they can win elections outright. I wish you luck in your endeavour to get back into power.
I don’t know the authenticity of the story you lifted from Freedom about the Women’s Conferece, but if true, it should be condemned as waste of resources. There’s no need for that many people to attend any overseas conference.
However, your double standards is evident again, when all you have for APRC is praise. Hasn’t APRC also wasted our resources. How often did Madam Zainab used to travel abroad, either private or chartered? How much did Yaya Jammeh used to carry around and throw about in his pretentious generosity and benevolence? How many contracts did he unilaterally cancel, losing the state millions of USD in compensation? Why have you closed your eyes to these facts?
The condition of farmers and the state of the farming and energy sectors are lamentable, but these are the result of decades of underfunding, neglect and mismanagement.
And just like the above, reasons for rising commodity prices can also be attributed to a near dead economy: an economy that is structured to depend on loans, grants and aid, and function as the Tax Collector of International Money Lenders, through Western Financial Institutions.
APRC inherited such an economy from the PPP and had 20 years to change it but failed woefully; choosing to continue on the same path.
Why do you ignore these facts and pretend that all the problems are down to the Barrow Administration? That’s not sincere criticism.
Thank you brother Bax for your honest analysis of the state of our nation’s affairs. To ignore the part played by the APRC government in all the grievances the so called professor listed above and blame President Barrow’s government entirely is foolish, unintelligent and delusional. As Andrew Pjalo lamented the fact of a lone general under the APRC government that has never seen the workings of a college classroom would on the strength of a hand written note draw a million Dollars from our coffers. What about the astronomical wealth amassed by Jammeh and his closest aides? The various frivolous wasteful parties at Kanilai costing the nation Millions and the jet-set trend of Zainabou at the expense of the Gambian nation. The APRC with its lying mobilizer is dead to sane Gambian electorate.
Bax,
To cling onto the “past” of the APRC to justify the present abhorrent behaviours of your administartion is unpatriotic and reactionary. You may keep up with that tone. Our people back home are feeling the brunt of hardship after all the LIES and foolish promises at campaign time. Our people are disappointed.
The signing of the deportation of our people is a serious issue, which our people NEVER expected this reactionary,unpatriotic, selfish and neocolonialist administration to go into for fear of losing their personal previleges from the US and Europe.
The tone in the Gambia is quite different from your blind-folded support. bax, I bet you to tell our people that it’s justified to deport their children, and that Ousainou Darbo’s signing of the agreement with the US and Europe was right.
Besides, I’d like you to search for information to make a better judge in your analysis. This is what my former lecturer Ebou Janha told. “Babu, to be heard cleary and respectfully, read from many sources and come to your conclusion”, he would tell me during my student life at the then Yundum College. I read all on-line papers though some are bias for the UDP. But my objective is to gather information at all times and from diverse sources. Read the story of Fatumatta Tambajang’s trip to the UN Women’s conference. It’s your prerogative, I think!
I have read Ex-President Jawara’s KAIRABA on two occasions. I’ll quote his disappointments at the people he entrusted in important positions, people who corrupted the system and made the econmy to fail woefully. Ex-President Jawara sincerely reiterated such instances, which are far from your allusions of a buoyant econmy from the PPP. I’ve still got the book in my library.
You are missing the point Babu. It’s not about justifying anything. Rather, it’s about being sincere in our approach to our governments’ (past & present) handling of national issues. You seem to want to heap all the blame for current difficulties on the current admin, but this is wrong and disingenuous. Our problems, which have been accumulating overtime, are the result of wrong policies and bad management: from the PPP through A (F) PRC to this Coalition Government. Every single one of these administrations failed to deliver sustainable development, and the longer they had in office, the more culpable they for the current situation in The Gambia.
The Barrow Administration is too young to be blamed with our chronic energy and water shortages or the high cost of commodities and to continue doing that Babu, is not sincere critism.
Babu, are you not wayward clung onto a terribly-past wrong-two-decades to be wronging the present administration?
Come on bro, that’s how your Oga Babilimansa was doing it too. Whenever he opens his mouth to talk to people, you notice that he has lost another chunk of his tiny brains.
Bax, the reason why I’m away sometimes is because I couldn’t put it better than you do. However, you’ll hear from me when there arise a point of disagreement. Keep it up!
I know you (APRC) may want to play politics with the deportations, but be careful. As the Mandinka saying goes: “torching of the mattress does not spare the bed bug.” Deportations are too sensitive an issue to be politicized because of the inherent threat to national security, peace and order.Just remember that there has been mishaps under the APRC which the opposition never politicized, due to the security implications. April 10/11 is one such incident. So, let’s not play politics here.
Is our government right to accept deportations? Yes, absolutely. No country deserves to be respected, if it fails to accept genuine deportation of its citizens. There should no discussions about that.
The question is whether the government has handled the initial phase of the deportation exercise properly and the answer is an emphatic NO. Thus, it is right that the nation raises its voice in unison at the injustice of the removal process from the US, not least of which was the degrading treatment meted out to deportees.
I think lessons have been learnt and if the Foreign Minister’s response to NAMS on the issue is anything to go by, then we can say that the approach of government will change, as he has indicated that Gambia has made it clear that it can’t absorb everyone at once. There has to be a gradual process allowing proper vetting, proper scrutiny and issue of documentation and more protection for the guaranteed rights of deportees. Those who have accumulated assets legitimately should be guaranteed full repatriation of their assets or timely disposal.
By the way, the claims that Jammeh rejected deportations because he cared about the welfare of the deportees is absolutely false. He was the reason many left, in the first place. He was merely using deportations as a way to extort money from the West. All he cares was how much he will earn from deportations. Nothing else. We should all be clear about that fact.
Babu,
I agree that to be fully informed about any matter, one has to read broadly and access as many sources as possible, but I hope you will also agree that not all source materials can be cited as evidence to prove ones viewpoints or allegations. I reckon it is fair to say that newspaper stories are amongst that class of source materials that should be treated with extreme caution, least one falls victim to fake news, misinformation or sensationalism. And you know, one “journalist” good at sensationalism is no other than your now beloved Pa Nderry Mbaye. Not long ago, he was APRC enemy NO.1.
In any case, I haven’t seen the story about the large delegation in any other paper; meaning its not corroborated.
Relying on such a “SINGLE PAPAR” carried story as evidence of mismanagement is not suggestive of an informed approach.
Devil yaya the Evileness Jammeh preyed upon everything it could lay its poisonous infectious tentacles on; tiring in devour & sheer greed of a magnitude; interestingly, the kanilai yaya Evilness was the (proprietor, operator &) “owner” of the very buses (company) that operated in businesses freely about under the kanilai Evildom; charging exorbitant fares to ferry the innocent youth across borders for the journeys on the Back-way; while our national passport & identification documentation was vend into evil mercenary allocations with diplomatic passports & ordinary passports, etc, among other money making venture enterprising; selling national documents to non citizens & other nationals among; some of whom were induced politically, in return, to vote at times of national & local elections; to influence results & outcomes of elections on the ground in Gambia; only for the Evil kanilai Killer Devil to (have) engaged in exploitative manipulations with intent at the various times; to consume the reconciliatory “resources” allocated in (for) the processes; in the collaborative manoeuvres with purpose in pretence, with some western countries planning for repatriation of the Gambian migrants involved at the time…
Babu, your “people” are the epitome of EVIL; devils kukoi & yaya & the likes in the “category” have NOTHING absolutely meaningful EVER, to add to the betterment of innocent Gambia community &/ to humanity in general; EXCEPT EVIL, MURDER & wanton destruction of property & livelihood in sheer RECKLESSNESS; if not for their devilish greed in aggravated personal gain accumulation of whatsoever doesn’t & never belong to them legally & legitimately in the first place…
Bax, wasn’t his name “Radiokangkang” (kibaari seeya jawta…..) before? Babu evaded my questions whether he was commenting in this name on here: Mr Soli, one is either for humanity (God) or the Devil; everyone including Older Boy “Jawara” opined PPP could’ve done better; no doubt about that fact; (Godly person will always truthfully admit & attest) the current transition coalition government too, has lots of homework doing; & have show willingness to learn within the process along; & adapt to conform to improvements upon societal issues & demands; it’s long way to go yet though, while we guide them along with opinions in critiques & criticisms…
Factually, both PPP & the current coalition government never ever disappeared &/ wantonly killed anybody evidently with intent, nor raped & molested women; both administrations legitimately sought for the entrusted mandates from rightful constitutional means, through elections from the peasantry Gambian populace; unlike the self-imposed forceful usurping Evil Devil incarnation duo kukoi & yaya & their mercenary equals in collaborative cohorts….
Jawara never “asked Senegal to invade Gambia” ever before at anytime if not for kukoi devil’s advent & bandit rebels in 1981? How come PPP are to blame for devil kukoi’s making….?
Yaya Jammeh’s singularly ‘grinder greed’ in abusive rummage of the public & private individuals’ resources, assets, livelihoods & even the lives & sacrosanct dignity of the Innocents people at the mercy for 22+ years are to blame for the current socio-economic & political situation on the ground today which was worsened from where it’s been taken from the PPP government & inherited by the current government….
What “developments” can be herald about when the kanilai Evildom revelations are emerging continous in the Janneh commission & the other commissions yet to commence….
The immigrant issue is the current coalition government to solve as inheritance, unfortunately but not their making, as it’s been there all along; more so, to blame on Ounsainou Darboe’s person of all people; yaya Jammeh personally participated in the the illegal human traffic trade of our innocent youth in particular, with their blood on its filthy hands, while it (yaya) pretentiously claims to blame the Western countries on lip services in devilish twists…
The Gambia, contrary to devilish intent of the heartless few, will survive & thrive into progression & prosperity…
God bless Gambia….