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| toubab1020 |
Posted - 27 May 2017 : 02:18:04
Land disputes have long been a problem in Gambia where record keeping and availability of CORRECT documentation is often lacking I was under the impression that Land problems had been regularised by the administration.
Were those whose houses were demolished squatters who were not entitled to live there?,the article does not make that clear.
Never the less the rule of Law must prevail and peace and tranquility are of prime importance.
Friday, May 26, 2017
The police have arrested seven youths in Farato and took them to Brikama Magistrates’ Court where they were charged with willful damage of properties, assaulting police officers while on lawful duties, incitement of violence, and riotously destroying machinery.
Police spokesman, Inspector Foday Conta, said the seven were taken to the court on Wednesday at 4:15pm but the matter could not proceed for it was already closing time. The case was adjourned to Monday, 29 May.
Meanwhile the seven youths are currently in remand.
The youths were among many that took to the streets of Farato on Tuesday afternoon when a demolition team, including officials of Physical Planning under the Ministry of Works and accompanied by personnel of Police Intervention Unit, came with a bulldozer to demolish compounds and other settlements in Farato towards Bafuloto.
The demolition team came with some people who claimed to be the original owners of the disputed land, saying they had secured a ruling as the landowners and that the present occupants of the land should be evicted.
Lamin Cham, an eyewitness and resident of the area, said the demolition team immediately started to destroy the compounds, leaving residents in some compounds without an option of even moving out their belongings and sick people.
He said as the demolition progressed, residents of the area, mainly women and young people, gathered around and started throwing stones at the demolishers who had to run and seek for protection at the Farato Police Post.
Upon arrival at Farato Police Post, some youths and victims of the affected community began to take revenge by burning tires on the highway and also burned the Bulldozer used to demolish the compounds. The Mercedes Benz belonging to Saja Gibba, one of the people claiming to be original owners of the disputed land, was also burnt, Cham said.
As the tension increased, the police at Farato post sought reinforcement from PIU personnel to control the crowd.
Other eyewitnesses said the police used teargas to control the crowd.
Meanwhile, the office of the IGP, through the police spokesman, urged the general public to be law abiding and always refer to the due process of the law instead of taking matters into their own hands.
Author: Fatou B Cham
http://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/article/7-farato-youths-arrested-charged |
| 3 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| toubab1020 |
Posted - 31 May 2017 : 21:07:41
quote:
Originally posted by toubab1020
Land disputes have long been a problem in Gambia where record keeping and availability of CORRECT documentation is often lacking I was under the impression that Land problems had been regularised by the administration.
Were those whose houses were demolished squatters who were not entitled to live there?,the article does not make that clear.
Never the less the rule of Law must prevail and peace and tranquility are of prime importance.
Friday, May 26, 2017
The police have arrested seven youths in Farato and took them to Brikama Magistrates’ Court where they were charged with willful damage of properties, assaulting police officers while on lawful duties, incitement of violence, and riotously destroying machinery.
Police spokesman, Inspector Foday Conta, said the seven were taken to the court on Wednesday at 4:15pm but the matter could not proceed for it was already closing time. The case was adjourned to Monday, 29 May.
Meanwhile the seven youths are currently in remand.
The youths were among many that took to the streets of Farato on Tuesday afternoon when a demolition team, including officials of Physical Planning under the Ministry of Works and accompanied by personnel of Police Intervention Unit, came with a bulldozer to demolish compounds and other settlements in Farato towards Bafuloto.
The demolition team came with some people who claimed to be the original owners of the disputed land, saying they had secured a ruling as the landowners and that the present occupants of the land should be evicted.
Lamin Cham, an eyewitness and resident of the area, said the demolition team immediately started to destroy the compounds, leaving residents in some compounds without an option of even moving out their belongings and sick people.
He said as the demolition progressed, residents of the area, mainly women and young people, gathered around and started throwing stones at the demolishers who had to run and seek for protection at the Farato Police Post.
Upon arrival at Farato Police Post, some youths and victims of the affected community began to take revenge by burning tires on the highway and also burned the Bulldozer used to demolish the compounds. The Mercedes Benz belonging to Saja Gibba, one of the people claiming to be original owners of the disputed land, was also burnt, Cham said.
As the tension increased, the police at Farato post sought reinforcement from PIU personnel to control the crowd.
Other eyewitnesses said the police used teargas to control the crowd.
Meanwhile, the office of the IGP, through the police spokesman, urged the general public to be law abiding and always refer to the due process of the law instead of taking matters into their own hands.
Author: Fatou B Cham
http://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/article/7-farato-youths-arrested-charged
I thought that The Point had highlighted this Land difficulty before IN 2013!! in Fact.Open the link below and have a read of their thinking in 2013 & action taken.
http://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/article/is-the-ministry-of-lands-taking-note
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| toubab1020 |
Posted - 30 May 2017 : 09:15:27
Interesting observation by Foroyaa:
WHY IS THE LAND COMMISSION STILL DORMANT?
EditorMay 29, 2017
The land question is still a key question in The Gambia. Everyday people hear about land disputes all over the country. Many people with land ownership grievances come to Foroyaa to report on their rights.
A review will reveal multiple claims of ownership of land. Unilateral actions have been taken in a number of cases that have resulted to unending legal confrontation. Monies invested in incomplete buildings may be in the millions. The cost of pursuing land claims is unquantifiable. People are suffering a great deal because of poor land administration.
It is therefore important for the state to make the settlement of land dispute a major priority by doing everything necessary to put the Land Commission, a constitutional requirement which was ignored by the former regime, into operation to provide guidance and remedies to ensure effective and efficient measures to settle land disputes.
Editorial
http://www.foroyaa.gm/archives/15829 |
| toubab1020 |
Posted - 29 May 2017 : 14:48:21
Administration Response:
Monday, May 29, 2017
The minister of the interior, Mai Ahmad Fatty, has described the recent protests in Farato as “a realistic portrayal of the challenges Gambia faces as a nation in terms of educating people on what democracy is all about”.
“We have now seen our citizens reading and misreading democracy, we have now seen our citizens breaking the law all in the name of democracy,” the minister said on Friday in a press briefing held at the police headquarters in Banjul in reaction to the Farato incident.
Last week, a number of young people took to the streets of Farato when a demolition team, including officials of Physical Planning under the Ministry of Works and accompanied by personnel of Police Intervention Unit, came with a bulldozer to demolish compounds and other settlements in Farato towards Bafuloto.
The protest led to clashes between the police and the youths, leading to the burning of the caterpillar used by the demolition team and a privately owned car.
The police subsequently arrested seven youths who were taken to Brikama Magistrates’ Court and charged with willful damage of properties, assaulting police officers while on lawful duties, incitement of violence, and riotously destroying machinery.
“I am not going to speculate on what will happen next, what I can say is that the melee is most abhorrent and those who break the law must be dealt with decisively,” the Interior Minister said.
Mr Fatty noted that people must be made to understand that such acts are unacceptable, saying one cannot attack law enforcement officials for simply doing their job.
He said the Ministry of Interior and its agencies are prepared and ready to wage war on indiscipline and lawlessness.
“We will not condone acts that seek to truncate the existing sanity, safety, peace and orderliness being enjoyed in the communities and streets,” he said.
“The police and other law enforcement agencies will not relent or relax in performing their statutory responsibilities in maintaining law and order. This is a nation of laws and the laws must be enforced for greater peace and security and there will be no apologies for this,” he added.
Mr Fatty said the officials of the Department of Physical Planning were acting on a court order to remove illegal structures built on the disputed land.
According to him, the occupants were long and duly served with removal and quit notices but they apparently failed to comply.
Author: Adam Jobe
http://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/article/farato-represents-challenges-of-democracy-interior-minister
REPORT IN THE REVAMPED DAILY OBSERVER CAN BE READ VIA THE LINK BELOW:
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https://observergm.com/minister-fatty-we-will-wage-war-against-indiscipline-lawlessness/ |
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