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Momodou
Denmark
11806 Posts |
 Posted - 20 Dec 2005 : 09:21:13
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Its only in Gambia where an elected representative is removed unlawfully and replaced with a handpicked person without a single peanut being cracked.
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KMC COUNCILLORS CHALLENGE GOMEZ’S APPOINTMENT
By Sarjo M. Camara
The Kanifing Municipal Council is witnessing an interesting drama.
Last week, councillors held several meetings inorder to put heir house in order. According to some councillors, at the meeting, on Friday, they unanimously agreed to condemn the appointment of Francis Gomez.
Speaking to this paper, a councillor said that they (the councillors) at KMC do not recognise the appointment of Francis Gomez and he cannot continue to be the Mayor because he is not an elected member. The meeting was attended by 17 councillors.
“We are not officially informed, we only heard his appointment on papers,” said Mr. Rambo Jatta, councillor for the Cape Point Ward. He was asked why they did not want to work with Mr. Gomez. He said according to the Local Government Act, “The Mayor is answerable to them (the councillors), but since Lai’s arrest, he (Gomez) did not convene any meeting with them; that when they call a meeting he boycotts it. “In fact to hold our Friday meeting we had to go to the CEO to give directives for us to get the key to open the chambers for the meeting. He, the Acting Mayor, said we were not going to hold any meeting in the chambers, be it a committee meeting or council sitting,” he explained.
According to Mr. Jatta, they will select one among themselves to be chairing their meetings.
He also said it is probable that they would impeach the Acting Mayor; that the letter was already written waiting to be dispatched. He said the allegations are misconduct, abuse of office and wilful damage of his official vehicle (which was given to him by the council).
The councillor was asked about the allegations against Mayor Conteh concerning garbage collection. In his response, he argued that the government is supposed to give D55 million to the KMC as subvention every year but this happened only in 1996. Since then, we have never received anything like that while the council pays 25% to the Central Revenue. “We at the council are spending only the council’s own money, the constructed roads were constructed by KMC and Gamworks, he concluded.
When the Acting Mayor was asked to shed light on this concerns raised by the councillors, he said he was not aware of anything that this reporter was told of. He referred the reporter to the PRO for further clarification. Up to the time of going to press attempts to reach the PRO proved futile.
Source: Foroyaa Issue No. 97/05, 19-21 December,2005
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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