Gambia’s President Barrow announces research

The Gambian government has announced an investigation into the sale of assets seized by former President Yahya Jammeh, after widespread public concern.

Some assets, including cattle and luxury vehicles, were sold, while a panel was still investigating the wealth that Jammeh had collected during his 22-year-old rule.

A newspaper investigation has exposed alleged irregularities and a clear lack of transparency in the sale of assets, which cause protests organized by young people.

In a television on television on Wednesday evening, President Adama Barrow promised “full transparency” in the probe, saying that assets are recovered “belong to the people”.

Jammeh, who took power in a coup of 1994, is accused of orchestrating the enormous theft of government funds, as well as extensive human rights violations, including the killing and imprisonment of his critics.

The former leader, who fled in exile in 2017 after losing elections in equatorial guinea, has previously denied accusations of misconduct.

In 2017, President Barrow founded a committee to investigate alleged corruption and financial misconduct by Jammeh during his two decades-long line.

The panel, popularly known as the Janneh committee, concluded its findings in 2019 and ordered the forfeiture statement that was related to Jammeh and his employees.

The study showed that Jammeh reportedly stole at least $ 360 million (£ 270 million) and had spent richly on expensive vehicles, planes and real estate.

He is still commenting on the accusations, but his supporters in Gambia have rejected the findings against him as a political witch.

Jammeh’s cattle – including cows, sheep and goats, farm tractors, vehicles and other valuables belonged to the assets reserved by the state for attack.

In 2019, President Barrow authorized a ministerial task force to supervise the recovery of the assets, with regular updates for the cabinet.

But A research report published by the Local Republic -Krant Earlier this month, high government officials of selling the assets to themselves, friends and family accused the market value.

The report went viral on social media and caused protests in the capital, Banjul, where dozens of people, including journalists were arrested but were later released.

After the public pressure, the government published a detailed list of the assets already sold, including some luxury cars from Jammeh, cattle, boats, construction machines, household goods, plots of land and heavy farm machines.

The long list showed the buyers, prices and sales dates.

Some luxury cars from Jammeh, such as its adapted Rolls Royce and Bentley, were not in the list.

It is not clear whether the vehicles were sold to him or were sent to him because the government had allowed him to bring some items to Equatorial Guinea.

The list led to further indignation about how many valuable items were apparently sold at suspected low prices.

The government did not give a statement about the prizes, but the Ministry of Justice said in a statement that the sale had completed a “legally well -founded process”.

“At all times the government acted within the limits of the law and in the public interest,” the ministry said in a statement.

In his address on Wednesday, Barrow said that he had convened a cabinet meeting in the previous day to discuss details about the sale, of which he “learned” for the first time “.

He said that the parliament of the country and the National Audit Office took both parallel investigations in the case.

“Their findings will be made public and my government will enforce their recommendations to tackle the discovered shortcomings and to hold every person or entity liable,” the president said.

He urged Gambians to stay calm and warned that his government “will not tolerate negligence, or linked any misconduct to protecting the resources of our nation”.

But activists and opposition parties have rejected the president’s insurance and say that the parliament cannot be trusted with the investigation.

Yayah Sanyang, an opposition Member of Parliament, has called for an independent probe and said that parliament was “full of ruling party -loyalists”.

The Edward Francis Small Center for Rights and Justice, a law group, has risen that the president takes responsibility and the sale of all seized assets freezes.

In 2022, the US grabbed a luxurious country house in Maryland, which it was said to have been purchased by Jammeh by proceeds from corruption.

In his investigation, the US Department of Justice said that Jammeh had acquired at least 281 properties during his term of office and operated more than 100 private bank accounts.