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Breaking News:GAMTEL, GAMCEL AND GIA sale Reaches World Bank Desk!! Editors issued open letter!
GAMTEL, GAMCEL AND GIA sale Reaches World Bank Desk!!

World Bank Official Referred The Freedom Newspaper To their Dakar Office for further Details!!

Editors issued Open Letter to Gilberto Barros of The World Bank

"For sometime now, the World Bank and the IMF had been playing "watch and see attitude" towards The Gambia. If The Bank can go extra miles to expose and condemn official graft in Kenya and elsewhere across the continent, we see no reason why the Gambia should be exempted. It's about time for the World Bank and other donor partners to speak out against the institutionalized corruption in The Gambia. The amount of official graft and lawlessness taking place in The Gambia got to be condemned by all and sundry." Freedom Editors told Mr.Barros in a letter dated August 28TH, 2007

Dear Mr.Gilberto Barros,

My name is Pa Nderry M'Bai. I'm a Gambian journalist based in the United States of America. I'm also the Publisher and Managing Editor of the online publication called the FreedomNewspaper.com The paper is situated in Raleigh, North Carolina. The paper had staffers within and outside The Gambia.

I was referred to you by one of your colleagues at the World Bank office in Washington, DC. The said World Bank official who spoke to us said she was from Madagascar. She was very helpful when contacted. She even gave us your Dakar main office line and email address. We are pursuing a story regarding the sale of GAMTEL, GAMCEL and GIA by the Gambian Government. The Freedom Newspaper wants to get the opinion of the Bank regarding the sale of the said parastatals. As an independent media organization, committed to making our government accountable to its citizens, donor partners and supporters, we deem it imperative to do a special story on the sale of the country's most viable parastatals. It's our firm conviction that by covering the said story, without getting the opinion of the World Bank and other donor agencies, we will not do justice to the story. Therefore, we solicit your co-operation in this regard.

So far our investigations revealed that the sale of the said parastatals was never tendered for. The Gambian Government under the leadership of President Jammeh, connived with a new Lebanese business clique led by one Muhammed Mr.Bashi to reach the said privatization deal, without giving due regard to Gambia's Financial and Corporate Regulation Act. The whole deal was surrounded by lack of accountability and transparency. Few members of Cabinet were put in the picture. The National Assembly was also sidelined in this major state decision, thus raising more doubts regarding the veracity of the Government's claims that the deal was reached in the best interest of the country.

For your information, the nation's energy sector was also privatized about one year ago. The same Mr.Bashi, a Lebanese National reached a deal with the Government to run the affairs of NAWEC. The Freedom Newspaper has conducted some background checks on Mr. Bashi, in a bid to authenticate his claims of owning big businesses overseas, but to our surprise, our findings revealed to the contrary. And yet, here is a man being entrusted the economic nerves of this country. Mr.Bashi is using the Gambia as a front for money laundering schemes, which should be condemned by all freedom loving people. He is being aided and abetted by the corrupt Jammeh leadership. Bashi's source of so called wealth has not been disclosed to The Gambian people and the outside world.

It's our firm belief that by reaching such business ventures without the involvement of the National Assembly, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, the Government is creating conditions for full blown graft in this country. Already, there is a gross economic indiscipline everywhere in the country. Official corruption is at its peak. Public Servants received bribe in the open. Their standard of living far exceed their allocated salary.

Our current economic indications suggest that the economy is on its dead ebb. Instead of working on how to sustain these institutions, the Government is mortgaging The Gambia in the name of privatization. This administration has been reputed to be receiving kickback deals. We have no doubt in our minds that the sale of GAMTEL, GAMCEL AND GIA was a sham. Mr.Bashi is being used as a front to further filled the pockets of Yahya Jammeh. Jammeh is richer than the entire Gambian state. He takes major economic and political decisions without liaising with the relevant Government agencies and non Governmental Organizations. The sale of these institutions is a big loss for the Gambia and her people. It has short term economic and political implications.

For sometime now, the World Bank and the IMF had been playing "watch and see attitude" towards The Gambia. If The Bank can go extra miles to expose and condemn official graft in Kenya and elsewhere across the continent, we see no reason why the Gambia should be exempted. It's about time for the World Bank and other donor partners to speak out against the institutionalized corruption in The Gambia. The amount of official graft and lawlessness taking place in The Gambia got to be condemned by all and sundry.

Jammeh's recent aids cure claims was never condemned by the World Bank, thus raising doubts across the country about the Bank's much harped commitment to tackle aids on the continent. The World Bank had so far spent millions of Dalasis towards aids cure and prevention in The Gambia. Yet, the Bank is remaining mute over Jammeh's claims of having cure for this dreadful disease. We expect the World Bank to break the silence on The Gambia, and address the burning issues of the day. Your aids funds extended to The Gambia, would go into the drains, if you continue to watch by allowing Yahya Jammeh to openly undermine the global efforts to fight HIV/Aids.

Jammeh's claims of having cure for aids, would no doubt undermine the World Bank's efforts to tackle the aids pandemic on the continent and beyond. Mr.Jammeh is endangering the lives of the continent's youth population by making such false claims. He needs to be cautioned before many Gambians and non Gambians will die of aids. He is tempting youths to engage in risky behaviors. There is no cure for aids. Period!!

The Bank's developmental goals cannot be achieved in the absence of good governance, transparency, probity, respect for the rule of law, basic human rights and promotion of sound economic policies in The Gambia. These target goals can only be achieved, if the Bank open its ears and eyes, especially on areas relating to privatization of public corporations and day to day management of state resources.

The Bank must also open its doors to the private media, which is gradually dying out in The Gambia, due to the government's hostile media relations. Most of the stories reported by the public media and the pro- Government Newspaper, called the Daily Observer are not the true representation of the economic and political realities taking place in The Gambia. The private papers on the ground, practiced self censorship due to the threats emanating from Government agents. As a result, dozens of Gambian journalists had been forced into exile, while two have already died under the hands of Jammeh's thugs. The Point's Deyda Hydara and Journalist Omar Barrow were both killed by trigger happy soldiers.

The World Bank being a major stakeholder to Gambia's socio economic development, we expect to get your position on this troubling state of affairs. There are a lot of speculations across the country. Gambians are interested to know if the World Bank had given its blessing to the sale of these institutions. This paper is also interested to know what action is the bank taking to help restore economic and political discipline in The Gambia. The Bank should be more concerned about major economic and political reforms in The Gambia. What's happening in The Gambia today is unacceptable. Jammeh cannot be at war with the whole world. He does things at his own accord and continues to treat our people with utter contempt and disrespect.

Finally, on behalf of the Freedom Newspaper Editorial Board, I want to extend our warmest greetings to your Dakar based local staff. We look forward to hearing from you. The Freedom Newspaper is pursuing the said story in the best interest of the Gambian people. We once again solicit your co-operation in this regard. Have a great day Sir.

Signed:

Pa Nderry M'Bai,
Publisher/Managing Editor,
Freedom Newspaper,
Raleigh, NC
USA.
Tel:919-872-50-28

Posted on Tuesday, August 28, 2007 (Archive on Wednesday, September 19, 2007)
Posted by PNMBAI Contributed by PNMBAI

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