Kuloro Man Detained After Calling For Jammeh’s Toppling

Man Arrested For Calling for the ousting of Gambia Government

NIA Says Gibril Saidy Will Face Psychiatric Evaluation

By  Staff Reporter James Jammeh, Banjul                            

One Gibril Saidy, a native of Kuloro, a village in Kombo East District in the Western Region, is reportedly under arrested by personnels of military police in Yundum, after he had approached and requested their support in overthrowing the government.

According to our sources, Mr. Saidy who drove his Fonterra vehicle to the Barracks was quoted as saying that it’s time for Gambians to end Yahya Jammeh's rule characterised by rampant corruption, abuse of human rights and disrespect for the rule of law, among other human rights violations prevalent in the country.

''Gambians are tired of such a hardship under a dictator,'' he reportedly said.

Sources further told this paper that when he arrived at the camp, Saidy told the officers that he only needed their backing to facilitate his access to State House, saying that on arrival there they could back out as he alone would take care of the rest of the operation.

After narrating his mission to the officers, Saidy was reportedly asked as to what his reasons were, and he told them that ''what I mentioned earlier was my reason, because since July 1994, Gambians have not been enjoying the peace they were used to. And now impunity and harassment must stop as the country belongs to all, not an individual.''

An insider at the 1st Infantry Battalion of the Gambia Armed Forces confirmed the story, saying that after a thorough interrogation by the military police and other security unit heads, they later realised that Saidy has some psychiatric problems. But despite that, the officer said, Saidy was detained and a statement obtained from him.

The source added that the alleged coup plotter’s elder brother, Siaka Saidy, was later invited, and he told them that his younger brother, Gibril, had been in the United Kingdom for over nine years, where he got married to a Gambian lady who embezzled his wealth. He said that Saidy was subsequently deported by the UK authorities. And on arrival in Gambia he started showing signs of mental imbalances.

This paper was reliably informed that Gibril was later handed over to the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) for further investigation as the authorities are treating the matter as a serious one, despite the alleged deteriorating mental condition of the accused.

In the backdrop of persistent reports of alleged coup plots, the Gambia government has grown ever suspicious, and it is bound to take such reports seriously.

Meanwhile, the Saidy Family in Kuloro are said to have been gripped by shock and grieve, maintaining that Gibril's case is the first of its kind in the history of their family. They however described him as a guy who cherishes peace and unity.

An insider at the NIA also confirmed the story, but was quick to add that the accused is in good condition and that he would soon be transferred to the psychiatric unit of the country's hospital for mental evaluation.