Missing Kanilai Patrol Team Members Have Been Receiving Their Monthly Salaries For the Past Two Years!

The detained Kanilai patrol team members: Wo2 Bai Lowe, Staff Sergeant Abdoulie Jallow, and Lance Corporal Anthony Mendy have been receiving their monthly salaries since their detention back in July 8 2010, according to Gambia Armed Forces accounting records.  Interesting revelations! Will CDS Massaneh Kinteh and his Deputy join the erstwhile Secretary General Ousman Jammeh at Mile Two prison for allowing the soldiers salary to run without  being cleared of any wrongdoing? Are interdicted soldiers entitled to monthly salary without their cases decided?  How broken is the Jammeh system? That arrested soldiers can continue to collect their monthly salaries through their loved ones, or colleagues  for over two consecutive years without GAF’S command catching the irregularities. 

The Jammeh system is broken. There are so many anomalies taking place out there. The payment of salaries to non employees of the Gambia Government has been considered as something normal since there is no proper checks and balances put in place to correct the system.  There are sacked officials still having their salaries deposited in their bank accounts.

Unless the banks received a formal notice from the army, or any other Department that Mr. X, or Y has been sacked and the individual’s salary should be blocked, there is no way on earth for these banks to catch the illegal salary payment discrepancy. 

No wonder that was why the former Army spokesman Lt. Omar Bojang said none of his men were under detention.  Mr. Bojang will also be taken by surprise that two years of taxpayers  money has been wasted on soldiers who ought to have been in the field serving this country. 

You kept Bai Lowe and others in jail without them performing any military functions that could be beneficial to the state and yet Mr. Bojang has the audacity to lie that the men were not under detention. 

Perhaps, Lt.  Bojang and his boss CDS Kinteh will explain to the Gambian taxpayers how on earth that they allowed non serving soldiers to collect salaries for two years? How many other detained Gambian soldiers benefited from the illegal salary disbursement?

There is a certain provision in Gambia’s laws, which states  that servicemen under state investigations should be relieved from their duties until the individual has been cleared of any wrongdoing. During the cause of the investigations, the individual’s salary will be put on hold until the case has been completed. 

If the person has been absolved of any blame, he, or she will be reinstated with full compensation, including his back unpaid salaries during the period in question.

But in the case of Bai Lowe and co, the GFA command just dumped them at cell number seven at the Mile Two Security wing without any charges for two years. The amount of money spent on these non serving soldiers is unacceptable.

The  military police headed by one Mr. Jarsey yesterday showed up at the Mile Two prison to verify the veracity  of a note they received from one of the detainees family members Anthony Mendy, who authorizes his brother one David Gomez to receive his salary on his behalf.   

When confronted with the note, Anthony confirmed that it was indeed from him. Jarsey and his team then left the prison. 

Sang Mendy and Abdoulie Jallow used to receive their salary from Islamic Arab Bank, while Bai Lowe's salary is deposited at the Trust Bank Gambia Limited, our source said.  Some of the banks have started raising red flags about the salary payments since the soldiers concerned never show up to pick up their salaries. 

We also gathered that some of the detained soldiers received payment on the table at the GAF headquarters with the help of their families. 

We expect the army to correct the error and punish those responsible for the blunder. We are also urging the army to either charge or release the detainees. The detainees deserve speedy trial if there is any justified case established against them. Keeping them in jail without trial is unconstitutional.  We rest our case!