Ex-Superintendent Manlafi Sanyang Testifies

Ex- Superintendent Manlafi Sanyang, former Government Vehicles Controller at the State House, on Wednesday testified in defence against the allegations preferred against him by the state.

In his testimony, Manlafi Sanyang told the court that he was a police Superintendent attached to State House as Government Vehicles Controller and that he has been in the service for 26 years.

He then went on to state his duties and functions as a Government Vehicles Controller. "As Government Vehicles Controller I control the movement of vehicles, maintenance and the auction," he stated, adding that the Department of State for Finance is responsible for the auction of government vehicles. He said that government vehicles are distinguished by the abbreviated letters GG before the numbers on the number plates while security vehicles carry private number plates. "I know the vehicle BJL 4591B, but I did not know the vehicle BJL4591A," he adduced. He added that BJL 4591B belongs to Youth Development Enterprise, noting that he got to know about the existence of the said vehicle in September 2001 when the country was preparing for the presidential and parliamentary elections. "I remember when Baba Jobe brought to my office 41 pick-up vehicles for APRC to use as compaign vehicles," he said, adding: " I collected the vehicles at TK Motors which were already registered under the name of the Youth Development Enterprise. I took the vehicles to a testing exercise to boost the morale of the APRC and the state of preparedness for the 2001 campaign." He said that during the testing exercise the vehicle BJL 4591B got involved in an accident and it was parked at the Gamwater premises, adding that he informed Baba Jobe and, upon his (the accused's) recommendation, the vehicle was replaced with another.

Further testifying, Mr Sanyang told the court that one day Abdoulie Kujabi, then the NIA Director-General, called him and told him that a friend of his by the name Alhagie Conteh was interested in the said vehicle and that he should discuss the price with him. He informed the court that he went with the said Alhagie Conteh to inspect the vehicle and Alhagie offered to pay D75,000.00, an offer he communicated to Abdoulie Kujabi. He said that Mr Kujabi accepted the offer. He adduced that on Mr. Conteh's payment of the money, he delivered it to Abdoulie Kujabi, who instructed him that the money would be used towards the repair of the Nissan Partrol that was allocated to the president family. He (the accused) claimed that he advised that the president be notified of the decision.

He recounted that on a visit to State House one day, Abdoulie Kujabi assured him that he would clear the issue with the president and later notified him that he had done so and that he should hand over the vehicle to the buyer, Alhagie Conteh. He maintained that the vehicle in question belongs to the Youth Development Enterprise, which he noted was not a state department. He also emphatically denied stealing neither the vehicle with registration no. BJL 4591A nor the sum of D75,000.00 because he knew nothing about that vehicle.

Hearing continues today.