Press
release
Following
His Excellency President Adama Barrow’s Proclamation of a State of Public
Emergency on Friday 26th March, 2020 and in accordance with Section 3 of the
Emergency Powers Act, 2009, The Gambia Government wishes to clarify areas of
public life affected by the Emergency Powers Regulations.
Specifically,
and for purposes of clarity and effective compliance, all forms of bars,
casinos and gaming parlours, cinemas and video clubs, event halls, gymnasia,
stadia, night clubs, public swimming pools, sporting areas, are deemed
‘Non-Essential’ and shall remain closed to the public.
Equally,
all public gatherings like ‘Ataya rendezvous’ and street gatherings of more
than five (5) people are strictly prohibited.
Restaurants
shall remain open for the singular purpose of selling food for takeway
services. Restaurant owners or operators shall ensure that a minimum distance
of at least two (2) metres between any two persons in the restaurant ordering
‘take away food’ is maintained.
Salons
or barber shops shall remain open in so far as they are located outside of
markets. However, a salon or barber shop owner or operator shall ensure that
not more than two (2) persons are present within the premises of his or her
business at any given time.
Significantly,
all non-food outlets in all markets throughout The Gambia and within one
hundred metre radius of a market shall be closed to the public for business.
Such outlets can only operate some one hundred metres (100M) outside market
places throughout the country and are equally obliged to practice social
distancing, serving one customer at a time and install hand washing stations
for their customers and observe the highest standards of hygiene at all times.
Food
vendors and traders of any food products
inside the markets shall open for business between the hours of 06.00 AM to
2.00OPM each day to allow for local authorities to cleanse the premises for the
following market day. This does not include local ‘chere’, hot food, vegetable
and fruit vendors who normally operate in the evenings across various
communities. They are however, equally obliged to follow all prescribed hygiene
precautions and keep away from inside markets after the close of business.
All
food traders on temporary stalls in a market shall maintain a minimum distance
of two metres between any two stalls.
Crucially,
all traders operating in a market shall have hygiene materials available for
use by them and their customers and shall cleanse their places of business with
water and disinfectants at the close of daily business.
By
extension, the owners of shops located in areas with more than five (5)
interlinked shops shall ensure that there is a maximum of two (2) persons in
every shop.
For
the enforcement of these regulations, the Local Government Authorities in
collaboration with State Security Services (The Police, PIU, and Intelligence
Services) shall designate their officers as ‘Inspectors’ and enforce the law to
the letter.
An
Inspector, in clearly identifiable uniform or with official identification
documents for plain clothes or undercover assignment, shall have the power,
without prior notice and at any time, to close any non-food business in the
markets. Inspectors could enter and inspect any business premises in the
occupation or under the control or possession of a trader in the market, and do
any other duty necessary or expedient for the proper discharge of their
functions under these Emergency Regulations.
Accordingly,
a person shall not obstruct an Inspector in the exercise of his or her
functions.
Commercial
public transportation is restricted. In this respect, a commercial public
transport driver shall limit the number of passengers to not more than half his
vehicle’s capacity. The driver shall cleanse and disinfect his or her vehicle
at the beginning and close of business every work day. A driver of a four-seater
commercial vehicle shall carry a maximum of three (3) passengers only.
In
the same vein, a driver of a vehicle carrying commercial goods shall carry only
one passenger in the vehicle cabin. Commercial motorists are cautioned not to
inflate or increase fares lest they face severe consequences.
For
private vehicles, a driver shall limit the number of passengers to half the
usual capacity of the vehicle. A rider of a motor cycle shall not carry any
passenger on his or her motorcycle except where that motorcycle is designed to
perform ambulatory services which are very common in the provinces.
As
it relates to Garages and Car Parks, the Local Government Authorities of every
Region shall ensure that public garages, car parks, bus depots and transport
offices are cleansed and disinfected at least twice daily. They shall be fitted
with hand washing stations in and around the areas. The controllers of public
garages or commercial vehicles pick-up areas shall ensure that only the drivers
of commercial vehicles and their apprentices are allowed within or around a
garage or a pick-up area.
As
it relates to marine transportation, all ferries and commercial boat operators
shall ensure that they strictly operate from 6a.m to 7p.m daily except under
medical emergencies. The ferries should carry only half of the capacity allowed
on each trip and provide protective gears to the crew and essential ferry staff
while disinfecting their boats after each trip. The waiting area at all ferry
terminals must be regularly disinfected and restricted to only the elderly and
the differently-abled persons. Terminal operators shall provide hand washing
facilities to all passengers before they board the ferries. Passengers should
be sensitized on basic personal hygiene and social distancing as per the advice
of the Health Ministry.
Penalties
For Offenders
Members
of the public are urged to take these regulations very seriously as they are
intended to curb the Covid:19 Viral Pandemic ravaging the world and therefore,
carry severe penalties for offenders. A person who contravenes these
Regulations commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a very heavy
fine.
These
regulations shall subsist until the end of the Proclamation of a State of
Public Emergency issued on 26th March, 2020.
The
Gambia Government wishes to thank the people for their understanding and
encourage them to comply with the regulations governing the State of Public
Emergency as we mobilise our combined national efforts towards the eventual
defeat of COVID-19.
Signed:
Ebrima
G . Sankareh
The
Gambia Government Spokesperson
