Attorney
General and minister of Justice, Abubacarr Tambadou, said the government
continues to demonstrate its commitment to the welfare of the victims by making
an initial payment of 50 million dalasis to the TRRC Victims’ Trust Fund, part
of which was used to provide overseas medical treatment for some victims.
“Let
those who mock at or use threatening or abusive language against the victims be
warned, do not test the limits of our democratic tolerance or confuse our
respect for the rule of law with weakness,” he said during the opening of the
Legal Year 2020 at the High Court Complex in Banjul
“We
will not, under any circumstances, accept the intimidation or harassment of
victims and witnesses by anyone. The change in December 2016 is as much about
sensitivity to the plight of Jammeh’s victims as it is about our collective
destiny as a people.”
Nevertheless,
he continued, “great care must be taken not to undermine or be seen to
undermine all the efforts invested in the transitional justice process. We have
all worked too hard to throw it all away on the altar of political expediency.
History will not judge us kindly if we engage in acts that undermine public
confidence in these processes and ignore the pains and sufferings of the
victims and their families.”
The
Justice minister maintained that the country still has too many challenges and
“we cannot in just three short years resolve all those challenges to the
satisfaction of everyone.”
“So,
our transition from dictatorship to democracy will continue to be fraught with
challenges especially in governance but we are determined to succeed. We are on
course to set a solid foundation for a modern democratic society anchored upon
respect for the rule of law and human rights,” he stated, adding “we will do
everything possible as a responsible government to consolidate these new found
freedoms and democratic gains which too many have fought and died for.”
The
past year, he explained, has been an eventful one especially with respect to
the transitional justice processes. “The Janneh Commission submitted its
comprehensive Report on the financial corruption of former President Jammeh and
his close associates and the government issued its White Paper in reaction to
the report,” he reechoed.
The
government, he continued, has since started implementing the recommendations of
the Commission for the recovery of stolen and misappropriated monies. The sale
of assets and of former President Jammeh’s properties is currently on-going in
phases and has already generated hundreds of millions of Dalasis and more is
expected in the coming months.
“We
will intensify our recovery efforts in the course of this year by using all
legal means at our disposal including civil and especially criminal proceedings
against uncooperative culprits.”
One
of the biggest challenges to our democratic reform process, Tambadou said,
“lies in our security sector reform. There is continuing mistrust between
ordinary citizens and our men and women in uniform in spite of the best efforts
of individual law enforcement agencies to change their approach to law enforcement
in the country.”
“Therefore,
it is clear that there is an urgent need for a coordinated, efficient and quick
security sector reform process and we encourage the general public to exercise
more patience and understanding as this is a complex process that requires
tact, professionalism, and care.”
“We
must also recognize that a complete institutional transformation of our law
enforcement agencies will require a longer and more focused effort but we are
determined to see this reform through.”
