The Commissioner General of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA), Bakary Sanyang, and 13 others were yesterday arraigned at the Banjul Magistrates’ Court, charged with 14 counts of neglecting of official duty, perjury, making false and misleading statement, defraud of government of tax revenue, economic crimes and uttering false documents.
The other accused persons are Musukebba Corr, former commissioner of domestic tax GRA, Louis Gillen, senior officer at GRA, Mamour Joof a senior officer at GRA, Muhammed Krubally, Serign Bamba Saho, Selia Cole, Neneh Jallow, Remeh Jagane, Emmanuel Chime, Rene Renner, Ebrima Kebbeh, Momodu Sanneh, and Fatou sonko.
This came barely 24 hours after the presentation of the Tax Evasion Commission report to the government of The Gambia on Wednesday.
When the charges were read to them, they all denied them and their defence counsel subsequently applied for bail for their clients.
However, Bakary Sanyang, Musukebba Corr, Louis Gillen and Mamour Joof were denied bail, and consequently remanded in custody.
Serign Bamba Saho, Emmanuel E. Chime, Ebrima Kebbeh, Momodou Sanneh and Fatou Sonko were granted bail of D300,000 each with two Gambian sureties who must swear to an affidavit of means.
The bail conditions further stipulated that the accused persons should surrender their travel documents to the registrar of the court.
The particulars of offence on count one stated that Bakary Sanyang, Musukebba Corr, Louis Gillen and Mamour Joof, between 1999 and 2011 at the Gambia Revenue Authority, by virtue of their employment as senior staff of the GRA, neglected their official duties causing economic lose to the tune of D2,528,894 688.37 to the Government of The Gambia, and thereby committed an offence.
Count two stated that Louis Gillen, between 1999 and 2011 at the GRA in Banjul, lied to the Tax Evasion Commission, and thereby committed an offence.
Count three stated that Louis Gillen, Serign Saho, Selia Cole and Muhammed K. Krubally, between 1999 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, whilst on oath lied to the Tax Evasion Commission, and thereby committed an offence.
Count four stated that Louis Gillen, Serign Bamba Saho, Selia Cole and Muhammmed K. Krubally, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, falsely uttered a document exhibited at the Tax Evasion Commission as exhibit LG1 with intent to defraud, and thereby committed an offence.
Count five stated that Neneh Jallow, Remeh Jagne and Emmanuel Chime, in 2010 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, falsely uttered a document being a deed of assignment with serial registration number 469/ 2010 vol 73 KD to the Tax Evasion Commission with intent to defraud, and thereby committed an offence.
Count six read that Louie Gillen, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, being a revenue officer under GRA entered into an agreement with Serign Bamba Saho to defraud the Gambia government of tax revenue, and thereby committed an offence.
Count seven indicated that Bakary Sanyang, between 1990 and 2012 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, being a revenue officer under GRA entered into an agreement with Ebrima Kebbeh to defraud the Gambia government of tax revenue, and thereby committed an offence.
Count eight also indicated that Bakary Sanyang, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, being a revenue officer under GRA entered into an agreement with Ebrima Kebbeh to defraud the Gambia government of tax revenue, and thereby committed an offence.
Count nine stated that Mamour Joof, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, entered into an agreement with Kombo Poultry Farm, to defraud the Gambia government of tax revenue, and thereby committed an offence.
Count ten further stated that Louie Gillen, sometime in 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, intentionally and unlawfully caused economic losses to the Government of The Gambia, and thereby committed an offence.
Count eleven read that Bakary Sanyang, Musukebba Corr, Louis Gillen and Mamour Joof, some time in 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, intentionally and unlawfully caused the state to lose revenue amounting to D2,528,894,698.37 being the total outstanding liabilities owed after the reassessment of selected income, sales tax payers and capital gain tax payers, and thereby committed an offence.
Count twelve indicated that Reneh Remer, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, made false and misleading statements in the declaration of their income on capital gains tax, and thereby committed an offence.
Furthermore, count thirteen indicated that Ebrima Kebbeh, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and divers places in The Gambia, made false and misleading statements in the declaration of their income on capital gains tax, and thereby committed an offence.
And count fourteen stated that Momodu Sanneh and Fatou Sonko, between 1990 and 2011 in Banjul and diverse places in The Gambia, made false and misleading statements in the declaration of their income on capital gains tax in the Babuccar Sey and Alex Tabbal sales property transaction, and thereby committed an offence.
The case was adjourned to 13 June 2012, for hearing to begin.
It would be recalled that the Commission of Inquiry into Tax Evasion and other Corrupt Practices on Wednesday presented its report to President Yahya Jammeh at State House in Banjul.
The report, among others, revealed that that the government lost more than D2 billion from 50 selected taxpayers re-assessed on income, sales and payee tax and D3, 838, 106. 80 bututs for capital gains tax of 14 transactions of sales of leasehold properties.
The report, presented to the Gambian leader by the chairperson of the commission, Justice Mama Singhateh, recommended the prosecution of people, including the GRA officials whose names were mentioned in the report and are found criminally liable by the findings of the commission.
It also recommended for a forensic enquiry into the activities and affairs of the Gambia Revenue Authority, its board and management on corruption, as well as a wholesale purging of the GRA management.
The commission found that most of the revenues due and owing to the state were not received because of the nonchalant and negligent attitude of the GRA staff.
In presenting the report Justice Singhateh revealed that the total outstanding amount of tax debt of selected taxpayers re-assessed was D20, 711, 239.07 for 10 legal practitioners, D5,370,707.13 for 7 medical practitioners, D98, 537, 355.76 for 6 insurance companies, D439, 503, 816.98 for 12 hotels, D15, 263, 390.93 for 7 consultants and engineers and D1, 945,70, 081. 70 for eight other companies.
Of these other companies, she added that four were GSM companies, together with their liabilities amounting to D1, 906, 753, 142.
In receiving the report, President Jammeh warned that that there will be no mercy for anyone who thinks that he or she could get away with tax evasion or cheat his government.
According to Jammeh, some of the people that are mentioned in the report were people that he fired before, and “some of the ministers came to my office almost in tears and wanted to blackmail me, by saying that almost the entire GRA has been demoralized by the actions taken against those people.”
“As long as you are on the wrong side of the law, we will deal with you; I don’t care an uncle, cousin, brother or whatever. Corruption, we will fight it tooth and nail,” he vowed.
Established in November 2011 by President Jammeh, the commission of inquiry, chaired by Justice Mama Singhateh, looked into tax evasion and other corrupt practices of accountants, legal practitioners, companies, and private persons, medical practitioners and institutions required to pay tax to the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA).
The commission was also mandated, among other things, “to ascertain the extent of loss of public revenue resulting from non-payment of capital gains tax, personal income tax and sales tax; and to determine the role of individuals, groups and professional bodies in the evasion and avoidance of tax”.
It also enquired into “professional malpractice by members of the public as it relates to obtaining goods through widespread issuance of false and dud cheques and other malpractices by members of professional bodies as these have affected foreign direct investment in The Gambia”.