The
Sports Journalists’ Association of The Gambia (SJAG), being the umbrella body
for practicing sports journalists in The Gambia hereby joins its parent body,
the Gambia Press Union (GPU), to strongly condemn the actions by the
UDP/NRP/GMC supporters on a colleague journalist Kebba Jeffang and a member of
SJAG.
As
a professional body, SJAG Exco and members are in solidarity with the Foroyaa
journalist and demand the authorities to take appropriate legal action against
the perpetrators.
“Kebba
Jeffang is a decent journalist who was executing his professional duties and
for a group of party militants to disrespectfully and irresponsibly attack him
was uncalled for,” the statement said.
“The
Gambia is a land with laws and we expect nothing less than the offenders to
face the full force of the law,” the statement added, saying: “This incident
happened in the presence of the Interior minister and leader of GMC Party, Mai
Ahmed Fatty.”
According
to the statement, the party militants are citizens accorded the same rights of
protection by the same laws “we live under”.
It
is SJAG’s view that future press briefings should exclude all party militants
in an effort to avoid such incidence, the statement recommended.
It
stated: “We hope the new-found democracy would accommodate a much free press
where journalists can independently and freely carry out their jobs.”
