Mr Baboucarr Bouy, who is Minister responsible for Public Service, Administrative Reforms, Policy Coordination and Delivery, is overseeing the Lands Ministry.
Nevertheless, it is very essential to appoint a Minister responsible for Local Government and Lands. The lands Ministry is a mainstay in a country since many people are in need of lands for various reasons.
Some people need land for residential purposes while others need it for offices and business purposes.
Mr President, Government has been spending huge amounts of state funds in renting offices, which could really be minimised if government utilises the available land of the country for the construction of administrative offices.
In the absence of a Lands Minister, many people are finding it very difficult to acquire title deeds to do even business transactions. It has been noted that whenever a lands minister resigns or is removed, it takes very long time for people to acquire lands and their title deeds, which is not fair at all.
Mr President, land issues in this country have been a serious concern over the years, even before you assumed office in 2017.
It is therefore necessary to set up another commission of inquiry to look into the issues of land in the country. There are lands in Kamalo towards Banjul and Kotu, whose acquisition and/or allocation should be revisited to set the record straight and to clear the doubts of people.
Mr President, a lot of lawsuits over land issues are in the courts, which shows that proper administration of Lands is needed.
Furthermore, estate agents have also added to the issues of land acquisition and properties in the country. All of these need to be regulated.
Mr President, the minister that you may appoint should be somebody of integrity and wide experience because land issues are delicate.
Finally, Mr President, we would like to say kudos to the management and staff of the Gambia Revenue Authority (GRA) under the leadership of Commissioner General Yankuba Darboe. Mr Darboe has consistently been beefing up Government coffers with steady handsome revenue generation over the years, which is very important for national growth and development. In just seven months – January to end-July 2023 - GRA was able to generate a total revenue of 9.478 billion dalasis, according to a statement by the Authority.
It is thus appropriated that Government gives befitting motivation to the Management and Staff of GRA for their brilliant performance, as government continues to put the revenue into good use, giving due consideration to security, health, education, good feeder roads and so forth. On the other hand, Government should minimise travels, expenditure on fuel and expensive cars and always apply financial discipline in government departments.
Good day!