The minister made the disclosure during a news conference held on Saturday at the Petroleum House in Brusubi as he shed light on the controversial Senegambia Bridge deal.
“The special purpose vehicle (Africa50) is not a foreign company. It is going to be a Gambian domicile company. So we are not dealing with a foreign company here. All operations and the laws governing these operations would be the laws of the Gambia,” the minister said.
Thus, he furthered: “As such it will pay taxes on its operations. So basically we have three strains of cash flows: the upfront cash we are going to get, the dividend as shareholder and taxation arising from their operations. So these are some of the things.”
Mr Keita also clarified the issue of National Assembly ratification, which many Gambians assumed he needed before reaching such deals.
“I know a lot of questions would come, but I believe we should set this out. People quoted the constitution, saying it is a violation as the finance minister to sign agreement without consulting the National Assembly. In my short time as finance minister, I have re-signed more than five agreements, and in none of those agreements have the National Assembly given me the prior approval to say, ‘go ahead and sign.’
He added that the finance minister only goes to the National Assembly when there is a future obligation, for instance when it is a loan and the executive has cleared it and submitted it to the National Assembly for ratification.
“Normally, in a financing term, even your partner would put it as a condition of effectiveness, that this loan or financial facility would not come into force without the ratification of the National Assembly”
Mr Keita, however, stated that he welcomes the comments by members of the public.
