Jonga confessed that over D13 million was spent from the fund, including D11 million on ward projects and D500,000 paid to the National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA), all without adhering to the MoU.
“Yes, I knew I was deviating from the MoU. I have no justification for it,” Jonga stated.
When pressed by Lead Counsel Patrick Gomez on the authority behind his spending decisions, Jonga replied: “None. I acted based on what I felt was morally right at the time.”
Equally troubling was the testimony of former BAC Chairman Sheriffo Sonko, who claimed ignorance of the violations despite his legal responsibility to supervise the CEO’s activities.
“I didn’t follow up. I believed it was the role of the finance director and CEO,” Sonko said.
“If you don’t supervise your CEO, what’s the point of being a chairman?” the Lead Counsel snapped.
Sonko also admitted he did not engage in council-level discussions on audit reports that flagged serious financial discrepancies between 2019 and 2021. He said he left such matters to the CEO and finance department, receiving only occasional briefings.
Audit reports from 2020 and 2021 revealed alarming findings, including: over D9 million in unexplained outstanding revenue, more than D1 million in undocumented payments, allegations of fraud involving 12 revenue collectors, which Jonga said were never properly addressed.
Sonko claimed the matter was referred to the police and the Local Government Service Commission, but Jonga confirmed that no action was taken.
Jonga was also questioned about a D500,000 payment made to NDMA in July 2021. He initially claimed the funds came from the Geology Fund, but evidence presented by the Lead Counsel showed the account was already in overdraft by January 2021.
“It means the payment was not from the Geology Fund because it was already exhausted,” the Lead Counsel stated.
“Yes, that’s reasonable,” Jonga replied, eventually admitting:
“It was not from the Geology Fund.”
The inquiry further revealed that the procurement of eight specialised waste collection trucks violated GPPA regulations. Jonga admitted that no formal procurement method was used and the contract was awarded to 5C Energy without competitive bidding.
“If you don’t open the process, you risk overpaying,” the Lead Counsel warned.
Jonga conceded the error, and Sonko agreed, citing funding constraints, a justification dismissed by the counsel as inadequate.
The Commission also scrutinised the auctioning of BAC assets, revealing that five vehicles were sold for D1.2 million, far below their evaluated worth. Tractors, air conditioners, batteries, and office equipment were sold at scrap value without verified assessments.
Valuable components, including vehicle engines, were reportedly removed prior to auction, with no evidence to support claims that only scrap remained.
Jonga said a committee oversaw the auction and he relied on their reports. However, he admitted to requesting proper documentation from the committee chair, which was never provided.
The Lead Counsel questioned why Jonga failed to act on suspected fraud, especially after receiving reports from Lamin Susso, a staff member not authorised to lead the auction process.
“You saw fraud and did nothing, why?” the Lead Counsel asked.
“It was an oversight. It was our first auction and we lacked experience,” Jonga replied.
Chairperson Jainaba Bah also raised concerns over a sharp drop in council revenue, particularly car park fees, which fell from D1.1 million in 2019 to under D900,000 in 2020 without explanation.
When asked about the decline, Jonga said he was not the collecting agency and offered no satisfactory answer.
Lead Counsel Gomez pressed Sonko on his apparent lack of awareness regarding the irregularities.
Sonko admitted he had been informed of some issues by the CEO but failed to act decisively.
“If you cannot provide reasonable findings, you should leave our office,” the Lead Counsel concluded.
