Legendary lawyer Fafa M’bai passes away

He was 82. He is expected to be laid to rest today at his home village of Sambang, Niamina West District, CRR.

Fafa Edrissa MBai, born in 1942, studied Law and Political Economy in Great Britain after serving in the administration, then returned to the country to work as a lawyer and magistrate before reaching the highest position as Minister for Justice (1982-1984).

In 1992, during the first republic, he had a 200-page book printed in Britain entitled In the Services of My Beliefs. This book is not an autobiography but a collection of 43 articles and speeches written or delivered between 1974 and 1992. To know someone, and even more so a public person, writings and speeches are not enough, as one must also judge and appreciate actions, but this kind of document is no less important as it gives an idea of the opinions and the art of convincing of the author. It is good to know the intentions and motivations of the men who have animated and led the country's political life, even for a relatively short period.

The documents are classified in chronological order: 5 between 1974 and 1980; 10 for 1982; 17 for 1983; 6 for 1984; the last 5 between 1985 and 1992. It can therefore be seen that the majority of the texts (36 out of 43) correspond to the period of full ministerial activity of Fafa Edrissa M'bai.

While most of the texts were produced in The Gambia and for Gambians, a few were produced abroad for other audiences: in Windsor (Great Britain), in Montego Bay (Jamaica), 2 in Colombo (Sri Lanka), 2 in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), in Dakar (Senegal), in Budapest (Hungary), in Wellington (New Zealand). In the case of Gambia, several speeches were made in the National Assembly during legislative debates (12) for for ministerial activities, in particular at the Supreme Court (4); but the other speeches were made in schools (Gambia High School, Armitage, Gambia College, GTTI) and at various ceremonies.