Key among their demands are that government should immediately remove the “ECOMIG Senegalese troops in the Fonis,” conduct transparent inquiry into the death of Haruna Jatta, and immediately publish report of the investigation surrounding the death of Sheriffo Gobi Kujabi and Jankeh Bojang of Foni as well as the circumstances leading to the drone usage that killed Yankuba Badjie of Gifanga village among others.
“We demand your government to conduct a transparent inquiry into the death of Haruna Jatta, the unlawful arrest and detention of Modou Bojang (alkalo) of Karor village, Fabakary Bojang of Karor, Detective Officer Abdou Jammeh, the six hospitalised boys who sustained injuries from gun wounds as a result of drones shooting and to close and remove the Senegalese force at the Bwiam checkpoint with immediate effect; and allow the women of Bwiam have access to their rice fields and continue their farming activities uninterrupted,” Hon. Almameh Gibba, NAM for Foni Kansala who doubles as the spokesperson of the five NAMs, said in a statement he read at Kampant village during a press conference held on Sunday.
The petition letter addressed to President Barrow was also copied to 23 other institutions and stakeholders in the country, including the Speaker of the National Assembly, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Justice, National Security Adviser, the ECOWAS Representative, the UN Country representative, the European Union, the U.S. Embassy, the UK High Commission, the CDS of GAF, the IGP and the director general of the State Intelligence Services among other institutions. The convergence was also attended by the executive members of the “No to APRC Alliance.
Hon. Gibba added: “We want the immediate removal of the Senegalese troops from the regions, and an alternative to replace the Senegalese forces in all bases and checkpoints in the Foni with our very own Gambia Armed Forces.”
“We strongly believe our region is much safer without Senegalese troops, and their continued presence will make the regions unsafe and insecure. Failure to take these actions by your government would have grave consequences and ripple effects in the peace and security of The Gambia and also to immediately publish the investigation report surrounding the live gunshots of one Ismalie Tamba of Kanilai.”
Hon. Almameh Gibba stated that they are also calling on the government to immediately publish the investigation report surrounding the death of Haruna Jatta, which was reportedly caused by the Senegalese troops in Kanilai during the protest and compensate his family immediately.
He added that failure to act on their demands will have “great consequences in our peace”.
Gibba accused the government of “unfairly terminating and dismissing Foni citizens who held key positions in civil and public service based on political and tribal affiliations,” saying: “Some were arrested, detained and maliciously prosecuted for crimes they have not committed. Commissions were established and implementations of their recommendations were mainly targeted against our people.”
“The recommendations of the commissions which are mainly against our people speak volumes of your government’s intention to continually marginalise and discriminate against the people of Foni – evidence of this is the militarization of the Foni region based on false presumption that the people of Foni are opposed to the new dispensation and would make the new dispensation ungovernable.
“Secondly, allegations that the MFDC separatists in Casamance were serving in The Gambia Armed Forces and Yahya Jammeh’s departure could further deteriorate the regime’s security hence informed the deployment of the ECOMIG (Senegalese troops) in the Foni under the pretext of national security.”
The Foni Kansala lawmaker also highlighted some incidents that had happened in Fonis from 2017 to date ranging from the “arrest of women and children who were selling at Kanfenda Junction and threatening of one Ebou Camara to death in 2020 among other incidents.
