#National News

‘Brikama Area Council was poorly managed’

Jun 4, 2024, 11:58 AM | Article By: Ali Jaw

Finance director of the Brikama Area Council (BAC) has attributed poor management as the main hindrance leading to financial liabilities and difficulties of the council.

Alagie Jeng made this disclosure recently during his testimony before the Local Government Commission of Inquiry, recalling that between 2018 and 2023, the council contracted heavy loans from EcoBank, Supersonicz, Microfinance and Jah Oil.

The commission also found that the Council had made payments without following due process, including the payment of honorariums to councilors.

The chairperson of the Commission, Ajaratou Jainaba Bah, questioned the council's decision to pay councillors honorariums.

The council, she observed, collected D83,000,000 in revenue in 2019, but continued to contract loans to pay salaries.

Also, the witness testified that the council had accounts in seven banks and financial institutions, but was not following the law on petty cash systems.

The witness further claimed that payments were made without the signature of the Chief Execuitve Officer.