First and foremost, I wish to take this opportunity to thank His Excellency the President and Commander in chief of the Gambia Armed Forces Mr Adama Barrow for appointing Ousman Sowe, from Director General of the State intelligence Service to the rank of Minister of Lands and Religious affairs.
I came to know Ousman sowe when he was recruited into the defunct National Intelligence Service far back in 1996. As a matter of fac, he rose through ranks and in 2017, he was appointed as the Director General of the State Intelligence Service by the new dispensation.
I would not do justice if I do not articulate how gratifying I am given the fact the phenomenal contributions he made during his tenure in office .
Ousman Sowe was such a compassionate and hardworking leader. He is admired by many due to his professionalism and visionary leadership qualities as he has together successfully led the Intelligence Community over the last six consecutive years.
Working with Ousman Sowe was one of the highlights of my tenure in the agency. I noticed his positive attitude, he never failed to give a smile when passing by or ask how someone is doing, even during stressful times. I know his energy and enthusiasm will be missed by his cronies and Colleagues alike. He has set goals following key values and these have had profound change on the overall culture and tone of the Intelligence Community.
As evidenced by his subordinates at all levels, Ousman was an exemplary character who consistently championed what was best for the service, country and the Continent as a whole.
It was a joy working with him as our Director General and during the course of my interaction with him, I learned a great deal from him notably his ability to engage others in meaningful and respectful ways and how he tackles difficult problems under extremely convoluted circumstances.
On this planet, some people have a gift for brightening the days of others and I feel he did this very often, making others around him feel valued.
He is leaving a legacy behind that would be remembered in our institutional archives. Ousman’s visionary Leadership and Community spirit inspired many across the spectrum.
With all intents and purposes, he succeeded in building a vibrant Intelligence service with inclusivity were every serving member were given the opportunity without regard to ethnicity, Linguistic origin or religious inclination to participate in decision making processes.
As an optimistic personality, he transformed the State Intelligence Service underpinned by Rule of Law, Transparency, Best practices, Human Rights and equal opportunities for all. As a security enthusiast, it has always been within his strategic objectives to provide a sustainable framework of orderly functioning of society.
As you are on the verge of moving to the Ministry of Lands, I want to urge you to replicate the excellent service you rendered in your capacity as Director General and Chairman, Committee of Intelligence and Security services of Africa. However, it is our fervent hope that you will live up to expectation.
According to narratives out there, the Ministry has been inundated with some irregularities but I can assure our larger audience that with your knowledge, expertise and courage, you will turn that Ministry to an oasis.
May Allah the sustainer of this Universe and one who has answers to all our questions give you requisite strength knowledge and wisdom to enable you to carry out this monumental task ahead of you.
Let us also pray for your successor who is yet to be identified, so that Allah in like manner could make it easy for him to create a more conducive national security environment for the entire human family.
Thank you
ALH. ABDOULIE MUHAMED SANNO
DIRECTOR OF TRAINING, RETIRED
STATE INTELLIGENCE SERVICE
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