The new executive of The Gambia Basketball Association under the leadership of Gheran Senghore accused Mr. Jallow of interfering in the association’s affairs as well as his refusal to tender his signature to the GBA Trust Bank account after resigning in 2019.
“All the allegations and claims meted against me are not just baseless but false,” said former GBA Secretary General Jallow, who is also the current SG of the Gambia National Olympic Committee (GNOC) during an exclusive interview with The Point.
“I want to make it clear once and for all that the misperception of our resignation is false. It is false that we resigned and then the National Sports Council (NSC) organised an AGM for GBA.
We resigned because the NSC wrote to us saying that they are taking over,” he added.
Mr. Jallow revealed that the NSC has no mandate under the Sports Council Act to take over or organise an AGM for any sporting organisation, adding that this was the reason they resigned. “It was clearly stated on our resignation letters.”
“By virtue of the Sports Council organising a congress in the eyes of the international community is illegal and therefore, this is the reason why the Federation of International Basketball (FIBA) is not recognising the new executive of the GBA.
This is not because Abdoulie Jallow has friends at FIBA or is part of FIBA,” he further said.
He added that the problems happening with the basketball are due to the National Sports Council’s inference with the association’s dealings.
Clarifying on the issue of their handing over of details of the association, Mr. Jallow noted that they handed over all documents and materials to the NSC including the association’s remaining cheque books.
According to him, they also handed over the income and expense statement which shows a balance of D59, 000 in the account of the association.
“With regard to the bank account, we resigned and as a result we cannot sign anything under the name of the GBA.”
“We did wrote to the bank and informed them that we are no longer signatories since 2020, together with former Treasurer Yassin Joof-Jaw.”
He went further to say that he was not withholding any information of the GBA, adding that they did what they are supposed to do – which is to write to the bank informing them that they were no longer signatories to the GBA account.
Commenting on the issue of GNOC not allowing the new GBA executive at GNOC AGMs, he said, this is because FIBA International and FIBA Africa do not recognise the new executive of the GBA.
“Again one has to be a member of an association or executive to be able to attend a congress or an AGM. I can guarantee that some people are elected in the new GBA executive without being members or licenced by the GBA at the time we resigned,” he said.
He buttressed that those who were rejected at the GNOC AGM are those that came with a card but were not members of an association. He added that all executive members of associations were given a licence.
Commenting on the issue of his interference with the association’s dealing internationally, he said he was not influencing any international body with regard to issue of basketball in the country.
“I am not going to hide that I sent documents to FIBA. I sent them documents because there was something wrong that was happening. We resigned because of the wrong things that were happening. So because we are affiliated to FIBA, we wrote to them informing them about the issue that is happening with basketball,” he stated.
“I’m part of FIBA in a sense I was co-opted in by the executive of the zone not because I am representing GBA but because of the capacity I have.”
This is why I was selected to be an adviser to the president,” he also said.
He concluded that the GNOC wrote to the new executive informing them that they can only be recognised by GNOC only if they gain the recognition of both FIBA International and FIBA Africa.
