The Gambia Armed Forces FC on Friday, received donations in the form of football jerseys, shocks and caps, from Ralph Bernard, a Jamaican, and his Gambian business counterpart, Lamin Saidy. The donated items were formerly presented to the chief of defence staff of The Gambia Armed Forces, Major General Lang Tombong Tamba, the president of the club, who doubles as the first vice president of The Gambia Football Association.

Speaking at the presentation ceremony held at The Gambia Armed Forces headquarters in Banjul, the donors, Ralph Bernard and Lamin Saidy, all expressed gratitude to the CDS and head of state, stating that it was a personal gift from them towards the development of sports in The Gambia. They were unanimous in their belief that the contribution of the Armed Forces to the sustainability of peace in the country cannot be emphasized; something that warranted such a gesture.

CDS Tamba, in giving his statement, congratulated the donors for their ‘wonderful gesture,’ assuring them that it would go a long way in boosting the preparations of The Gambia Armed Forces FC in their pending trip to Uganda, on a regional sporting competition. Major General Tamba emphasised on the need for security, saying there would be no peace without the army.  He expressed fervent appreciation of the donated items, while thanking the donors for using their resources in supporting The Gambia Armed Forces.

Jammeh Bojang, secretary general of The Gambia Football Association, also thanked the donors for their ‘unbeatable gesture,’ saying such a donation would go a long way in the development of sports in the country. He said the donation came at the right time when The Gambia Armed Forces team were preparing for their trip to Uganda.

The Kairaba Beach Hotel and R & R Laundry Services Staff Credit Union presented a cheque for D20,000 and 100 bedsheets, 100 blankets, 100 bed protectors, 100 bath towels, 35 pillows and pillow cases, worth D175,470.

 The donations were received by Dr Tamsir Mbowe, the director general of the Presidential Treatment Programme, at a presentation ceremony held at the new Serrekunda Hospital on Wednesday.

Speaking at the presentation ceremony, Janko Drammeh, the purchasing manager at Kairaba Beach Hotel, who is the treasurer of the Kairaba Beach Hotel and R & R Laundry Services Staff Credit Union, said the presentation was possible after a fundraising activity they organised in July.

“Since then, we promised that part of the proceeds of the fundraising activity should be donated to the health sector. We therefore thank the general managers of both institutions (Kairaba Beach Hotel & R & R laundry services) and all our donors for the support they have given us,” he remarked.

Receiving the items, Dr Mbowe thanked the staff of Kairaba Hotel and R & R Laundry Services for the gesture. Dr Mbowe elaborated on the numerous successes registered by the treatment programme under the watchful eyes of President Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh.

“As said by the president, anyone who contributes to the health sector is a true and genuine friend of the country and your donation manifested this,” Dr Mbowe remarked, while thanking the donors on behalf of the president.

Other speakers at the ceremony included Memunatu Junisa, the human resource manager of Kairaba Beach Hotel and Cecelia Sambou, the sales director at Kairaba Beach Hotel.

Last Tuesday, the national Disaster Relief Committee, under the auspices of the vice-president, Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy, presented relief money of over D300, 000, an amount allotted for disaster-stricken victims in the country.

This money, it must be noted, came thanks to the generosity of the UNDP Gambia office, a body that is said to have an enviable history of rendering such gestures of benevolence to these kinds of people.

One thing that is special about last Tuesday’s presentation is that it came at the right time; the period when the country is experiencing worrying tales of disasters, mostly caused by floods, after downpours. Donations like these are quite commendable. In fact, we would want to join calls for the benefactors to keep up with the spirit, especially given the nature of rainfall we have been realising in this season.

However, it is worthwhile discussing the fact that giving donations like this might be just part of the solution of the problem; the money might only be important for control measures. But the issue of what we have at hand is such that we need to focus more on prevention rather than control. Do they not say that ‘prevention is better than cure’? Well, we ought to go back to the drawing board.

 As someone said recently, it is a fact that there are natural disasters; but it is equally true that there are ‘man-induced natural disasters’. We will get the explanation to this if we look at the nature of buildings we have; the manner in which our settlements are planned; our roads; our gutters; these coupled with clandestine wiring systems in congested residential and commercial areas.

These were in fact the concerns raised by the vice-president, during the last presentation ceremony. And, as a matter of fact, she was quite right in this. As she said, in our quest to sorting out this chronic problem, everybody has a stake; the private building contractors; the engineers; the relevant departments of state; and even the individual owners of compounds.

In some areas of the region, as her Excellency said, the eminence of flood is virtually inevitable, because the situation of the houses is such that there is absolutely nothing we can do, at our level, to stop the eventualities. In cases like these, we find out that the only possible way out would be through prevention. In this regard, it is the duty of the relevant departments of state to remain steadfast. If, for instance, a structure is not supposed to be erected somewhere, they must ensure that it is not erected.  

It is disheartening, however, to see the way our new settlements are sprouting with new structures, not only poorly constructed but also so poorly planned that disaster becomes inevitable. This should be the focus of the authorities concerned.

This young lady, now 19, was first discovered with serious medical complications, resulting from serious burns. This was about 11 years ago, at the Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital children’s ward, where she was a patient.

 She was eight years old then and, according to Mr Bijou Peters, who had discovered the young angel, Sera had sustained severe 3rd degree burns on her face, chest, abdomen, arms and thighs.  "She was suffering a great deal and, under normal circumstances, the patient should not have survived because patients admitted with severe burns involving more than two thirds (2/3) of the body do not often survive."

Dr Ayo Palmer, the Paediatrician in charge of the children’s ward at that time was said to have requested Mr Peters to visit the burns section of the ward to discover the large number of children’s admitted with severe burns. There were appallingly several cases of patients with various forms of burns; some mild and others serious. Among these was little Sera Jarju who was very severely burnt, and had been in the hospital for a whole year, with her grandmother, Binta, and they were about to be discharged home to Lamin.  The surgeon in change of her had decided that the hospital was unable to do anymore for her.

Sera was in an awful plight. During the healing process of her burns, contracture of her muscles had developed (blue muscles of her arms began to contract inward, towards her chest, a common feature of 3rd degree burns).

A splint in the shape of a cross to keep her arms outstretched would have prevented the contractures. But unfortunately this was not used, and very soon the contracture persisted and Sera’s arms became fused across her chest.  This rendered the poor child incapacitated; she could not feed, wash herself or do anything by herself; and she was in a terrible dilemma.

 "This was very unfortunate, as when I first met Sera she was up and about and actually playing with the other children in the ward who were recovering," said Mr Peters, "I was saddened and disturbed when I discovered that she was about to be discharged home because the surgeon felt that nothing more could be done for her, and that her grandmother was tired, having been with her in hospital for a whole year."  

An unhappy situation it was. What was to become of her in Lamin Village, now that she could not do anything for herself? Who would take on the responsibility of caring for her, feeding her, and so on?  In no time she would not be properly fed, she would lose weight, and her condition would certainly begin to deteriorate.  The nurses at the hospital then deserve unreserved commendation for treating her severe burns until they got healed. God also had his healing hands on Sera and was not going to allow her to die.

On Mr Peters’ return home, he was inspired to write an article about the child’s predicament and put a picture of her on the papers. (That is the picture of her on this page). The result of that article was dramatic. The public was apparently struck by the poor child’s misfortune, so people began to donate to wards her welfare.

This was the beginning of an impressive fund raising spree for Sera - institutions, civil service departments, schools, private individuals - and even the army organised a football match and donated the proceeds realized to Sera Jarju’s fund.

That was a fantastic display of humanitarianism, as nothing of that nature had ever happened before.  In a short time an amount of D92, 749.20 was collected for the child.  It could be recalled that all donations were sent to the senior accountant at the RVTH, MB Awa John, who had a very busy time writing to acknowledge receipt of every donation, thanking donors, in spite of her busy schedule of work at the hospital.

A committee was subsequently formed, including some of the hospital authorities. And this committee decided to search abroad for a hospital and a re-constructive plastic surgeon that would be willing to treat Sera without charges.

The committee dispatched several correspondences to hospitals in the UK and elsewhere, hoping to find a hospital willing to help this unfortunate child. "We were so lucky to have received positive responses from various hospitals ready to help her. We succeeded in choosing the best hospital that would suit our purpose regarding proximity to The Gambia as well as a plastic surgeon with experience in re-constructive plastic surgery.  All that entailed a great deal of work and correspondences to and fro.

Finally, Mr Dimonkay, an experienced plastic surgeon in re-constructive surgery, took on the challenge and offered his services free of charge, provided we could get Sera to the UK, to her hospital in Leeds, and accompanied by a trained nurse to assist with the nursing care of the sschild while in hospital.

Sera went to the UK on two successive occasions, and underwent two major operations; the first one was to free her fused arms, while the 2nd was for the re-constructive plastic surgery, both of which, thankfully, were successful.  It was a great achievement for Mr Kay and his team.  He reportedly stated that he had never seen contractures as extensive and severe as Sera's. "We were happy that Sera survived the two major surgery operations."

After so many sufferings, recounts Mr Peters, Sera made a good and speedy recovery when she returned home.  There after she was much better, she began to agitate to go to school. She received the needed encouragement and was accepted at a primary school in her home village of Lamin.  She enjoyed being at school and soon made a lot of friends.  Sera, according to him, was a very courageous child, undaunted by her disability. And she was not the least embarrassed by her deformity.

 "She plodded on slowly but surely through primary school, until she reached grade 9."  At that stage, they succeeded in getting her sponsors from the UK. Sera did not want to go to a skill centre.

Rather, she preferred to continue her education up to grade 12. She proved adamant about that, and was able to find herself a school all the way in Brikama, where she managed to stay with a family member.  She has now completed grade 12. "We say well done and bravo to this girl of 19 years, for her determination, courage and resourcefulness, to have achieved so much in spite of many difficulties and much suffering.  A good member of Gambians will remember all that she endured at the age of 8."

In conclusion Sera’s right hand, fortunately, was not terribly burnt, but her left hand was, and she actually lost three digits, for which she still requires surgery.  Mr Kay is said to be willing to help to treat her, but not free of charge this time round, because he is no longer at the Leeds Hospital where he was in charge of.

An appeal is hereby sent to any philanthropist who may be willing to help Sera Jarju even further.  Her recovery was indeed a real miracle!

Courtesy of Mr Bijou Peters

Editor,

Please, on behalf of the Alkalo, Council of Elders, women and youths of Foni Jarrol and on my own behalf, I hereby write to appeal for a space in your newspaper to extend our sincere thanks to His Excellency, Alhagi Dr. Yahya A.J.J Jammeh, president of the Republic, for the handsome gesture he extended to us recently, on the occasion of our recent cup celebration.  

Sir, these donations came at the right time, without which the celebration would not have been successful.

Once again, on behalf of the entire community of the village, I seize this opportunity to congratulate you for your wonderful development programmes such as herbal treatment, peace building, your support for education, sports, Agriculture and other fields and, indeed, for your attitude of caring and sharing.

May Allah the Almighty reward you and your family abundantly. We wish you long life, wisdom, peace, progress and prosperity in ruling this country, forever.

Please accept, your Excellence, the assurances of our unflinching support to your calls for nationalism.

Sheriffo A Sanneh

Jarrol Youth Development Association

A foundation stone for a new mosque at Brufut Lower Basic School was recently laid by Alhagie Kebba Sheriff Hydara, Kaliph of the Hydara families in The Gambia.

The mosque, with a dimension of 11m by 10m, is a self help project initiated by the school through its Islamic conferences and donations organised by the staff and students of the school.

Speaking shortly before the laying of the foundation block, the Kaliph of the Hydara families in The Gambia, Alhagie Kebba Hydara, used the occasion to pray for continued peace and stability in the country. He urged the muslim Ummah to be united and work as one family, noting that islam is a religion born with tolerance and obedience.

He described unity as a fundamental principle of islam. He then prayed for progress and prosperity of the project and seek for Allah’s blessings it.

The ceremony was attended by the Alkalo of Brufut, Alh Yunusa Sano, religious leaders, as well as members of the Brufut community. The food vendors of the school provided the feeding during the ceremony as part of their contribution towards the event.

Mr Lamin Gassama, the IEC and dissemination officer of the Gambia Red Cross Society has revealed that school children are expected to take part in the World Red Cross Day celebration, which will be conducted in grand style this year in the form of a week-long commemoration starting from 7th to 14th May.

Mr Gassama made these remarks during a press briefing held at the Red Cross Society headquarters in Kanifing so as to enlighten the public about  the forthcoming activities. He also made a general call on all school administrators to give permission to their students in order to enable them to participate actively in the numerous events and programmes.  

Gassama noted that blood donations in all regions, conferences on the theme “Together for Humanity’’ and interlink quiz competitions will also be part of the week-long activities  celebration.

The Gambia Experience and their guests from the UK, last Thursday donated an amount of D352,600.00 to six (6) schools in the rural areas.  The beneficiaries are Jarra Barrow-Kunda Lower Basic, Jiffarong Lower Basic, Kudang Lower Basic, Panchang Basic Cycle School, Buduk Lower Basic and Niana Senior Secondary School.

Jarra Barrow Kunda Lower Basic School received D69,000 for the transformation of staff quarters, while Jiffarong Lower Basic School, Kudang Lower Basic,  Panchang basic cycle school  received respectively D88,400, D48,000, D61,500 for the renovation of classroom blocks. Buduk Lower Basic School was granted an amount of D40,500.00 for not only fencing the school garden but also providing equipment and materials to the said institution. And last but not least,  Niana Senior Secondary  School D45,200.00 for the renovation of kitchens and sanitary facilities.

Speaking at the presentation ceremony, Joice Stavroulakis, Gambia Eperience Resort Manager,  explained that they annually embarked on this immense initiative, noting that their ambition is to enable Gambian schools to tackle their day-to-day activities. She also added that they normally receive donations from the United Kingdom.

According to her, they requested that the regional educational officers should be monitoring the projects and that the officers or the headmasters will inform them when the work is complete.  Conscious of the fact that such a project requires the necessary transparency, she outined that photographs of the site during and when the project is completed will taken and forwarded to them. for their guests to see where and how the monies have been allocated.

For his part, Dr Pap Sey, deputising for the Secretary of State for Basic and Secondary Education,  said that this is a very good contribution to the educational sector noting that the Gambia Experience and their guests are not out only to make money but also to contribute to the country’s national development.  “We hope our guests will continue to come and  support efforts geared towards  national development,” he said.

Dr Sey seized the opportunity to call on the school Heads to be as professionals as expected and advised them to make good use of the money.  He assured them that they will identify officials to monitor them in order to make sure that the donors have accurate feed-backs.  Mr Lamin Manneh, of the Gambia Experience, was tasked with the responsibility to gather information and keep the records updated.