Without wanting to mentioning a specific cases it is unfortunate to hear of a public industrial dispute so soon after Workers Day, which was celebrated on the 1st of May. During those celebrations we heard all the right kinds of words and sentiments expressed. There were various calls for employers to respect the rights of their workers and a reiteration of the good policy put in place by the government to protect these rights. Money can often cloud a persons judgement and unfortunately all too often in The Gambia we hear of workers being treated simply as income generating units without any concern being shown to their health and safety or quality of life. There is always a threat to workers in The Gambia because jobs are so scarce that employers know they can replace any member of staff very easily if they so wish. This creates a climate of fear among employees who fear they will lose their jobs if they speak out against injustice or exploitation. For this reason the government must stop at nothing to ensure that the laws of the land, which protect employees, are enforced with the utmost stringency.

During its third legislative session 2007, the National Assembly passed into law the new Labour Act, 2007 which seeks to incorporate the International Labour Organisation (ILO) conventions ratified by The Gambia since its accession to membership of the world body in 1995. The ILO Conventions in question are namely: Convention 29 on Forced Labour, Convention 87 on Freedom of Association and protection of the Right in Organise, Convention 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining, Convention 100 on Equal Remuneration, Convention 105 on the Abolition of Forced Labour, Convention 111 on Discrimination in Employment and Occupation, Convention 138 on Minimum Age and Convention 182 on the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child labour. All of these laws are vital to the protection of our workers and must form the basis for all employment.

The workforce of The Gambia is working to feed themselves, their families and their extended families. For this reason the health and safety of workers must also be subject to the utmost protection. In his speech on Workers Day the Secretary of State for Trade, Industry and Employment, Mr. Abdou Colley, Stated, “It is in the collective interest of both employers and employees to create an environment that is healthy and safe enough for effective work to take place. I would therefore urge employers to provide protective gear and equipment where required and to ensure that the use of such is adhered to by all those affected at all times.” These are wise words and should be duly noted by all employers.

Industrial conflict is a negative thing, not only for workers and employers but for the economy in general. For this reason everyone involved in the employment process must work together to ensure the smooth, fair and efficient running of the public and private sectors.

“Perfect freedom is reserved for the man who lives by his own work and in that work does what he wants to do.”

Robin George Collingwood

Following the presentation of the 2008 Appropriation Bill (Budget Speech) before members of the National Assembly last Friday by the Secretary of State for Finance and Economic Affairs, Hon. Musa Gibril Bala Gaye, the national mobiliser of the ruling APRC party cum Secretary of State for Fisheries and National Resources, Yankuba Touray, and some members of the National Assembly gave their views on the subject.

Speaking to reporters shortly after the budget presentation, Mr. Yankuba Touray, who doubles as the Secretary of State in charge of National Assembly Affairs, said that Gambians ought to know that every country has its distinctive advantages, noting that not all countries could depend on production. “In The Gambia we have a lot of advantages in terms of the service sector. It is not like we are not developing the productive side of the economy. Listening carefully to the speech by the Secretary of State, productive sectors like agriculture are doing very well because there is an increase in industrial growth,” Secy Touray inferred.

According to him, government would not only rely on tax collection but would diversify and, in future, reach their targets.

Secy Touray also expressed his belief that the 2008 budget would be appreciated by Gambians for the mere fact that confirms the appreciation of the dalasi against other currencies. He added that by 2008 the appreciation of the dalasi would reflect in commodity prices.

In his reaction to the budget, Hon. Sidia Jatta, National Assembly Member for Wuli West constituency and a bigwig in the opposition National Alliance for Democracy and Development, said: “It’s interesting basically but there are still fundamental questions to be answered by the Government,” adding that the statement about the stability of micro-economic fundamentals have given rise to the question as to how the budget could be composed of tax, either directly or indirectly.

In the opinion of the Wuli West Parliamentarian, however good the economy of a country may be, there is bound to be problems if it depends mainly on tax for its income. “There is not a single question about the need to increase salaries, particularly pensioners, some of whom are earning 80-100 Dalasi a month after having worked all their lives in this country. Still there is no attempt to address the issue of salaries which are a fundamental issue of survival,” he observed.

He wondered aloud that if the government portrays a significant growth in the country’s economy why there was no question of increasing salaries even though it has become undeniable that living standards are at an all time low. “They are contradicting themselves by saying the economy is growing. Any economy that is enjoying buoyant economic growth will have an improvement in peoples living conditions. We don’t have that here.”

On the way forward for government, Hon. Jatta urged government to have an economy that is capable of generating revenue and not just depending on taxation.

For his part, Hon. Modou Lamin Sanneh, Minority Leader of National Assembly and a stalwart in the opposition United Democracy Party, had this to say: “So far I have taken my notes and will surely react to the areas in which I am not satisfied. I expected that something would be captured in key areas but my expectations have not been met.”

He concluded by saying: “Many Gambians were expecting a salary increment this time but to our utmost disappointment, nothing was mentioned about it. As of now I am not satisfied with the budget.”

Dock workers Call off Proposed Strike Action  

The Dock and Maritime Workers Union has finally decided to tread the line of dialogue instead of confrontation following a meeting held at the National Intelligence Agency headquarters in Banjul sometime last week, The Point can confirm.

The dock workers who were poised to embark on an industrial strike on 1st September have reportedly decided to call off their planned industrial action and resolved to engage the Gambia Ports Authority in a roundtable discussion with a view to reaching an agreeable compromise.

According to our source, during the said meting at the NIA headquarters, the upper echelon of the union was given two options by the agency: to either go back to their stakeholders to engage them in dialogue so as to address the matter in a peaceful manner or to go ahead with the strike and face the full consequence of the repercussion of their action.

Consequently, after a careful and thoughtful analysis, the representatives of the aggrieved employees then deemed it wise to choose the former option, thus calling off the planned strike in the interest of peace in the country.

The ongoing criminal trial of D37,000, involving Sunkaru Dumbuya of the Kanifing Industrial Area, on Thursday, suffered a setback at the Kanifing Magistrates’ Court, presided over by Magistrate Pa Harry Jammeh.

When the case was called in by the court clerk for continuation of the hearings, Police Prosecutor 870 Touray informed the court that he wanted an adjournment, noting that the last witness that he intended to call in was not reachable. “He is a KMC police personnel and I want an adjournment to enable him to appear before this court,” he said.

At that juncture, Presiding Magistrate Jammeh granted the application and accordingly adjourned the case to 17th July, 2007. The case continues.
 
Alleged mobile thief

In a separate development, Magistrate Jammeh granted one Ebrima Bangura bail to the sum of D3,000.

Mr. Bangura has been standing trial for allegedly stealing a mobile phone at the Kairaba Police Station. However, he denied the charge preferred against him.

Police Prosecutor 870 Touray represented the IGP.