The ongoing TODAY newspaper case, at the kanifing court, could not continue today. The counsel for the paper lawyer Lamin Camara requested for an adjournment, which was granted by sitting magistrate Buba Jawo. The case is now adjourned to the 15 of October 2008. It could be recalled that TODAY newspaper is dragged to court by the state over a story concerning school children scavenging metal at the disadvantage of their school lessons.

The editor was charged for sedition and the paper is closed by the police until further notice. At the last sitting it was said by PW1, that the proprietor, Abdoulah Adiomoh did not renew its business licenses, and that he also has permit A category with which he could not have registered such a business.

Fresh charges were brought against him and taken before a magistrate in Banjul, he was since found guilty of the offences and fine ten thousand dalasi (D10, 000.00). This was since paid, but he is to continue with the seditious case against him at the kanifing courts.

Algasim Barry,Secretary General , The Gambia Herbal Organisation who has been administering herbal medicine for more than thirty years in the Gambia, recently told the Media Agenda that there, is cure for many diseases at his medical center which is located at the main Serekunda market. He said he has being doing this for a very long time.

Herbal medicine is real and that; it is from the herbal that the west extracts these tablets and even some liquid medicine which are given at our hospitals. Bah said he goes to the bush to replace his herbal stock. Asked what specific ailments he cures, Bah said he can cure high blood pressure, he can cure impotency, he can also take care of stomach pains, and many more. When he was asked about HIV/Aids, he said he has no cure for that. But he did not rule out that there cannot be cure for it within the herbal industry. There is every cure within, but not all of us can do all.

Asked what is he most good at, “I am very good at curing impotency, many men came here, and after taking my treatment, they came back feeling happy that that they were now performing well” Bah said. Some of them almost lost their wives, due to not functioning well. He said there are women who also come to him, because they cannot bear childen.These are all cases he can handled.

I ask if he has any children, Bah told me he has many children, most of who are adults now. He said if any body said he has cure for impotency and that he has medicine for women who cannot bear children and the person do not have children himself ,then you can doubt his competence.

Following our publication last Monday of a story regarding the expression of concerns by the Joint Session of Public Accounts/Enterprise Committees of the National Assembly as to the non-existence of insurance cover on assets at the Central Bank, the bank has reacted to our story.

The story, which was quoted from the report by the committees of the National Assembly highlighted issues of concern, called on the Management and Board of Directors of the bank to clarify to the Secretary of State for Finance and Economic Affairs the issues raised for onward transmission to the 2008 PAC/PEC joint session.

We hereunder reproduce the full statement from the Central Bank of The Gambia which was delivered to the offices of The Point yesterday:

Dear Sir

Headline - No Insurance Cover on Assets at Central Bank

We refer to your front-page headline in The Point Newspaper dated 25 August 2008 relating to the caption.

By quoting from the summary of the deliberations of the Joint Public Accounts and Public Enterprise Committees of the National Assembly (December 2007), the public may have been inadvertently given wrong and incomplete information. We therefore write to clarify the situation in relation to insurance of assets at the Central Bank.

The fixed assets of the Central Bank (the headquarters building and staff quarters, office furniture and equipment, motor vehicles etc.) are insured at all times. The issue referred to in the Committees report is actually related to the auditors’ recommendation in their 2004 management letter to insure some other assets of the Bank.

Some of the recommendations of the auditors are meant to assist management improve the control environment in which an institution operates in order to minimise loss of assets and to highlight areas of deficiencies for corrective actions. These recommendations are implemented if the audited institution agrees with the auditor that they would help strengthen internal controls and safeguard assets.

The other issues raised in your article referred to above have been adequately addressed within the framework of the Central Bank’s responses to the auditors’ management letter and the relevant authorities.

 H. Joof for Second Deputy Governor.

Editor’s Note: The article referenced in this letter made no reference to the fixed assets of the Central Bank. Neither did it contain any inference that the fixed assets of the Central Bank were not insured. It simply quoted the concerns expressed by the Joint Session of Public Accounts/Enterprise Committees. It might be more fruitful if the Central Bank were to communicate with these committees regarding this matter.

Barely 48 hours after the publication of his sacking as national deputy youth mobilizer of the APRC, reliable sources have disclosed to the Daily Observer that Majanko Samusa has been reinstated.

Shortly after the news of his reinstatement, Mr Samusa walked into the Observer offices with a copy of his reinstatement letter, signed by Mr Manlafi Jarju, general secretary of the APRC Secretariat, confirming his reinstatement as a ‘youth mobilizer’.

Following our publication yesterday of a story claiming that a curfew had been imposed by a decision of village elders, Gambia Police Force yesterday sent in a rejoinder to clarify the immediate circumstances leading to the issuing of the report from the village. The full text of the clarification is as follows:

The Police in Kerewan were on normal patrol at around 01:00 hrs which is a strategy employed by personnel of the Police Intervention Unit to curb crime. They met up with a group of boys who were questioned but could not give a satisfactory reason of their being out up to that time. They were searched and one of them was found with ten (10) wraps of suspected cannabis. As a result they were escorted to the Station, where the one found with the suspected cannabis was charged and the rest were released and warned that if caught again they could be charged for Rogues and Vagabond.

Its true that the Imam, Alkalo and elders of Kerewan made a delegation and met the Governor North Bank Region and lodged a complaint that people are being attacked at night and robbed of their properties and youths sitting in the streets smoking cannabis. So they appealed to the Police to intervene. There is no curfew at Kerewan the arrest made has no relation absolutely with the purported curfew.

Editor’s Note:

The information leading to the publication of the story in question was gathered from sources in the village of Kerewan. The sources, it follows, should have been aware of any routine patrol by police such that they would be able to distinguish between routine and novelty.

WAJA’s objective is to build the capacity of its membership in this part of our continent, said Alpha Sall the project Coordinator of the West Africa Journalists Association WAJA, in an exclusive interview with Media Agenda’s Mariama Ceesay.Sall was in Banjul from the 28-31 July 2008 conducting training for 30 Gambian journalists in skills improvement workshop in collaboration with The Gambia Press Union (GPU).

He told the MA, that WAJA signed a four project with the ACBF some one year ago and the project is in full blossom implementing its plans of action which is basically training journalists in the region. We are aiming at training journalist of all cadre, be it investigative, sport, health and all others specialties of journalism. Association did discover that there some of our members who are weak in other disciplines of our profession so the need for such a project.

Asked how many countries have the project conducted training of this kind, Sall said we have conducted training in eight countries namely: Senegal, Sierra Leone, Niger, Burkina Faso, Bissau, The Gambia and Liberia. As you may know we are 15 countries so we are only half way. We will be in Banjul again in October of this year, for a regional workshop and at that work shop we hope to give award of excellence to deserving candidates. 

In brief remarks at the closing of the Gambia’s workshop, Coordinator Sall encourage the participants to make good use of the knowledge gained at the workshop and said he was impressed that the Gambia is one of the best in female representation at the WAJA workshops so far.

Madi M.K. Ceesay former president of GPU and current director of Media Agenda who officiated over the closing ceremony told participants that they should work hard to become journalists worth their salts. He call on them to do all what it takes one to become journalist rather than join the lists as most of our critics will say. To do that one has to read and read every thing that you can lay your hands on.

As reporters he told them that their duty is to collect information, put it in order, and deliver it to the reader with accuracy, clarity, simplicity. He concluded by extending the thankfulness of the Gambia Press Union to WAJA as a regional body for their far sightedness. He ended congratulating the participants for what he describe this wonderful achievement.

The dialogue with the people this year is took a different angle from the ones before. Right from start in the one’s , before this one, President jammeh is on record of saying that he was disappointed by Gambians electorates by not voting for him massively in the last Presidential election, he felt  not treated fairly because he deserves more votes as a sign of appreciation   by Gambians.

 In the previous dialogue he told the people that he and his government have brought much progress and developments that would have been impossible without him and his government. He sited the Barra/ Laminkoto road, the bridge at kerewan and not to talk of the numerous health facilities and schools. For him it means such developments are not appreciated by the people whom those developments are meant for.

Again the President is on record threatening Gambians oppositions not taking any development to them. It was at one of the meetings during the meet the people dialogue at the North bank that Jammeh told a large audience that –There will be no development for people who do not vote for him.

Some critics felt that the President got it all wrong – No President can speak like that. That No President no matter how rich he/she is , uses his personal money to develop a nation .Rather it’s the tax payers money which is use to develop the nation .  In tax collection, all taxes are collected be it that of pro-government supporters or opposition people. So is it fair to deny some the benefits of their money? No no Mr.  President so it’s only fair to give people what is worth of their taxes no matter what political affiliations they have.

Mr. President how would you also tell, who voted for you or not., say in a constituency. For example it’s not possible to have a 100% APRC vote or a100% opposition vote –so if a particular constituency is denied development because it’s an opposition control constituency do the pro- government electorates deserve a punishment? No Mr. President with all fairness you are running the country with people’s taxes and not your personal wealth you are only privilege to be elected as President and that is why you are entrusted with the monies of the tax payers.

Coming to the 2008 dialogue with the people tour its rather encouraging that no such threats are said for now. One can only ask you to keep it up.

Cont in the next issue.

SORIOUS SAMURA: THE ROVING JOURNALIST

We say bravo to Sorious, the Sierra Leonean journalist who risked his life to go to the war-torn Dafur region of Sudan in order to experience the desperate situation of the many refugees there. It is recorded that as many as 2, 000, 0000 people were forced to leave their homes for neighboring Chad.

The Dafur crisis is described as the greatest humanitarian catastrophe in recent times. On Sunday April 24, viewers watched the CNN programme on television with horror, sadness and disbelief at the dehumanizing and demoralizing plight of the refugees in the area. We were absolutely downcast to see people fleeing from violence, oppression and incidents of rape in their own country, only to discover that the refugee camps presented greater perils for them and their children. It was a pathetic situation for the families.

The Sudanese government did very little to protect its citizens but watched them as they were brutally attacked by pro-government militia, thousands were massacred, the women shamefully rape and homes looted. The government demonstrates attitudes of complacency and callousness throughout the attacks perpetuated against its own people. They even refused help from the African Union and the international community in the form of peace keeping forces. We are told that 2,000,000 people fled their home.

Sorious arrived at a center where there were many refugees without food or water and the situation was desperate. He soon met a Sudanese man and his family who were planning to take a journey through arid and desolate territory to reach the refugee camp further on which were supposed to offer something better for his starving family. Sorious took a chance and decided to accompany them in search of shift shelters and food. Little did he know what he was in for. It turned out to be a long tedious and distressing three days journey.

Water was scare and there was not enough food for the man and his family, let alone to share with a robust and strong journalist who had joined them. There was no medical care or any sort and toilet facilities were non- existent, they had to use their immediate surrounding as toilets. They had no tents and had to improvise with whatever clothing they have to spread on the rough ground in other to sleep. As one could imagine the journalist, unused to such harsh conditions could hardly sleep. He openly expressed his horror at such misery and human suffering. Viewers could not believe that their fellowmen could be subjected to such extreme hardships and suffering. Sorious found the awful smells around them unbearable and having to share the very little unclean water with his fellow travelers for drinking was just too frightful.He could not imagine that refugees went through such impossible and desperate situations. Having begun the journey he had to continue or face death where they were. Their supply of water and food diminished as each day went by and their plight become more critical. Unused to such unsanitary conditions, Sorious soon succumbed to the debilitating condition of diarrhea if untreated. He felt weak unable to drag himself a step further and collapsed feebly on the ground wondering what would happen to him and entreated his comrades to go on without him. Fortunately, he recovered and was able to get up and continue on the journey.

After three long days of struggle they could see what looked tents in the distance which gave them a ray of hope that they had at last reached their destination, the refugee camp.

What an immense joy and relief it was to actually see the refugee camp tents ahead of them. They arrive at the camps dirty, hungry and almost dehydrated due to the shortage of water after the journeys ordeal. Sorious was thankful that he had survived to tell the tale of his experience and disbelief that human beings could go through so much suffering. He had actually suffered the same fate as the refugees and was now fully equipped to write or talk about their plight convincingly and compassionately.

Having reached their goals they thought that their troubles were over and that they could  at least receive supplies of food from the UNHCR and be able to sleep underneath tents instead of the open, exposed to insects and the cold winds during the night. Sorious was disappointed and shocked that the UNHCR staff there were not as sympathetic towards them as they should have been. The pathetic sight of the man and his family barely able to stand up did not seem to move them infuriately. Food and water were their basic need at that time, mused the tired journalists, the registration process, which was being administered by the UNHCR could have waited after they were fed but no; the authorities insisted that they had to be registered first. This took some time and at the end they have given them supplies of oil, beans maize and few other items. They were not given a tent at first but Sorious had to intervene and let the UNHCR staff know that it was imperative for a tent to be found and provided for the family who had been sleeping out in the open for days. After some wrangling a tent was provided and the families were happy to go into it. This was a luxury which they had not enjoyed since they fled from their homes.

It was time for Sorious to bid farewell to his newly found comrades, he had and seen enough of the refugee camps and he must be on his way. Before he left them, he was determined to ensure that they were given all that was due to them; otherwise they would not have receive everything. He felt that he had to stand for the poor family so that they would be well provided for. He had gone through a trying period with them, now he had to leave them. He bade them farewell but wonderd what would happen to them as he left.

At long last, a peace treaty had been signed by the Sundanese authorities. Will this treaty hold? This was the burining issue. Sorious was convinced that this was not the end of the carnage in the country. He remarked that the killings had continued and that the refugees were fearful of returning to their homes. Thus ended a memorable but grueling journey.

The former managing director of the Gambian newspaper, The Daily Observer, Dr. Saja Taal, testified today in Banjul Magistrates’ Court as part of the trial of Mam Sait Ceesay, who was formerly the State House Press Officer in Gambia.

Taal said in court that he knew Mam Sait Ceesay. “I used to work at the Daily Observer as Managing Director up to November 2007. I know the accused," he said. He continued by describing his former job at the observer. "My Job entailed the management of the paper, both financial management, personnel management and also the content. The Managing Director is responsible for the publication of all stories," he said.

Ceesay has been charged with "false publication". He has pleaded not guilty to this charge.