By Saidou Baldeh
The residents of Suma Kunda –Medina Sotokoi involvement in land disputes at West Coast Region yesterday have expressed fear for their safety following the elapse of their eviction order.
They warned that they will prefer dying then evicting their compounds. The land dispute between Suma Kunda and Medina Sotokoi has been dragged since 2005.
In 2015 a High Court judge, Awa Bah ruled in favor of the people of Medina Sotokoi and order for the eviction of residents in the disputed land. But according to the residents of Suma Kunda that ruling was influenced by the authorities because the Tamba Kunda family had promise to allocate the land to Jammeh.
Speaking to The Voice at Suma Kunda yesterday, Musa Kujabi said that Suma Kunda was in existence centuries ago before the beginning of slave trade and that it is one of the oldest villages in the area.
He said the village was first inhabited by one Buruma Kujabi. He stated that at that time the only existing villages in the area were Suma Kunda, Faraba Banta and Faraba Soto.
He further added that it was around the 50s that one Foday Camara (Bappa) came from Guinea Conakry and asked their ancestors to give him a land to settle in.
“So this was how Taneneh-Medina Sotokoi came about. It was the same Foday Camara who hosted Sarja Tamba who came from Batangjang.” He also said that; Sarja Tamba never claims ownership of the land in question.
He said the issue of the land that is in dispute was started by the former Chief of the area Jong Konteh who tried to forcefully take the land from them but they took him to Court and they were able to win the case.
However, he said that few years later Masey Tamba decided to take them to Court again. The High Court ruled in favor of Madina Sotokoi because at that time they were using former President Jammeh’s name.
After the Court ruling they came here and destroyed our farms in order to make rice field for Jammeh”.
Mamudu Touray, one the people affected by the eviction order said he has been leaving in the village for over a decade.
He vowed not to vacate instead prefer death to vacating his compound. They then calls on the government to immediately act on the matter if not they will have another Faraba Banta.
Gabriel Badgie also served with an eviction said that he has been leaving in the village for the past 20 years.
He stated that there is no amount of threat that can force him to evict his compound. If the people like they might kill him because there is no degree of threat or power that can force him out of his compound
.Lamin Jammeh also a resident of Suma Kunda said the same people forcefully evicted them from their compounds in 2015 without giving them notice.
He said those where Jammeh’s days “but now nobody can force us out of what rightful belong to us”.
“If the government did not take its rightful step, we will take the law into our own hands. We are not going to retreat nor are we going to surrender. We are warning that we are ready to do anything to stay in our compounds,” he stated.
The Alkalo of Taneneh confirms that the people of Medina Sotokoi were hosted by Suma Kunda and it was then the Alkalo of Taneneh who hosted the Tamba family who is now claiming the ownership of one of the lands inhabited by over 60 compounds.
Meanwhile, when contacted for his reaction, the Alkalo of Madina Sotokoi, Masey Tamba said Medina Sotokoi has never been under the jurisdiction of Taneneh or Suma Kunda.
He also said that the area was allocated to his father by the late Chief of the area Faa Touray Sanyang and that when his father was coming to the area he did not know anyone in that area.
“It is in our interest to evict anyone who is from the people of Suma Kunda to acknowledge that the land that is under dispute belong to us,” he emphasis.