Former Inspector General of Police Ensa Badgie alias Jesus on Wednesday described ex-President Yahya Jammeh as most difficult person to work with, revealing that Jammeh’s never heed to the advices of the security chiefs and any attempt to advise him on pressing matter may lead to arrest, detention or possible dead.
He told the Truth Commission Reconciliation Commission (TRRC) that the former President Yahya Jammeh is the only one to be held responsible for the 2009 witch-hunting saga that drives families and communities into hidings and hallucinations.
“Yahya Jammeh personally called me to inform me that Solo Bojang was on his way with some Fula men who will be there to identified witches and wizards at Police Headquarters. He warned me that I should comply and anyone who failed to do so should be arrested”, Ensa Badgie told the TRRC.
Testifying on what has happened after the witch-hunters arrived at the police headquarters; the former IGP said fifteen minutes after he spoke with Yahya Jammeh, Solo Bojang and his team entered into his offices to perform their task that was characterized with singing and drumming.
Jesus told the Commission that he was asked by the witch-hunters to remove his shirt and trouser before they conducted their search on his body and office, adding that the group continues with their work by using mirrors to look everywhere within his office lasting for ten minutes of which nothing harmful was seen on him as well in his office.
The former IGP could not recalled how many people were removed from a parade specifically designed to extract witches and wizards from the men in uniform, affirming that he was the one who authorized one Ken Mendy to take the names of all those identified by the witch-hunters for onward delivery to Yahya Jammeh.
“It’s is true that I authorized Ken Mendy to take all the names of the officers who were to be identify by the witch-hunters. I did that because Jammeh authorized me to do so and it was around 3-4am in the night that he called me to give him the names of those identifies”, Ensa Badgie revealed Wednesday at TRRC.
Ensa Badgie also admitted effecting arrest of Halifa Sallah on the instructions of Yahya Jammeh, disclosing that after arresting Halifa Sallah he handed him to the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) as ordered by the former President.
“I never knew what happened to Halifa Sallah after I handed him over to the NIA. All I knew is that he was later released by the NIA by Jammeh order.
However, after handing him over to the NIA I warned them that they should go with him but nothing should happen to him”, former IGP explained.
“I can remember when I led some senior security chiefs to Yahya Jammeh to appeal to him to forgive Brigadier General Gibriel Bojang, whom he accused of stealing his money.
Jammeh took- off his hat and told me on my face that even his mother Asombi Bojang will not dare ask him to forgive Gibriel Bojang. He immediately starts ranting and insulting me and my mother before finally asking me to arrest and detained Gibriel at Mile Two Prison”, Jesus told the truth commission.
He added: “Yahya Jammeh was so angry that I have to rush to Amadou Samba after work to for him to appeal to Yahya Jammeh on my behalf. Amadou spoke with Yahya Jammeh up to 4am in the morning but Jammeh refuses to give up and Amadou could only help by asking me to compile with Yahya Jammeh hence he was the commander in-chief.”
According to him, because of his bad working relationship with Yahya Jammeh and also for the fact that Jammeh thought that he defies his orders he was arrested, castrated, falsely charged and sentence to life imprisonment by Yahya Jammeh.
The former IGP said he has forgiven everyone responsible for his agony in the hands of Yahya Jammeh, adding that everything that goes wrong in this country was done by Yahya Jammeh and only Jammeh is responsible for these heinous crimes that he was able to do through others.
