Ten former staffers of Food Safety and Quality Authority (FSQA) arrested on Tuesday and interrogated at the Kairaba Police were all released, The Voice can report.
On Tuesday, officers of The Gambia Police Force stormed the offices of the Food Safety and Quality Authority and effect the arrest and detention of ten staffs allegedly dismissed by Zainab Jallow, Director General of FSQA.
According to an anonymous staff of the FSQA who spoke with this medium confirmed the arrest of ten of his colleagues. He revealed that police officers are still pursuing the arrest of twelve other staffs that were not found at the office at the time of the arrest yesterday.
“I can confirmed the arrest of ten staff by the police today, and they are among the twenty-two staffs that was unjustly fired by DG Zainab Jallow sometimes in January and February of this year respectively,” an anonymous staff disclosed.
According to him, those arrested were found at the office during working hours, while others who were dismissed but were not at the office during the time of the arrest were also called by the police to report to Kairaba Police Station.
“What we understand is that it is a senior government official who ordered the arrest of our colleagues. We are very disappointed with this move because we felt that the senior official should have done something better than ordering the arrest of our colleagues whose only crime is to defy unlawful orders from Director General, Zainab Jallow,” he lamented.
Shortly before their arrest, Bai Dudou Jallow, Director of Scientific Affairs at the Food Safety and Quality Authority sent strong warnings to the dismissed staffs to handover all materials belonging to the office, hinted them that any dismissed staff who reports to work will be arrested.
However, Barara Loum, Former Chairman Board of Directors of the FSQA who spoke at the Truth Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) on Tuesday described the modus operandi at the Food Safety and Quality Authority as below the standards required for the operation of the institution.
Loum compared the management style of Zainab Jallow to former president Yahya Jammeh, disclosing that the Food Safety Director does not act in accordance with set rules, principles and procedures of the institution.
It could be recalled that the Food Safety and Quality Authority has been on the limelight since September of last year when staff of the authority petition their Director General that subsequently led to the institution of an independent panel who probe into various allegations meted upon Zainab Jallow.
The Independent Panel found the Director General culpable to official corruption, abuse of office, nepotism and management. When contacted, ASP Lamin Njie, Police Public Relations Officer said he is out of office but promised to get back to our reporter with details but up to time of going to the press PRO Njie never get back.