By Maimuma S.W. Barry
Gawarr village eight years land dispute has erupted again, as villagers alleged that chief of Niamina East, Central River Region-South is backing the village head of Sinchu Mballow over farmland.
Sheriffoe Sabally, head (Alkali) of Gawarr village that walked into The Voice office explained that he cannot recognize the claimed democracy in this country. “I do not recognize the claimed democracy in this country because the chief of Niamina East, Alh Kebba Touray backed the people of Sinchu Bolly Mballow to forcibly take my farmlands.”
According to him, Sinchu Bolly Mballow residents is just ‘home’ inside his village (Gawarr village), claiming that his father gave Bolly Mbally (founder) of the village a piece of land to settle.
Sabally went on that Chief Touray also forcibly seized his farmlands and gave it to the residents of Sinchu Bolly Mballow and made Ebrima Baldeh a village head in that settlement.
“Earlier I had a trial with the people of Bati Jol village on the same land dispute but I won the case and the tribunal ordered the chief to return the land to me but he refused to do so and gave it to Ebrima Baldeh,” he explained.
Sabally said he does not want the residents of Sinchu Bolly Mballow to migrate because they had stayed in the village for many years, but what he wants is that they should return his farmlands as well allow leaving the entire village.
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He however appealed to government to put mechanism in place so that he can regain his farmlands and the leadership of the entire community before conflict emerged.
Ebrima Baldeh, village head of Sinchu Bolly Mballow also explained that “both the village and the farmlands belong to me and the members of my village because the community was founded by my family especially Bolly Mballow who was a brother to my father.”
He said Bolly Mballow was the village head for about fifty years before he died and he never encountered such land dispute with the former Alkalos of Gawarr. But “When the founder passed away there was series of transfer of the village head from one person to another but the head of Gawarr never claimed ownership of the village and farmlands when those people were alive.”
He claimed that he has all the necessary documents of the village saying “we do not live in his farmland as well. He just wants to exercise power on me.”
In response to the allegation the Chief of Niamina District, Alhaji Kebba Touray said: “the land dispute is an ongoing issue before I became a Chief and the only thing I know in this matter is that Sinchu Bolly Mballow residents said they own the village and Sheriffoe Sabally also told me the village belongs to him.”
He said both the two parties presented documents to him and he took all the documents to Ganyie Touray, former Governor of Central River Region, with that Governor Touray told him that the village belongs to the people of Sinchu Bolly Mballow village.
He added that Sabally does not owned the farmlands in Sinchu Bolly village.