By Yunus S Saliu
The National Centre for Arts and Culture (NCAC) has listed the Musa Molloh’s Tomb for upgrade.
The upgrade of the tomb will further help to interpreted and promote the heritage of Musa Molloh, the Gambian anti-colonial fighter and warrior.
Musa Molloh was the son of Alpha Molloh who was among the warriors of the Fulani Empire when he died Musa Molloh took over the empire of the Fulladu.
According to Hassoum Ceesay, Director General of National Centre for Arts and Culture, the Gambian anti colonial fighter died in 1931. Some years ago his family members both in The Gambia and Senegal sides and the NCAC worked together to built his tomb in Kesser Kunda not far from Kunkilling Eco Tourism Forest Park, location of Jimara Eco Tourism Park, Central River Region.
“The National Centre for Arts and Culture wants to upgrade the tomb and the environment by building a perimeter fence with a small museum among other things to interpreted and promote the heritage of Musa Molloh. This will allow visitors and tourists to the place to learn more about his history,” the director general explained.
Going by Musa Molloh’s life history in succinct, he narrated that in 1894 the British and French visited and told him to surrender his empire to them to establish a colony. “Musa Molloh without a military power to defeat both British and French was wise enough to agree and signed a treaty with them, and they were given him sum of 180 pounds each as an annual income. While he chosen the English side of the boarder and established a new territory in Kesser Kunda near Boraba in Basang,” DG Ceesay narrated.
He proceeded in his narration that the English was happy about this while Musa Molloh got his first disappointment after signing the treaty as he was demoted from king to chief when they told him that “he will no longer be or call king anymore but can only be a chief.”
However, after some tribulation, annexation and allegation he was sent to an exile in Sierra Leone based on allegation that he has broken the signed treaty. Also that he was a slave dealer keeping slaves in his palace, thus, in British Empire no one was authorized to have slave. He was in exile till 1924 and returned back to Kesser Kunda when already sick and died in 1931.