By Nicholas Bass
Councillors at the Brikama Area Council (BAC) have frowned at the sustaining of the criminal charges against the sitting chairman of the BAC.
Chairman Yankuba Darboe is later this year expected to return to the court for the continuation of his trial over sedition.
However, councilors on Friday convened a press conference to express their position on the decision of the Office of the IGP to put Darboe on trial once again.
Darboe stands accused of uttering seditious words against the President and justice administration by allegedly saying: “We will not go to any fucking court on this case anymore. If they want, let them take us to Mile II and we will remain there until sanity comes back to this country. Barrow is a stupid and clueless dictator.”
The police alleged that Darboe’s comment was calculated to bring hatred, contempt, or disaffection against the person of President Barrow.
He was said to have uttered this on or about 10 February 2021, at the Serious Crime Office in Banjul.
Somita Ward’s councilor Essa L. Colley described the IGP’s move to sustain the charges against Darboe as unjust.
He, therefore, called on the Barrow-led administration to reflect on the ”Never Again” TRRC mantra as he accused the central government of being the main lawbreakers.
”Why the Never Again slogan by the government when they’re becoming the biggest violators of the law,” Colley queried.
He urged NGOs, ECOWAS, UN, EU, the diplomatic community, individuals, and political parties to challenge and condemn the trial of Yankuba Darboe “at this prime stage”.
Yankuba Darboe was sometime in February of 2021 charged with two counts of sedition and contempt of court and he is now standing trial before Magistrate M.L Thomasi of the Banjul Magistrates’ Court.