By Haddy Touray
The Petition Committee of the National Assembly has recommended that Ousainou Senghore former Finance Director of Gambia Tourism Board (GTBoard) and now Director General of Gambia Investment and Export Promotion Agency (GIEPA) be reprimanded for misleading the contract committee of the board in awarding Lerr Group Company to build five eco-lodges to the tune of D97million.
This comes on the heels of the final submission of the findings of Petition Committee of the National Assembly which has been investigating alleged corrupt practices at the GTBoard involving the Minister of Tourism Hamat N K. Bah, Former Director General, Abdoulie Hydara and former Finance Director Ousainou Senghore among others.
The Petition Committee headed by Hon. Suwaibou Touray has found wanting the trio for their involvement in various corrupt practices that cause huge financial loss to the GTBoard and hence called on the Finance and Public Accounts Committee (FPAC) of the National Assembly to immediately launch investigations into how prime lands within the Tourism Development Area (TDA) were clandestinely given to investors.
“The Chairman of the Contracts Committee (OusainouSenghore) should be reprimanded for misguiding the Contract Committee members by giving them a wrong analysis of the financial performances which eventually affected the scoring or the evaluation process. This was done to give favor to LerrGroup Company. Lerr Financial Performance shows that the company is overtrading and has some Liquidity issues which he failed to do as the Director of Finance and Administration doubling as the Chairman of the Contracts Committee,” NA Petition Committee recommended.
It added: “henceforth, since the Lerr Group has seriously underperformed in government contracts, they should not be awarded contracts in the future.”
The Petition Committee also urged the Finance and Public Accounts Committee to investigate further as to who gave the authority to build a hotel at Barra that was eventually abandoned, costing millions, adding that GT Board needed to act by paying the suppliers for the materials they would need without any further delay and no additional changes in design.
It also recommended that the contractual agreement between the GTBoard and Lerr Group Company should be revisited in order to establish facts that surrounded the whole contractor’s underperformance, ascertain issues surrounding the establishment of the proposed Sir Dawda Kairaba Hotel in Barra. It goes on to add that the contractor needs to provide that he has paid VAT on the amount that has been disbursed to him as the contract amount included VAT (15%) which should have been paid to GRA or paid before the end of the contract by GTBoard by deducting it from the final payment.
The Petition Committee further instructed the FPAC to further investigate the Gambia Public Procurement Authority’s reason for approval to GT Board regarding the lots to be given to different contractors instead of one contractor, noting that a property evaluator should be identified to value the current cost investment on the sites; how much money has been invested and the contractor to refund the full balance of the money paid to him.