By: Fatou Krubally
Nominated KMC councillor M.C Cham Jr. has urged the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to summon the Minister of Agriculture, Dr. Demba Sabally, for questioning over the comments he made, regarding recent fire disasters in the Kanifing Municipality.
Dr. Sabally, speaking at an event held at the Bakoteh Women’s Garden, appeared to assign blame for the recent Serekunda Sandika fire on poor waste management, a statement that has sparked questions about whether the minister had access to inside information about the cause of the blaze.
“What does Demba Sabally know that the rest of us don’t?” councillor M.C. Cham Jr. asked pointedly. “Is he privy to findings from the ongoing investigations? If so, who shared that information with him, and why?”
Sabally’s remarks came in the wake of two major fire incidents in Latrikunda and Serekunda Market, both within the Kanifing Municipality. While investigations were on-going, no official report has yet established the cause of the fires. Cham believes Sabally’s comments are not only premature but suggest he may hold vital information relevant to the case.
“The Gambia Police Force must step up and do the right thing,” Cham said. “Call in Minister Sabally and find out what exactly he knows.”
Beyond concerns of interference in an ongoing investigation, Cham expressed deep disappointment at what he sees as political point-scoring at the expense of the victims, many of whom are market women and low-income earners, who lost everything in the fires.
“It is heartbreaking and shameful to see the suffering of vulnerable people exploited for political gain,” Cham lamented. “Reading Sabally’s comments, I asked myself how disingenuous can one be?”
Cham, who recalls working with Sabally during their time in the Gambia Democratic Congress (GDC), did not hold back, accusing the now-NPP minister of abandoning principle for politics.
“I was naive to think he had evolved,” Cham said. “His conduct since joining the NPP has proven otherwise.”
He challenged the minister to focus on his own portfolio, questioning the state of affairs in the agriculture sector under his leadership.
“Have you paid off the debts owed to Gambian farmers?” Cham asked. “What concrete plans do you have as the rainy season approaches?”
Cham stressed that instead of meddling in matters outside his jurisdiction, Sabally’s attention should be on addressing urgent agricultural issues. He criticized what, he described as, the pattern of deflecting attention from internal shortcomings by targeting the leadership of the Kanifing Municipal Council.
“This is not the first time NPP loyalists have attacked KMC and Mayor Talib Bensouda,” Cham said. “Yet each attempt has failed because our work speaks for itself.”
He also questioned why similar energy was not shown when fires occurred in Basse or Janjangbureh, areas also under local councils, hinting at a political motive behind what, he called, the selective outcry.
“Let’s not forget the fires at the Ministry of Youth & Sports, Fisheries, and even the tragic navy camp incident that claimed two lives. Sabally was silent then. Why now?”
In closing remarks, Cham reaffirmed that the Kanifing Municipality is united and resilient.
“We mourn our losses, and we’re working tirelessly to prevent future tragedies. KMC is thriving despite the distractions. We stand strong behind Mayor Bensouda. With or without your approval, we’re moving forward, Forward Ever. Nyato Dorong” he concluded.