Banjul, 22nd May 2025 – The Ministry of Information, Media and Broadcasting Services expresses its disappointment over a recent publication by a group who identify themselves as Gambians Against Looted Assets (GALA), which misrepresents and distorts a statement made by the Honorable Minister of Information, Dr. Ismaila Ceesay, during his weekly Government update on the Coffee Time with Peter Gomez program on West Coast Radio.
During the aforementioned interview, the Honorable Minister made a factual observation regarding the submission of the Janneh Commission’s report in 2019. Specifically, he noted that while the Commission submitted a comprehensive nine-volume report detailing its findings on the financial dealings of former President Yahya Jammeh and his associates, a separate and detailed report on the sale of the forfeited assets was not submitted at that time.
It is critical to distinguish between the absence of a detailed report on the sale of assets and the existence of a list of buyers and sellers. The Minister did not state, imply, or confirm that such a list does not exist. Rather, he clarified that the detailed report of asset sales was not included in the initial submission to the President. The existence of such a list, as part of the overall documentation, is not in dispute.
The Ministry wishes to reaffirm that the list of asset buyers and sellers published by the Ministry of Justice is authentic, and its accuracy and integrity will be further examined and confirmed during the ongoing National Assembly inquiry.
The publication issued by GALA, titled “A Nation Misled by the State,” falsely alleges that the Honorable Minister stated the published list was misleading and that the Commission’s report never contained any names of buyers or sellers. This claim is wholly inaccurate and represents a serious misquotation and distortion of the Minister’s actual remarks.
The Ministry categorically condemns the deliberate misrepresentation of the Honorable Minister’s statement and urges all civic actors and media entities to engage responsibly in matters of public interest. The propagation of misinformation not only undermines efforts toward transparency and accountability but also disrupts constructive public discourse.
We call on all parties committed to truth and good governance to prioritize accuracy and integrity in their communications.
