Sandigie Njie, Admin Manager of Banjul City Council
By Fatou Sillah
In a testimony before the Local Government Commission of Inquiry on Tuesday, Sandigie Njie, the Administrative Manager of Banjul City Council, accused the Steering Committee of the 3.1 Million Euro EU Banjul Project of using the initiative to extort money. He described the committee’s actions as a “vehicular means to extort money.”
“I think it is equally important to shine a light on the conduct of the steering committee with regard to the EU. From my viewpoint, I see it as a vehicular means to extort money from this project,” he stated.
Njie explained that he observed a troubling pattern of increases in the allowances of the committee members, particularly regarding their monthly allowances and the frequency of meetings, stating, “Why do I say so? Because you could see the increment with regard to their allowances, from one point to another and the number of sittings being increased and their monthly allowances, etc,”
The Admin Manager further criticized the composition of the Steering Committee, claiming that individuals with close ties to the CEO were selected, despite lacking the necessary qualifications for the role. “You could see a cohort of people who are allies to the CEO were identified to form the steering committee, while they don’t have what it takes to be there,” he said.
Njie revealed that he had sent a letter to the CEO, expressing concerns about the project’s management. He stated that those responsible for implementing the project should not be part of the Steering Committee.
“As I asserted in my letter that I communicated to the CEO, that those who are implementing the project cannot form part of the steering committee,” He Said.
When questioned about the importance of this, Njie explained that having the same individuals oversee their own work creates a conflict of interest and weakens the oversight process.
“Because nobody will play the oversight role. If I am to supervise you, and I am getting the information, a conflict will happen. What would have been appropriate was the work as per the dictates of the framework, because even the national audit has flag that. The community development rep was in absentia, the national environment rep was in absentia, and others,” he said.
Njie further criticized the absence of a monitoring and evaluation committee, which he argued could have ensured transparency and identified project deficiencies.
“But if you get the entire team of the project implementers forming a steering committee, anybody who understands how things work will know that this is not right,” The Witness said.
When asked whether the issue had been addressed, Njie explained that his concerns were ignored because the individuals involved were primarily focused on financial gain.
“It falls on deaf ears because they were only interested in making money.”
Additionally, Njie highlighted the absence of a monitoring and evaluation committee, which could have identified and rectified potential issues within the project.
When questioned by Chairperson Jainaba Bah about the achievements of the project, Njie acknowledged some successes. He cited the planting of coconut trees along the coastline as a significant achievement in addressing erosion. However, he expressed reservations about the purchase of trash bins.