Hon. Lamin J. Sanneh, The National Assembly Member For Brikama South
By Ramatoulie Jawo
Hon. Lamin J. Sanneh, the National Assembly member representing Brikama South, has strongly criticized the government for what he describes as the systematic neglect of Brikama, one of the country’s largest and most strategically significant towns.
Speaking during the National Assembly’s adjournment debate, Sanneh expressed frustration over the government’s apparent lack of commitment to the town’s development.
“I don’t know why the government is very much skeptical about their approach to Brikama,” he said. “Brikama has been denied and rejected, and that is something that we need to understand. It is one of the biggest towns in the country and strategically located, and in fact, not only that, there is a reason why we are called Sateba. Sateba has a connotation, which we need to understand. We are the game changers of this country; any issues that come to Brikama have to be at the forefront, and this has been fully manifested in the 2016 presidential elections.”
His remarks come in the wake of a devastating fire at the Brikama market, which, he argues, underscores the town’s vulnerability due to inadequate development and emergency response infrastructure.
“I think one of the most vulnerable markets in the whole country is the Brikama market, and in fact, in terms of foreign accidents I vividly remember in the 2021 budget bilateral, we were able to give 100 million to Basse market for it to be overhauled, and during that particular adjournment debate I advocated for the overhauling of Brikama market to be reconstructed in order to address the current fire incident because any time there is a fire outbreak the victims suffer a lot, because almost all their material will be burned to ashes. The current one is clear testimony; had it not been for the quick intervention of the fire and ambulance services, it would have even caught the field and the other part of the community,” he emphasized.
He stated that, to this day, Brikama has not seen any significant major development. He questioned why, from 2017 to now, the town has been continuously denied and neglected.
Hon. Sanneh recalled that during the 2017 and 2018 “Meet the People” tours, he was chosen by the residents of Brikama to speak on their behalf regarding the pressing issues affecting the town.
He emphasized that the top priority at the time was improving the hospital, a commitment the president had promised to prioritize, along with restoring street lighting in the area.”He emphatically promised to install street lights with CCTV cameras and WiFi. However, I later informed him that the people of Brikama had agreed that while we do not need WiFi and CCTV cameras, we do need proper street lighting. Yet, to this day, that remains a major issue,” he said.
Sanneh also emphasized that the condition of major roads connecting Brikama is a major challenge for them. He expressed his surprise that during the 2021 budget bilateral discussions, in which they participated, the Kabafita-Bafuloto-Mandinaring road was included in the 2022 budget. Furthermore, the president toured the country, announcing that the road would be constructed. However, to this day, no work has been done on it.
He added that whether they realize it or not, the country depends on Brikama, and without it, they could face serious challenges.