By Landing Ceesay
Following receipt of D1.5 million cheque from Brikama Area Council in March 2022 for the construction of a community in Brufut, the project is yet to commence due to difficulty to acquire a plot for the purpose, the Village Development Committee told this medium.
The Village Development Committee (VDC) of Brufut on Sunday told the media their frustration concerning the planned construction of the new market, without land.
Omar Manneh, Chairman of the VDC said when the matter started, they were not part of the VDC then; and said they were told that over the previous two years, VDC had been discussing the construction of a new market, but there is no funds available for it.
Mr. Manneh said his executive was able to secure funds for a new market for women in the community, but they don’t have a space to build the market.
He said after securing the fund, they identified a place to construct the market, contacted the owner, and had a discussion with him about the place.
“We went with him to the Alkalo and discussed it. We also went with him to the Ministry of Local Government to discuss with the Minister. After discussing it with him, the Minister asked us to write a letter to his Ministry about it and sign it. He also asked him to sign the paper and take it to his ministry. However, all of a sudden, the man (land owner) said if we give him D30 million, he will give us that land. By then, the Minister told us that we should do everything within a week and take the letter there,” he said.
The VDC Chairman continued that they went to the Minister and informed him that the owner of the land said he is now selling the land for D30 million and the Minister asked them to go back and identify another place for the construction of the market.
“That’s the time we went to one Ebrima Jobe, who agreed to give us his land, if we are going to allocate to him another land. So right now, Jobe is discussing with the Minister the allocation of another land to him. Still, nothing is solved; we are still working on it. We don’t have a place, as we speak for the construction of the market,” Mr. Cham said.
Mr. Momodou Jallow, Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Brufut VDC also said the biggest constraint they are facing is a place for the market.
“It is over 2 years now, we are discussing the construction of a new market. But the unfortunate story is that we do not have a space where we can build this market for women. The Alkalo is involved, the VDC is involved, the council of elders is involved, the women are involved, and CASA Gambia- the implementing body is involved, but still we don’t have a space for this market,” Mr. Jallow said.
Meanwhile, Ma Bintou Sano, the representative of women vendors said the people of Brufut should help the youth, women and themselves for the community to have its own market.
She said Brufut is now a town and getting big, and urged them to all come together as blood brothers and sisters, especially the women of Brufut, to get a place for the construction of a market.
“I am calling on the Brufut Alkalo to allocate land for the construction of the market. He is the head of the community and he has the power to give land to anybody here in Brufut. This market will bring nothing to the people of Brufut apart from development. So the Alkalo, I am urging you to allocate land for the construction of this market,” she told the media.
The women’s rep. said the place identified by the Alkalo is far from homes in Brufut and that the place is in the forest with safety concerns.
“We have all seen the Sukuta market; it was built far from homes, that’s why no one is going there. So we don’t want the same thing to happen to us; otherwise it is going to be a waste of money,” she said.
The Alkalo of the coastal town was not at the press conference and could not be reached for comments on the challenge raised in this story.
The Brufut market project is a joint venture between Brikama Area Council and a Netherlands-based organization (Deutch Association) to be implemented by a Brufut-based youth organization “Community Action Support Association” (CASA-Gambia).
The Deutch Association will contribute 63% of the new market project; while Brikama Area Council would contribute 27% of the project.