By Ramatoulie Jawo
Hon. Lamin Ceesay, the National Assembly Member for Kiang West, has criticized the government’s decision to appoint regional executive coordinators, arguing that the move is politically motivated and not in the country’s best interest. He expressed concern that these appointments are exacerbating Gambia’s economic challenges.
“We do not have funds for these executive coordinators on record. Tell them we do not have funds for them. You are seeing even the local councils; we have the law that mandates us and the government to give them 25% of their 60% development funds, which is not foregoing. The president went on and created these executive coordinators politically, not in the interest of those particular regions, or the councils, not in the interest of those various regions, and now they are crying for resources,” he stated.
Hon. Ceesay further highlighted the strain on public finances, pointing out that various government institutions and ministries are facing financial difficulties.
“You have seen our budget distress we have here. We have more than 4 Billion budget deficits that we have to take loans to finance those deficits,” he added.
He argued that the executive coordinator roles are redundant, as their responsibilities are already covered by other public officials. “These offices were created for political purposes, not in the interest of the country,” he emphasized.
Hon. Ceesay’s remarks came during a National Assembly session following a report by the Select Committee on Regional Government. The report detailed challenges faced by the Office of the Executive Coordinator in Banjul, including difficulties in forming a technical advisory committee due to unavailability of key officials.
The office in Banjul also reported issues such as the lack of a dedicated office complex, inadequate staffing, limited mobility with only one vehicle, and salaries for deputy executive coordinators being lower than those of deputy governors. Similarly, the Executive Coordinator in Kanifing highlighted challenges such as insufficient resources, lack of collaboration with institutions like KMC, the absence of a reviewed land policy, and the unavailability of a utility vehicle.
The committee recommended the establishment of an office complex for the Executive Coordinator in Banjul, salary adjustments for deputy executive coordinators to match those of deputy governors, and stronger engagement with relevant institutions.