By Landing Ceesay
The corruption trial unfolding at the High Court of the Gambia involving three Ministry of Health officials saw its fifth prosecution witness, Bashiru Philot, take the stand. Philot testified that he received D100,000 for withdrawing cheques on behalf of Lamin Jarjou, a now deceased individual.
The accused individuals from the Ministry of Health are Mr. Balla Kandeh, the Programme Manager of the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP); Mr. Omar Malleh Ceesay, the Executive Director of the Health Promotion and Development Organization (HePDO); and Mr. Muhammadu Lamin Jaiteh, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Health.
They are charged with embezzling and misappropriating funds totaling D24,313,332.26 and USD 59,256.00 (equivalent to D3,901,829.83) during their tenure. Philot, the prosecution’s fifth witness, identified himself as a plumber residing in Banjulinding.
When questioned about recognizing the accused individuals in the dugout, Mr. Philot affirmed and informed the court that he had encountered them at the Gambia Police Force Headquarters.
He verified his acquaintance with Lamin Jarjou, a former employee of the Ministry of Health who had held the position of Deputy Program Manager of the National Malaria Control Programme (NMCP) at the Ministry of Health, now deceased.
Mr. Philot attested that he had become acquainted with Lamin Jarjou in 2015 during the nationwide distribution campaign for mosquito nets.
In response to being asked if he was familiar with Muhammed Sissoho (PW4), Mr. Philot confirmed knowing him from his interactions at the late Lamin Jarjou’s office in Kanifing.
He further stated to the court that it was through the late Lamin Jarjou that he was introduced to Muhammed Sissoho.
“Between the years 2018 to 2021, did anything happen between you and Lamin Jarju?” Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) A.M. Yusuf asked Mr. Philot.
“Yes, he (Lamin Jarjou) called and said I should meet him at his office. I met a gentleman, and he introduced me to a gentleman who said this is Muhammed Sissoho. He told me he had a project and that project was a mosquito net campaign in the provinces, and he said he trusted us. That is myself and Muhammed because we had done one distribution campaign with him. He (Lamin Jarjou) told us that he used to give the project to the Senegalese.
“But they don’t usually do the job the way it should be done. He said this time, he would do the job himself, supervise it, and do the project. He said he would talk to the HePDO staff so that our names would be entered in our cheques so that we would be able to receive the money and bring it to him. When the cheques were ready, he called and gave me a cheque from Access Bank Limited to withdraw the money on his behalf. Any cheque I cashed, he gave me D20,000 and I cashed 5 cheques.”
Mr. Philot informed the court that he had cashed five checks for Mr. Lamin Jarjou, each bearing both his and HePDO’s names. He also stated that there were gaps in time between cashing these five checks. Additionally, Mr. Philot testified that each of these checks, made out on behalf of the late Lamin Jarjou, exceeded five hundred thousand Dalasis (D500,000.00).
“After withdrawing the last cheque did anything happen between you and Lamin Jarjou?”DPP Yusuf asked Mr. Philot.
“Yes, we have been together to the project sites,” Mr. Philot told the court.
Mr. Philot recounted that he accompanied the late Lamin Jarjou on two occasions to project sites, commencing their journey from Sibanor in the West Coast Region. From Sibanor, they journeyed onward to Bansang and then to Basse before returning home. Throughout their visits to Sibanor, Basse, and Bansang, Mr. Philot mentioned that he consistently remained in the car while the late Lamin Jarjou attended to matters inside the hospitals.
“The second trip, we used the trans-Gambia road to Farafenni. Lamin Jarju went into the hospital and I waited in the car,” Mr. Philot told the court.
“After the second trip, did anything transpire between you and Lamin Jarjou other than the withdrawal of the cheques?” DPP Yusuf asked Mr. Philot.
“After the second trip, I did not hear from him again,” Mr. Philot responded.
“At that time you were called to the Police Fraud Squad, did anything transpire between you and the police or the 3 accused persons?” DPP Yusuf asked.
“It was with the police when I went to the fraud squad, I showed the cheques, and they asked whether I was the one who withdrew the cheques and I said yes. They (Police) asked me what I gained from those cheques, and I told them that Lamin Jarjou gave me D20,000 for each cheque. When they added all that I gained from the cheques, they said it was D100,000. They (Police) said I was supposed to pay the D100,000. They asked me to pay, and I paid the said amount (D100,000). They (Police) showed me some documents such as reports, contract documents, and CVs,” Mr. Philot told the court.
DPP Yusuf presented the reports, contract documents, and CVs to Mr. Philot for verification, and he confirmed them as the same documents presented to him by the Police.
During the court proceedings, Mr. Philot admitted that he had never authored a CV or forwarded one to HePDO.
Furthermore, Mr. Philot stated that he had not authored any report nor endorsed any contract agreement with HePDO.
The case is scheduled for further cross-examination on May 6th, 2024.