By Fatou Sillah
The Gambia Federation of the Disabled has condemned Mr. Lamin Manneh for asking President Adama Barrow to sack six ministers using the title Secretary General of the Disabled Federation.
Mr. Manneh was last week quoted in the Standard Newspaper as the Secretary General of the Disabled Federation. In that story, he asked president Barrow to sack six ministers from his government.
During a press conference on Thursday, The Gambia Federation of the Disabled distanced itself from the statement and said Mr. Lamin Manneh has resigned as Secretary General more than three years ago.
“Mr. Lamin Manneh is not a Secretary-General to Gambia Federation of the Disabled. Mr. Lamin Manneh has resigned from the position of Secretary-General since 2019,” the Executive Director of the Disabled Federation Lamin K Fatty said
The Federation also urged Mr. Manneh to immediately cease parading himself as their secretary general.
“We condemned it in totality and asked him to immediately cease from parading himself as the Secretary General of the federation”.
The Federation also refutes allegations made by Lamin Manneh that nothing has been done in the implementation of the Persons with Disabilities Act 2021.
“His claim that nothing has been done in the implementation of the Persons with Disabilities Act 2021, is false. Though the level of progress in the implementation of the Act is slow, some progresses have been made, such as the appointment and inauguration of the National Advisory Council of persons with Disabilities and there is an existing-validated Disability Policy accompanied by a Strategic Plan,” they added.
The Federation also called on people to not deal with Mr. Manneh regarding Disability affairs in the Gambia.
“The Gambia Government, Civil Society Organizations, Parastatal, individuals and any other partner are duly informed that they should not deal with Mr. Lamin Manneh in Disability affairs whenever he presents himself as Secretary General of Gambia Federation of the Disabled,” the statement ends.
In response to the statement of the Federation of the Disabled, Mr. Lamin Manneh accepts his resignation as the secretary General of the Federation and says the Federation statement is politically motivated.
“I have nothing against the Disabled Federation trying to distance themselves from that, but I think it is too late for that. They could have clarified that situation from 2019 before today. Because all my messages have been published by the media, they always use Secretary General for the federation of the disabled. But to me, this is politically motivated. I know, and I believe, that one or two ministers will be calling or attacking the federation.
“I know The Gambia Federation for Disabled is a non-political organization. When I talk about the removal of those ministers to be done by the president, I didn’t regret saying that. I have basic reasons for all those mentioned 6 Ministers. These they are talking about and going through my interview with the Standard Newspaper, it has been stated there Lamin Manneh Chairman and Secretary General of National Organizations for Disabled and Orphans. Which is a legally registered organization since 2017, he told Kerr Fatou.