By Buba Gagigo
President Adama Barrow says National People’s Party (NPP) mayors and chairmen will not charge for the collection of garbage, saying he has never seen it anywhere.
“In KMC, they brought garbage trucks and charge people ten Dalasis or twenty dalasis per bag. What is the benefit of the taxes they are paying? Since the inception of the Gambia, I have not seen where people are paying for their garbage to be collected. The entire Gambia is only KMC. It has never happened anywhere.
“Do you think if it is an NPP mayor, he will do it? We will call his attention and say not to do it. Even if you will work with the government to give you subvention, but we will not allow that. And until today, people are paying and if you don’t pay they will not collect your garbage. I have never seen it. Is that right? It is like bringing trucks and doing business on top of people. That’s why we want all the seats to be NPP,” the president said.
The president said when COVID hit, the Councils contacted the government, and the government paid six months salaries for them.
“They will not say it anywhere. They buried that,” the president said.
On the new office structures built in councils, president Adama Barrow says it was his Government that funded 94 percent, but they refused to invite them for the opening;
“I will give you an example of the offices we built in the Councils. 94 percent is government funding and still now we are servicing it. You built that, and for the opening ceremonies, you call your political party and ignore the government. You just write a letter the day before and invite the government. Is the Government like that? A place you fund 94 percent. Is that the way they should invite us? You should be part of the planning and lead, but they politicized it,” president Barrow alleged.