It is now clear to all observers that, the UDP-led Kanifing Municipal council will be heading into the Local government elections early next year, pitted against the president, and not the face NPP is going to use as a front candidate. Unfortunately, President Barrow has taken this fight personally, especially with a local government council.
It is obvious that Mayor Bensouda is the president’s biggest nightmare as we speak, and he will do all he can to remove him from office, if he has it his way.
With the inflated national budget, we saw at the National Assembly, we are convinced that controlling urban Gambia, especially KM is the president’s biggest aim, and he will use state resources if necessary to get his wish to become a reality as he has in the past.
He has begun personal and institutional attacks on the KMC and will not stop from now on. He will do all he can to discredit the mayor and the great work KMC has done. It is rather ironic that the president was in Brikama, one of the dirtiest regions in the country, and have no waste management mechanism, but he wasn’t interested in speaking about the poor state of the hospital or the unhygienic, deplorable state of the Brikama central market. Instead, he decided to attack the first and only waste management process this country has ever had, introduced by Mayor Bensouda, called the Mbalit project.
With recent utterances of appointing governors which is even unconstitutional, We believe that the president is trying to have his way into KMC to dip his hand into the coffers of poor Gambians as the central government is doing and using state resources with impunity.
All citizens of this great municipality will acknowledge the good work Mayor Bensouda has done in his first term. While ironic, it is important to note that the president in the presence of our guest from Madison had praised the Mbalit project but attacked it in public with the support of Minister Abba Sanyang. I am sure they have forgotten that they charged us 13 million to clear these same 24 Mbalit trucks we are using today to tackle the issues of waste management. I would have thought, a responsible government would have at least waived import taxes to support the great work the Bensouda administration has been doing.
While we will not let anyone tarnish our image, we are focused on providing services and welfare the Barrow administration has not been able to do as a central government. The Kanifing municipality is focused on serving and providing for its residents.
Kemo Bojang Youth Councillor KMC
