Former AFPRC Finance Minister
By Landing Ceesay
The Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) has revealed a ‘deliberate’ state sanctioned effort to suppress the truth regarding Ousman Koro Ceesay’s death.
“Not only was Yahya Jammeh aware of the circumstances leading to the death of Ousman Koro Ceesay; but there was a deliberate state sanctioned effort to suppress the truth about Koro’s death. This leads back to the question, would the Junta members prevent investigations into Koro’s death if they had nothing to do with his murder? From these facts, the Commission draws the conclusion that at least three Junta members – Yahya Jammeh, Edward Singhatey and Yankuba Touray together with Peter Singhatey not only conspired and carried out the murder of Koro, but actively covered up the murder and prevented proper and effective investigations from taking place despite the fact that Yahya Jammeh and others knew about the rumours accusing the Junta of Koro’s death,” TRRC findings revealed.
The Commission added that the substantially corroborated evidence of the staff of Edward Singhatey, Fatty and L.S. Marong, the staff of Yankuba Touray, Ndure and Jangum and Alagie Kanyi, who at the time were working under Peter Singhatey at the Training School is a very convincing and compelling account of the truth of what happened, as opposed to the uncorroborated version of Edward.
“From the above, the Commission finds that Ousman Koro Ceesay was murdered in a planned assassination by members of the Junta and their subordinates at the official residence of Yankuba Touray on the night of Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh’s travel to Addis Ababa in Ethiopia to attend the A.U Summit in June 1995. The evidence before the Commission completely discredits any notion that Koro’s Mercedes Benz vehicle was involved in an accident, which caused it to catch fire, and reinforces the finding of the Commission that Koro’s body was deliberately burnt in his vehicle in order to conceal the nature and manner of his killing,” the Commission said.
Ousman Koro Ceesay (Koro), an economist, who was widely regarded as a man of high intelligence and integrity was appointed permanent secretary at the Office of the Chairman of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC) in March 1995. Then, appointed the Minister of Finance and Economic Affairs and member of Council; before he was brutally murdered on June 24, 1995 barely three months after joining the AFPRC.
Before the witnesses confirmed at the TRRC; it was rumoured that the Junta murdered the former Finance Minister to permanently silence him, because he was about to expose some unfavourable information regarding financial mismanagement by the Junta in the 1995/1996 budget speech; which the Junta did not want exposure, as it would cause them some reputational damages in the eye of the public.
This discovery of the commission is in volume 4 of its report on the unlawful killing of Ousman Koro Ceesay, former Minister of Finance and Trade under Jammeh. The TRRC report that was submitted to the Gambian President-elect, Adama Barrow in November was made public on 24 December.
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