Activist group, Gambians Against Looted Assets (Gala), which staged mass street protests last year over the sale of assets seized from former president Yahya Jammeh, has called on President Barrow to provide his government’s response to the recommendations in the report of the National Assembly special select committee into the handling of the assets by 30th October.
In a press conference yesterday, the group warned that it will pursue peaceful mobilisation where the government continues to “evade accountability”.
The parliamentary committee’s report and recommendations were adopted by the plenary in March and transmitted to the Office of the President, minister of justice, the auditor general and other stakeholders for appropriate action.
The report exposes administrative irregularities, disregard for financial laws, lack of transparency, unauthorised sales, allocation of land to unknown companies, creation of parallel financial arrangements outside established systems and misappropriation of billions of dalasis. It recommended actions against several former and current officials including former and current ministers of justice. However, the government is yet to provide a response on the report.
But according to Gala, Gambians deserve a full account of what happened to recovered assets and what the government is doing about the parliamentary findings.
“Failure to provide that account deepens the crisis of public trust and makes presidential leadership itself an issue of accountability. The president cannot claim to rely on scrutiny of the National Assembly and then leave the country without an explanation when that scrutiny produces serious findings. The inquiry has exposed failures within the administration he leads. His responsibility is to ensure that the competent institutions respond lawfully, transparently and without political protection for anyone implicated,” said Fallou Gallas Ceesay, head of programme and administration at Gala.
“This parliamentary report must mark the beginning of enforceable accountability. Gambians have already borne the cost of the original looting. They must not suffer further loss through secrecy, negligence, and impunity in the recovery process. The assets belong to the people. The government owes the people a full account,” he said.
Ceesay said the group is demanding that accountability must follow the entire chain of custody, authority, decision-making, and oversight and that ministers, senior officials, custodians, advisers, and private beneficiaries must face the scrutiny warranted by the evidence.
Gala demanded that the president publish a comprehensive response to the parliamentary report, together with a cost implementation plan, by 30th October 2026.
This response, it insisted, must address every recommendation, identify the responsible institutions, establish measurable deadlines, and explain any rejection or modification.
“Accountability cannot depend on political convenience, personal connections, or public pressure alone. The government must immediately secure remaining assets, preserve evidence, reconcile proceeds, and initiate the investigations and recovery proceedings warranted by the findings,” Ceesay demanded.
The group called on lawmakers to establish sustained public oversight of implementation and require the executive to account for outstanding recommendations and missed deadlines.
