By Sirrah Touray
Amie Bensouda, the former lead counsel of the Janneh Commission, has strongly denied allegations that she led the investigations into the assets of the former president Yahya Jammeh.
In a tense session before the National Assembly special select committee yesterday, Bensouda clarified that while she coordinated legal work with support of a senior associate from her firm, the actual investigation team and state counsel were provided by the government. She emphasised that her engagement letter clearly distinguished her immediate team from the investigators and state counsel assigned to the commission.
The controversy arose after multiple witnesses testified that Bensouda was head of both the legal and investigation teams, a claim she disputed. Documents presented during the hearing, including a memo listing members under “Counsel, Team, and Contacts,” blurred these lines, sparking debate over her exact role.
Throughout the hearing, Bensouda expressed her concern over the vague nature of the accusations and demanded clarity on what specific issues she was expected to answer. She cited constitutional protections for witnesses, stressing the need for transparency and fairness.
The exchange highlighted ongoing tensions in the high profile inquiry into the former president’s assets, as the committee seeks to establish clear lines of responsibility amid conflicting accounts.
Lawmakers also questioned Mrs Bensouda on her terms of reference at the commission and conflicting accounts about who led the commission’s investigation.
Bensouda explained that her official engagement letter described her team as herself and one senior associate from her law firm. She said the letter also noted the involvement of government appointed investigators and two state counsel from the Attorney General’s Chambers, who supported the commission but were not part of her direct team. Bensouda emphasised that her “team” referred specifically to her firm’s staff, while investigators and state counsel were provided separately by the government.
The committee questioned her about a July 2018 memo addressed to the commission’s assistant secretary. The memo listed 12 individuals under “Counsel, Team, and Contacts,” including lawyers and investigators from different offices. Bensouda confirmed she coordinated investigations relating to the commission’s terms of reference but declined to accept that she headed the entire investigation team, saying her role was lead counsel and coordinator rather than overall head of the investigation.
She expressed her concern that the questions seemed to challenge her appointment and role without clearly stating the issues under investigation.
Bensouda pointed out that her mandate was to investigate assets identified by the commission, and that any questioning should remain relevant to that purpose. She noted that while some witnesses had described her as head of the investigation, this was not reflected in her official terms of engagement or in her understanding of the commission’s structure.
