CRC continues rural Gambia consultations

By Baba Sillah The Constitutional Review Commission has begun the second phase of its consultation tours in Central and Upper River regions. It came after the officials conclude covering the northern parts of the country. It is expected the tour will last for two weeks and will cover eighty villages in the said regions. The delegation, led by eleven member commissioners, held its first meeting on Saturday in Bansang and Janjangbureh, respectively, and Basse in URR yesterday. In Bansang the commissioners made a courtesy call on the alkalo and explained the purpose of their visit shortly before the meeting. The chief of Fulladou West, Momodou Touray was also in attendance and described the meeting as a “historic moment for Gambians”. People in attendance renewed calls for presidential term limit, the abolition of death penalty among other issues relating to the constitution. However, there were divergent views on the appointment of IEC chairman and the establishment of district tribunal including the appointment of traditional rulers such as district chiefs and alkalolu. Ebrima Janko-Sanneh, the chairman of Janjangbureh Area Council, called on the officials to review the 2002 Area Council Act, which he argues has been exploited by the former ruler, affected the councils “for far too long”.]]>