By Lamin Cham
Former TRRC lead counsel Essa Mbye Faal has reacted to the government’s whitepaper on the truth commission’s recommendation, saying he is thrilled by that government has accepted 99.2% of the findings and recommendations of the Commission.
”I am happy to have attained such a lofty achievement not just for myself, but for the Commissioners who made the final decisions and in particularly my legal team members who made the sacrifice to go beyond the call of duty by spending sleepless nights with me at the TRRC as we wrote the reports and the recommendations. The support and encouragement they gave me throughout the process was extraordinary for which I thank them enormously,” Faal said on his Facebook page.
He also commended the government for taking a correct and courageous decision to rise above politics and accept the recommendations.
However, according to Faal, while he accepted that Sana Sabally does not merit an amnesty, he equally believed that the government erred in law when it rejected the recommended amnesty for him on wrong legal grounds. ”However, I support the outcome, but unfortunately it cannot be sustained legally as it is anchored on a point that is not based on the TRRC Act,” he noted,
”That said, I congratulate the government for a very good decision. Their acceptance of the memorialisation recommendations in particular will permanently keep the never again agenda fresh in our public interactions. We now wait anxiously to see the next steps the government will take to implement the recommendations. Addressing the impunity gap is key. As such, I eagerly look forward to the justice and accountability mechanisms the government will pursue for the perpetrators,” Mr Faal concluded.
