FORMER APRC NAM SWITCHES TO NRP

By Alagie Manneh Pa Malick Ceesay, the former APRC National Assembly member for Lower Saloum has now switched allegiance to the National Reconciliation Party, NRP. Speaking for the first time since his expulsion from the APRC and subsequent dragging to court, Mr Ceesay revealed that he will contest next month’s legislative election. Mr Ceesay further disclosed that he did not defect from the APRC, but rather was forced to move on after the former APRC party leader expelled him. “I did not cross-carpet to any political party,” Mr Ceesay disclosed, “I was expelled two years ago and that means I am no more a member of the APRC party unless and until the [APRC’s] decision is rescinded. But up to today the decision hasn’t been rescinded.” “As a young politician, and in order to fulfill my political aspirations, I decided to move on and join the NRP so as to fulfill my political desire,” he said. He said the choice is left with his new NRP party and the people of his constituency to decide if they will pick him to contest on their ticket. “If they decide I should contest, then I have no choice but to respect their wishes,” Mr Ceesay said. Asked to explain what led to his expulsion from the APRC and the subsequent court action in connection with his job as head of NEDI, the former Lower Saloum parliamentarian, said: “I was not happy with how events or issues were unfolding at the time in parliament, and having sworn to protect the interest of my constituency and the Gambian people, many people saw me as someone else when I made my stance known. I was only speaking what I felt was right. You must also remember that I was expelled from the Public Accounts Committee for speaking my mind and for saying what I was witnessing at the time and was not right.” “They conducted all kinds of investigations in the institutions that I worked for to check how I was managing those institutions. When they came to NEDI, an audit was conducted and all of a sudden before NEDI appeared before the PAC/PEC, I was expelled. Then they started accusing me of mismanagement. I have been accused of this, of that, and so on and so on. Of course my case was totally politically motivated,” he added, “When I started speaking my mind, particularly when that article was published on the media that ‘Honorable Ceesay for Lower Saloum criticizes parliament for not being effective and unaccountable’, that was when all these problems started arising. The authority of parliament summoned me, I was asked about my opinion and I still stood by my decision. I believe that accountability should be across the board. Whether you are in the public sector or private, once you are given public funds you must be accountable.”]]>