The head of the Gambia Revenue Authority, Yankuba Darboe, has described as “untrue” statements made by Bubacarr ‘Bob’ Keita that he had a heated telephone conversation with President Adama Barrow in which Barrow disparaged the prime minister of Senegal, Ousmane Sonko, as uncouth.
In a public statement issued yesterday morning and shared with The Standard, Darboe wrote: “The recent social media post by Mr Bubacarr ‘Bob’ Keita, in which he falsely claims to have engaged in a heated argument with His Excellency, President Adama Barrow, is a deliberate distortion of the truth. As the individual directly involved in facilitating the referenced conversation, I am compelled to correct these dangerous inaccuracies and reaffirm the integrity of the Office of the President.
“Mr Keita’s claim of a private, contentious phone call with the president is categorically false. The conversation he references was initiated by me at my residence, where Mr Keita had come seeking reconciliation with the president. “Prior to this, I did not know Bob Keita personally. Our acquaintance began only last year, following his marriage to our younger sister, Fatoumatta Darboe. This new family connection is what led me to intervene and attempt to reconcile the differences between him and the president
“I called the president, and only after explaining the purpose of the call did I hand the phone to Mr Keita, in my presence, so he could apologise to the president. During their conversation, there was no mention whatsoever of Ousmane Sonko or Senegal. After their discussion, I even tried to arrange a face-to-face meeting between Keita and the president. However, the president later informed me that such a meeting was unnecessary, as he had already forgiven him. I communicated this message to Keita the following day.
“Mr Keita’s sensationalised retelling, including alleged references to Ousmane Sonko, Senegalese politics, and insults to his parents, is entirely fictional. No such statements were made by President Barrow. The president, a man of dignity and restraint, accepted Mr Keita’s apology graciously and even instructed me afterward that no further action was necessary, as he had forgiven him. To twist this act of grace into a tale of intimidation is dishonest and untrue.”
Meanwhile, taking to his Facebook page yesterday, Mr Keita said there was “no fiction” in what he said, asserting that he stood by his statement to his “last breath”.
He however admitted the timing of his initial message was “wrong” and “apologised” for it.
Keita was among the score of young people arrested and detained towards the weekend for defying a police order and demonstrating against the opaque nature of the sale of former president Yahya Jammeh’s forfeited assets.
