By Omar Bah
The Minister of the Interior, Ebrima Mballow has confirmed to The Standard that he has authorized investigations to be conducted at the Gambia Immigration Department over recent reports alleging diversion of funds meant for the state coffers.
But according to the Minister, he did not specifically target or identify any particular official for questioning as has been reported on some online media.
“I only gave instructions for investigations to be carried out and I do not remember telling the police or whosoever to question Mr Y or Mr Z. I cannot tell people how to do their work,” he told The Standard on telephone.
He said it is the duty of any intelligence officer to question the people they want to question during an investigation, “That is not a minister’s job,” he concluded.
The Immigration Department in Banjul is currently rocked by allegations of fraud and they alleged theft of visa fees amounting to D1.4M recently collected from visiting Dutch tourists on cruise ship which recently anchored at the port of Banjul.
