By Omar Bah
The Gambia police has issued a statement about the case of officer Yankuba Camara, who shared a video of himself holding a gun and threatening members of the UDP.
“In this regard, the Human Rights and Professional Standards Unit of the Gambia Police Force has been instructed to swiftly investigate and make recommendations for appropriate actions against the conduct of the officer. Preliminary findings revealed that the officer is battling with a rare mental health condition, and episodes of mental imbalances experienced occasionally,” the police said.
The police said it is equally working with the family of the officer for appropriate psychiatric support and treatment recommendations.
“We wish to reassure the public that, GPF is working towards its reform agenda of consolidating gains in democratic policing, at the center of which is respect for fundamental human rights of individuals and groups. To this end, acts of violation of the human rights of individuals and groups will not be condoned within the ranks of the Police Force.”
Reactions
Reacting to the statement, activist Pa Samba Jow said the police keep issuing numerous press releases without any remedy.
“This is not the first time that uniformed police officers have publicly done this, especially to the UDP and its supporters. We saw a video of police officers bragging about brutalising UDP supporters. We have waited for months without seeing the GPF do anything to remedy that. Why should we continue to trust that the GPF is not biased against people seen to be in the opposition, or that the police can police itself?”
He argued that “it is ridiculous that we continue to witness this provocation against citizens, particularly members of a legally registered political party, UDP”.
