By Omar Bah
The spokesperson of the Gambia Prisons Service yesterday confirmed to The Standard that the former permanent secretary at the Ministry of Fisheries, Dr Bamba Banja, has been admitted at Mile 2 Prison since last Wednesday.
Two weeks ago, a high court Judge BA Bakre sentenced Dr Banja to a two-year mandatory jail term for accepting D50,000 bribe from a Chinese private company in September 2018 to free their vessel detained for engaging in illicit fishing.
“I can confirm to you that we received Dr Banja for admission last Wednesday,” GPS spokesperson Momodou Lamin Ceesay said.
Banja who served in the civil service for more than four decades was found guilty on all three charges of economic crime, official corruption and public officer receiving property to show favour.
On the charge of official corruption, Banja was fined D100,000 in default to spend one year in jail. He is further fined another D50,000 on the charge of public officer receiving property to show favour and in case he defaults in paying that fine too, he would spend an additional six months in prison.
His sentencing came following the judge’s announcement that the prosecution had proved all the charges against Banja even though he had denied the allegations in his defence.
