By Binta Fatty
Hundreds of people, both vendors and consumers on Tuesday evening, walked in and out of the Serekunda market without face masks, nor social distancing, amidst the coronavirus pandemic.
Serekunda market is one of the biggest and busiest commercial centers in The Gambia. Hundreds of people flock in daily either to sell or buy items, ranging from food products, fabrics, cosmetics products to construction materials, amongst other items. While others use the market as a transit to other parts of the country.
A typical day at the market involves long walks through crowded and narrow paths, with compacted stalls.
Since inception, the number of people who come to the market has been increasing steadily. Presently, despite the coronavirus pandemic, the situation at the bustling market remains the same, with only one out of every 10 people wearing a face mask for protection against the virus, as stated by health officials.
Sulayman Dampha, PRO of the Serekunda market committee, said since the re-opening of the market, they had put in place measures to ensure that vendors comply with the Covid-19 regulations, but could no longer enforce these measures. “What they are saying is that, government is moving with their delegates without face masks,” Dampha said. He added that since the opening of the market, no testing has been done at the market.
Momodou Njie, a vendor around the Big Tree, one of the busiest places in the heart of the market, said because the number of new infections is going down, a lot of people are also starting to relax the preventive measures. “If we stop wearing masks, that will be to our own disadvantage,” Njie remarked. He concluded by advising both vendors and consumers to return to wearing face masks, as well as social distancing “for our own good…”
Lamin Sanneh, a second-year student of the University of The Gambia, who uses the market as a transit to school, said people are not taking masks very seriously. “…the police have not been enforcing these regulations the way they are supposed to do.” He asserted that the police should enforce these regulations especially in places he said are “vulnerable”.
Meanwhile, Prince Abubacarr Aminata Sankanu, Focal person for Strategic Communications, and External Public Relations for the Gambia National COVID-19 Response Coordination Secretariat, in an interview on Friday 16th October, 2020, said, government is preparing for the worst-case scenario, as part of the national COVID-19 response and recovery plan. “As we are seeing in Europe, a second wave remains a possibility since we live in an interconnected world,” Sankanu said.
