Speaking in an interview with this reporter shortly after receiving the award during the inauguration of a health centre he built for the community, the philanthropist said: “I didn’t expect this from them. The award shows the appreciation of the community of my contribution to their advancement and livelihood. I would sponsor two young people a male and a female from the community to undergo a training course in nursing for two years who would serve the health post after completion. In the meantime the health post will be supported by personnel from Sulayman Junkung Jammeh General Hospital in Bwiam.
“I would like to thank the people of Wassadou for the support they provided during the construction of the clinic. I would like to call on the people of Foni Jarrol District and Wassadou in particular in to put the health facility to good use. The health post was built to complement the efforts of President Yahya Jammeh in providing quality health care to all Gambians irrespective of their location. Health is essential and providing a clinic could be one of the most important needs and priorities of any village thus the reason for my intervention in Wassadou. The people of Wassadou are very welcoming. I thank them for sustaining the previous projects I have funded in the community.”
In 1962 Father Ahmed Fleming and Bishop Moloney built a primary school in Wassadou which was later handed over to the Government of The Gambia.
He commended the CEO of Sulayman Junkung Jammeh Hospital, Kebba Badjie, National Assembly Member for Foni Jarrol. Alhaji Jammeh and the project supervisor Moro Sanyang for their efforts to enhance the wellbeing of the people in the area.
Meanwhile, CEO Badjie thanked Father Fleming for the project describing him as a philanthropist who has a “good heart for humanity”.
According to him, it is their duty to maintain the clinic for their own good while advising the people of the village to sign a memorandum of understanding with with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare that would highlight their concerns.
He expressed his gratitude to the managing director of GPA and the port workers for donating D20,000 to the management of the new clinic.
A spokesman for the village, Omar Sanneh, said: “Ahmed Fleming is a true friend of Wassadou and his relationship started with us way back in the 1960s. Father Fleming was a household name in the ’60s in Foni. He was a missionary in The Gambia from 1961 to 1963 and based in Bwiam. At the end of his tenure in the country, Fleming went back to Ireland but maintained his relationship with Gambians more especially the people of Foni which led to this development. He did not only build a clinic for us but also sponsored a clean drinking water facility for us. He also built a praying house for the women in the village, refurbished the entire building of the main village mosque, and provided a milling machine worth over D120,000 for the women”.
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