By Mustapha K Darboe
In July 2017, about 6 months after the former president Yahya Jammeh was removed from power, president Adama Barrow established a Commission of Inquiry to investigate his financial transactions, his family and associates.
A month before the inquiry began, a high court in Banjul froze all the ex-president’s assets. As the Commission sat, a number of these assets, including his household materials, were being sold by different state institutions.
On March 20, 2024, a lawmaker representing Foni Kansala— Almameh Gibba— asked the Minister of Justice to provide answers on the list of Jammeh’s assets sold, the buyers and their prices. He also asked for information on, among other things, golds recovered at his residence.
Claim
On Wednesday, the Minister of Justice— responding to a question asked by Almameh Gibba, the lawmaker representing Foni Kansala, said no gold was recovered at the residence of the former president Yahya Jammeh.
“There were no gold. No gold recovered,” Minister Jallow said.
Source
Justice Minister Dawda Jallow, responding to questions asked by Almameh Gibba, the lawmaker representing Foni Kansala.
Fact-check
During the sitting of the Commission of Inquiry, a significant number of visits were made to the residence of the former president Jammeh to take inventory of his assets.
In March 2018, one of the security officers who participated in taking inventory in Kanilai appeared before the Commission to detail what they had found. Two suitcases were found in two of Jammeh’s luxury vehicles.
The officers who testified before the Commission presented two gold coins, two gold-plated pistols and a gold-plated watch.
Though it is unclear if the Commission’s report recorded the gold watches and gold coins, it recorded the gold pistol found in Volume 1 and 2.
During the Commission’s own visit to Jammeh’s residence, in October 2018, the Foroyaa newspaper reported that a bag full of what looked like “gold coins” were found and taken as exhibits.
Verdict:
The Minister’s statement is false.
