By Awa B. Bah
The president of Cooperativa Africa Di Vittorio Mbaye Ndiaye, has raised the concerns of Gambians in Italy particularly as it relates to consular service. The Pan Africanist from Senegalese is the special regional representative for Africa in Italy. He was in the country to officially deliver three dead bodies of Gambians, who lost their lives in a fatal car accident in Italy, on August 6, 2018.
It could be recalled that an accident occurred in Italy, claiming the lives of eleven African migrants. Among the dead bodies were three Gambians in the names of Musa Touray and Alhagie Ceesay of Farato and Alassana Darboe.
Ndiaye said the victims were returning from their daily work at a tomato farm, when the vehicle they boarded collided with a truck, causing heavy loss lives. He noted that African migrants suffer a lot in Italy in their struggles to make ends meet, adding that most of them are logged in camps or ghettos which serve as their residence.
Commenting on the work of the Gambian Consular in Italy, Ndiaye said Gambian migrants in that country, do not have access to him, pointing out that he does not communicate with them. According to Ndiaye, the Consular refused to signed and facilitate the repatriation papers for the dead bodies to the Gambia; that because of this, his organization decided to take the responsibility under the leadership of the Regional president, to facilitate the return of all the dead bodies, to their respective countries; that on the day of the incident, he was called by the Commissariat because the Gambian Consular was unreachable. He said further that the media in Italy was present to cover the accident, while the Consular said he was not aware of it. Gambians he said have the right to be provided with someone in a foreign land, to serve as their representative.
According to Ndiaye, most of African migrants in Italy, are well represented and their welfare as migrants is put into high consideration. Some Gambians he said, prefer to be identified as other nationalities because of the way they are treated in Italy.
The consular he said, should serve as a parent to the migrants, by taking responsibility for their affairs.
