By Lamin Fatty
The chairman of the Basse Area Council (BAC), Foday Danjo, has cleared the air on rumours circulating over canteen allocation at Basse’s newly constructed market and transfer of the council’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
Chairman Danjo made this clarification on the 5th July, 20121, in an exclusive interview with this medium.
“We have not allocated any canteen to anyone yet. Instead, we just started the process by tendering for interesting applicants to apply before the market is handed over to us. However, when considering these applications, much privilege would be given to the inferno victims first then to others. This is what was agreed during our general council meeting” he said.
“After opening applications, somebody informed the minister about this and he called and asked me that he heard that we are allocating canteens to people. I told him no, we are not allocating any canteens to anybody, instead we have just started the process by inviting applications so that immediately, after handing over of the market to us as council, the allocation of canteens can be done. However, the minister still insisted that we should stop everything, but I could not agree with him. I then told him that I am only mandated by the general council to do so and it is only the general council that can ask me to stop the process we have started.”
Danjo further said the minister then informed the permanent secretary about his argument. The permanent secretary also called him about the issue and asked him to stop the whole process, he added. He said he told the PS the same thing, that he has no right to stop them on what they are doing.
“This market is under the Basse Area Council not for anybody or under any institution. The construction of this new market was funded by budget from the supplementary bill which was supported by all national assembly members and also during the laying of the foundation stone GAMWORKS said they cannot hand over the contract to the contractor unless the Basse Area Council chairman hands over Basse Market to them. All these made it clear that the market is fully under council,” he said.
He disclosed that the newly constructed market has a lesser number of canteens compared to the previous market that was burned. He said the new market comprises 185 canteens while the previous market had 285 canteens.
On the issue of the transfer of the CEO of BAC, chairman Danjo said they never received any official information about that matter, but said rumour has it their CEO will be transferred.
“Officially, we are yet to be informed but rumours have it our CEO will be transferred due to political reasons. Because the CEO is supporting my agenda, then he will be transferred according to the rumours. But we do not have any evidence about it. As far as I am concerned, there is no agenda other than serving the tax payers and I think that is in line with the National Development Plan (NDP)… ” he said.
He added that only the Local Government Service Commission has the power to move or officially transfer their CEO and that the service commission had in the past transferred some CEOs.
