By Kebba AF Touray, reporting from URR
The National Assembly Select Committee on Local Government, on Friday October 12th, visited Basse Area Council.
The tour party visited the meat and Fish Market and the Basse car park. Vendors and passengers alike at the two markets, highlighted lack of waiting sheds at the car park, water and electricity, as their main challenges.
“We thank the Council for the intervention made in mitigating the problems of good toilet facilities and call for more such interventions in the areas that poses a threat to our businesses,” they said.
The CEO of the Council Momodou Lamin Jaiteh, stressed they are one of the six provincial Councils designated as a Local Government Area, with Local Government authority; that the Basse Area Council comprises fourteen Wards and seven Administrative Districts.
He informed the Committee that the Council has undertaken numerous development programs and among them, the construction of a new dumpsite at Allunhari, payment of counterpart contributions to GAMWORKS, support to Red Cross, Scout, Security forces, and physically challenged people within the jurisdiction of Council.
He cited the non-timely and effective tax payment and the lack of Government subvention as their challenges and called for solutions to these constraints from the authorities.
Chairman Foday Danjo further informed the Committee that plans are in high gear to relocate the current car park to a new site along the Allunhari by pass, with the objective of transforming the current car park into a shopping Mall; that Basse Area Council has drafted a market expansion project worth D21 million, aimed at addressing the problem of congestion at the Basse Market, but decried the lack of funds and implored for the sponsorship of the project.
The NA Committee thanked Council authorities and members for the good work they are doing and advised them to work with the Physical Planning Authority, to ensure that the said the garage and market are strategically constructed, and to ensure a systematic dumping mechanism as opposed to indiscriminate dumping at the site.
The tour continues to Mansa Konko in LRR.
