By Nelson Manneh
Hon. Almameh Gibba, the National Assembly Member for Foni Kansala Constituency said women at border villages have abandoned their vegetable gardens due to the gunshots which frequently go on within these areas.
The Member for Foni Kansala said there is no economic activity during the dry season apart from gardening, firewood collection and the protection of various cashew farms along the border. He said life will be very difficult for these people if they are not engaged in their gardens to water their vegetables, or fetch firewood or visit their cashew farms.
On Monday 16th January 2023, heavy gunshots were again heard around Foni Bintang Karani. Mortars and live bullet shots from Casamance were said to have crossed the Gambian border and landed near villages. Information has it that Janack Basic Cycle has been closed at the moment because of shelling within the area. That moost domestic animals including cattle and small ruminants, have been displaced, making the residents in these border villages to lose all hope of recovering their animals.
Hon. Gibba said the government of the Gambia has a responsibility to secure the citizenry wherever they may be, as far as they are within the territory of the Gambia, and further said that with the current situation along the border, villages are scared of going their cashew farms.
“As of now, Schools along the border have closed as fighting continues between Senegalese forces and the MFDC. Soldiers of the Gambia Armed Force visit border villages but cannot stop the shells and mortars from landing on Gambian territory. As I speak we already have displaced Gambians, our own citizens who are internally displaced,” Hon. Gibba said, and further indicates that the Gambia Red Cross Society continues to frequently visit affected villages.
