Update on corpses at the Banjul mortuary

By Sailu Bah It is 49 days today since the 30 December 2013 insurgency which resulted in the death of some people whose corpses are still said to be kept in the mortuary at the Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital (EFSTH) in Banjul.Visiting the mortuary yesterday, Monday, 16 February 2015, this reporter observed the presence of armed soldiers who have been guarding the place since after the incident last year. Access to the road to the mortuary connecting Independence Drive and Marina Parade by vehicles is restricted. The only vehicles that are allowed to pass are the mortuary van and those owned by Gamtel which have an office there, although, pedestrians are allowed to use the road to go about their respective businesses. However, a relative of Bakary Bojang, aka “Gosso”, the mentally ill person who was said to have died in the incident, said their family is still not allowed access to the corpse after several futile attempts. He said they had hoped that the corpse would be given to them before the 40th day after the death to enable them to bury it and observe the charity in accordance with the Muslim religious rites. He revealed that they had proceeded to observe the 40 days charity on Monday, 5 February, at the family residence at the junction of Gloucester Street and Sam Jack Terrace in Banjul. “Relatives, neighbours and the friends of “Gosso” who was well known were all around to witness the charity which was very sorrowful,” said the grief stricken relative. He concluded by making an appeal to the authorities to hand over the corpse of their brother to the family for burial so that his worried, grieving and sick mum would have a peace of mind.]]>