In this interview with AG Radio, Mr. Ben Suwareh disclosed that he received audio recordings featuring the newly appointed Director of Finance, Cherno Omar Cham, and the Treasury Manager, Mr. Baboucarr Secka, who are implicated in an alleged corruption scandal involving negotiations over an inflated quotation intended to solicit a bribe from a NAWEC supplier.
The NAWEC Board of Directors convened subsequently to examine Open Gambia’s report regarding the involvement of Treasury Manager Babucarr Secka and Financial Director Mr. Cherno Omar Cham in the leaked telephone messages, where both were recorded discussing the inflation of purchase invoices with a NAWEC cable supplier. The Board has now made the decision to terminate Baboucarr Secka’s services and has suspended Mr. Cherno Omar Cham from duty without pay until further notice, said Ben Suwareh.
In yet another explosive corruption allegation, the NAWEC MD Mr. Gallo Saidy, made unjustified standard excuses for rejecting the bids of companies with proven track records and the most competitive pricing.
Saibo Manneh has yet to submit a competitive bid through his GAMGO Company. He held shares in one of the bidding companies (Asta Investment), submitting a competitive bid; however, he opted to represent GAMGO because of his kickback arrangement with the NAWEC MD and the President’s Chief of Staff.
What rationale can MD Gallo Saidy provide for granting the contract to Mr. Saibo Manneh, given the information outlined in the bidding documents? asked Ben Suwareh.
According to Ben Suwareh, an insider from NAWEC has claimed that Gallo Saidy, along with the President’s Chief of Staff MOD Ceesay, conspired to award a procurement contract for 21 vehicles at a cost of GMD 73,900,000.00 to their chosen bidder, Saibo Manneh of GamGo company, in exchange for a kickback, all without obtaining approval from the Gambia Public Procurement Authority, added Ben Suwareh.
