The Auditor General has warned ⚠ that government debts and court cases have been piling up for years. But something magical happened when the 2023 audit report was tabled before Parliament; billions in liabilities vanished on paper.
What the Numbers Say
• In 2022, the government admitted to D2.79 billion in “contingent liabilities”, the money it might have to pay if court cases went against it, or if SOEs defaulted on guaranteed loans.
• In 2023, the official figure dropped to just D147 million.
A fall of more than D2.6 billion in one year.
But the Auditor General’s Management Letter tells us a different story:
The government had already paid out D112 million in court awards, and another D3.65 billion in pending cases still hung over the State.
So how did D3.65 billion in lawsuits become just D147 million in the books?
What Are Contingent Liabilities Anyway?
Let’s break it down in simple words:
• Contingent liability = future bill.
• If the government loses a lawsuit → you, the taxpayer, pay.
• If NAWEC, GCAA, or GAMTEL default on loans that are government guaranteed → you, the taxpayer, pay.
When the Ministry of Finance tells Parliament that only D147 million is at risk, but the Auditor General says that D3.65 billion is pending in court, that is not a small mistake. That is hiding billions from citizens.
Why the Drop?
The Auditor General revealed the problem:
• The Ministry of Justice refused or delayed giving complete litigation records.
• Cases may have been classified differently, “remote” instead of “probable.”
• Some SOE guarantees may have been shifted out of the disclosure.
Translation: the government massaged the numbers, and billions vanished from the page, but not from reality.
Why This Matters to You
These lawsuits and guarantees are not abstract figures. They are bills waiting to hit the taxpayer.
• If the government loses a land dispute, the payout could cost thousands of school desks.
• If NAWEC defaults, the bailout could cover entire hospitals of medicine.
• If GCAA fails to repay, it is new debt your children must carry.
When the government hides these liabilities, it hides the truth about your future taxes, services, and children’s future.
What Gambians Must Demand
Our National Assembly must ask three simple questions:
- Provide us with the complete list of lawsuits pending against the State, including who is suing, for how much, and at what stage the case is at.
- Provide the SOE loan guarantees still on the government’s books.
- Explain why D3.65 billion in pending cases became D147 million in the accounts.
The Verdict
Numbers do not lie, but politicians can.
• 2022: D2.79 billion in liabilities.
• 2023: D147 million in liabilities (officially) vs. D3.65 billion (really).
When the government hides its lawsuits, it is not hiding from accountants. It is hiding from citizens.
This is Part 3 of our breakdown. Tomorrow, in Part 4, we turn to another hidden scandal: billions in donor money (D29.7 billion in grants and D4.6 billion in loans) approved but undrawn, while projects for Gambians sit idle.
By Jallow Modou, Washington, D.C, USA
