President Adama Barrow’s D500,000 monthly salary has drawn harsh criticism from Essa Faal, the leader of the APP-Sobeyaa political party, who calls it unjustifiable given the financial hardships that regular Gambians suffer.
How can anyone rationalise paying the president D500,000, while also compensating his driver, who is tasked with ensuring his security? He is travelling domestically and receives D5,000. The president does not handle any bills. This individual on D5,000 would need to cover rent, provide for their family, and purchase medicine. How can we possibly justify that? Faal mentioned in an interview with West Coast Radio.
He stated, “This is why I emphasise the necessity to reconstruct a Gambia, a Gambia that is rooted in morality, a Gambia that is grounded in fairness.” It is essential for us to create a fair society. Our society is imbalanced, favouring those at the top. This is a well-considered phenomenon.
Faal also charged the government with reorganising national systems in a way that primarily advantages the elite, while ordinary Gambians bear the consequences.
The individuals who diligently contribute to the taxes paid by Gambians and businesses to create that national cake, which those in Parliament distribute as they please. It is unfortunate. It is unfair. “We must transform this system,” he stressed.
In response to enquiries regarding the government’s spending priorities, Faal expressed criticism of what he described as a culture of wasteful expenditure and mismanagement of public funds.
“What we have in the Gambia is a slash and burn economy.” You impose taxes and allocate funds, yet our spending lacks prudence. Rather than focussing our spending on the needs of the people, we are allocating resources to those at the top and the budget, despite the claims from the spin doctors that this is the best budget Gambia has ever produced. “I have never witnessed a government so aggressively promoting a budget as it is today, especially considering that this budget is the worst ever produced by our country,” he expressed with disappointment.
Faal voiced apprehension regarding the D100 million designated for the president’s travels, labelling it as excessive and unneeded.
“D100 million has been allocated for the president’s travel expenses.” Is it necessary for us to allocate funds for presidential travel? Let’s examine the recent waste that occurred at the UNGA, involving a small country like the Gambia. It’s a struggling economy. Each year, we face a deficit amounting to billions of dalasis. We circulate among potential donors seeking contributions to help balance our budget, while we attend the UN General Assembly with a delegation of over 80 individuals. This serves as a political incentive. He remarked that this is political patronage aimed at satisfying the supporters of the political party, but it does not serve the interests of the Gambia government.
He went on to say, “I worked at the United Nations.” I served as a counsellor for the Gambia permanent mission, and I had the opportunity to sit at the UN Security Council during a critical time for Gambia, as we were present at the Security Council. We have never had a delegation of that size. This is a complete waste. Check out the Meet The People Tour.
Faal also pointed out the excessive spending on the “Meet the People” tour, which he referred to as sanctioned waste.
“This is authorised waste that is provided to the government. In 2020, what amount was approved? I believe it was D6 million, and the government spent around 20 something million. In 2021, they spent D40, approximately a million. In 2023, D10 million was allocated for the Meet The People Tour, while the President utilised D61 million of taxpayer funds solely to travel and engage with citizens across the nation. Faal presented a compelling argument.
