In a complaint filed in the Supreme Court, former Auditor General Modou Ceesay argues that his dismissal from office was illegal and unconstitutional. Attorney General Dawda A. Jallow is named as the first defendant in the lawsuit, followed by Inspector General of Police Seedy Mutarr Touray.
Ceesay describes himself as a public official working as the Auditor General at the National Audit Office (NAO) in the lawsuit, which was filed as a Writ to Invoke Original Jurisdiction. He claims that in flagrant defiance of both national law and his fundamental rights, Gambia Police Force officers forcibly removed him from the NAO grounds.
According to the lawsuit, the Attorney General and the Inspector General of Police violated certain sections 158, 159, 160, and 169 of the 1997 Constitution by directing the police to enter the NAO and remove him.
Furthermore, Ceesay claims that these activities violate several clauses of the National Audit Office Act, 2015, particularly sections 3(2), 11, 13, 14, and 16, which define the Auditor General’s jurisdiction and protect the NAO’s structural independence. These clauses guarantee the tenure stability and operational independence necessary for the office to fulfill its responsibility to uphold financial integrity and public accountability.
Ceesay is requesting the following remedies through the lawsuit:
a statement stating that parts of the 1997 Constitution were broken by his violent removal, which was mandated by the Attorney General and the Inspector General of Police.
a statement stating that the National Audit Office Act of 2015 was violated by such acts.
a clear and unambiguous ruling that his dismissal was illegal, void, and unenforceable.
any additional directives the court determines are proper and reasonable.
Within 21 days of receiving the plaintiff’s statement of case, both defendants must submit their statements of defense in accordance with the writ.
According to legal experts, the case may result in a historic court review of the executive branch’s authority and the independence of the Auditor General’s office as a crucial oversight body under the constitution.
