Dr. Ousman Gajigo, a development economist and senior member of the Gambia For All, has sharply criticized the Barrow administration’s power purchase agreement with Turkish energy company Karpowership, describing it as “probably the worst power purchase agreement in the history of power purchase agreements.”
Speaking in an interview on The Final Take program with The Alkamba Times, Dr. Gajigo alleged that the government has lost more than US$200 million under the contract with Karpowership, which provides electricity through a floating power plant arrangement.
He further disclosed that he had previously been approached by the current administration with what he characterized as a lucrative offer.
“I was approached by this government with, some offer, like, doing almost nothing to be paid D30 million. I turned it down because I’m not in it for money,” he said, emphasizing what he described as his commitment to principle over personal gain.
Dr. Gajigo alleged that the agreement with Karpowership “clearly defrauded the country,” arguing that officials across multiple levels of government failed to protect the national interest.
“The government signed the worst power purchase agreement with their company, which means everybody from the State House all the way down to the Ministry of Petroleum, all the way down to NAWEC, all the people in key positions of authority were incapable and either incapable or didn’t care about the nation’s interest,” he stated.
He questioned both the competence and patriotism of those involved in negotiating and approving the deal.
According to Dr. Gajigo, the floating power plant supplied approximately 30 megawatts of electricity, while the country allegedly paid over US$200 million over a seven-year period. He argued that the same amount of money could have financed the construction of a 200-megawatt power plant capable of meeting significantly higher national demand.
“With 200 million, you can build a power plant of 200 megawatts,” he said, adding that such a facility could substantially expand electricity access and support businesses across the country.
He further claimed that the annual payments made to the company were roughly equivalent to the estimated cost of the ship’s generating equipment.
“The amount of money per year we were paying that company is the value of that ship. That generator on that ship, the cost of it is 30 million. And we were paying them 30 million per year,” he detailed.
When asked whether the government was aware of the implications of the agreement, Dr. Gajigo suggested that shortcomings in leadership were to blame.
“It cannot even power the whole of Kombo. But basically, again, this is why I told you qualities of leadership, competence, integrity, and patriotism. So one of these things is missing in the Adama Barrow regime.”
Dr. Gajigo also stated that he could not be influenced by government incentives, contrasting himself with others he claimed had accepted positions or offers from the administration.
“Not everybody is like Dr. Ismaila Ceesay. Not everybody is like all these other characters. You know, there are people whom the government cannot buy. I’m one of those people. They offered me far more than they offered Dr. Ismaila Ceesay. And that didn’t turn me.”
He concluded by calling for accountability, arguing that officials responsible for the agreement should resign.
“If you have a leader who is sitting in the statehouse who knows what he’s doing, and you come and tell me that this docking ship is going to provide us with 30 megawatts of power, the next statement from out of my mouth would be, please give me your resignation because you are incompetent in the position that you are holding at this moment,” he said.
