Businessman Musa Dem
By Fatou Sillah
Businessman Musa Dem appeared before the Local Government Commission of Inquiry to testify regarding a 2020 contract with the Banjul City Council (BCC) for the supply of 3,000 coconut seedlings and 440 bags of organic fertilizer, valued at over D1.3 million.
During the hearing, Lead Counsel Patrick Gomez questioned Dem about the procurement process and his company’s qualifications for the contract under the Ostend-Banjul Partnership Project. Dem confirmed signing the contract with BCC and submitted a copy of it, along with printed email correspondence that included the original tender invitation. These documents were tendered as evidence.
When asked how BCC obtained his contact, Dem said he was contacted by a council staff member, but could not specify how they had acquired his details. He speculated that his contact information may have been available through business directories maintained by the Council. Lead Counsel Gomez suggested that Dem was selected through informal channels, pointing to BCC’s known history of bypassing proper procurement procedures.
Counsel Gomez further pressed Dem on his company’s background, noting it was not widely known for supplying agricultural products such as coconut seedlings and organic fertilizer. Dem responded that he had previously supplied such materials under contracts with the former government.
Dem confirmed he sourced the coconut seedlings from Senegal, stating that acquiring that quantity locally would have been difficult and cost-prohibitive, with individual seedlings selling for around D500 at the time.
“I purchased them from Senegal. This amount, to have it in the Gambia, will be difficult, and the price will be high; by then they were selling for D500. This will make me not be able to participate in the bidding,” he said.
However, when asked about the exact pricing of the seedlings and fertilizer supplied to BCC, Dem said he could not recall the figures. “I don’t have the invoice here. I moved my office; I lost some of my documents,” he told the Commission.
Lead Counsel Gomez expressed skepticism at Dem’s inability to recall key details. “That’s what everybody says,” Gomez remarked, questioning whether Dem had informed BCC of the missing documentation. Dem responded that he had not, but believed BCC retained copies of the bid documents.
“So, you don’t recall how much you charge per coconut seed?” the Lead Counsel asked.
“No, no, I cannot,” the witness responded.
The Lead Counsel then suggested that this might not actually be the witness’s line of business, arguing that if it were, he would have known all the relevant details.
“You are paid one million three hundred and eleven thousand three hundred dalasi for the supply of three thousand coconut seedlings and four hundred and forty bags of organic fertilizer in 2020. How much is a bag of organic fertilizer?” Counsel Gomez.
The witness replied that he could not recall the price without checking. When asked by Counsel how much it was in the market, the witness again stated that he could not remember.
“How can you get this business and be paid this amount and you do not know anything about the prices,” Counsel Gomez asked.
The witness stated that he only became aware of the business and its pricing whenever he was asked to provide it.
The lead counsel pointed out that he had a business he recently opened, but he was not an expert in any specific field. Rather, he would seize opportunities as they arose, conduct some research, and proceed to supply the requested items.
“Sometimes I will even see tenders on papers and I even apply for something I am not an expert in because it is something I am going to purchase and supply. I don’t need expertise to do this,” the witness explained.
“If you didn’t need any expertise to carry out that task, and now you’re being asked questions about something you delivered, you should be in a position to know,” the lead counsel told him.
In response, the witness explained that he couldn’t remember because it had happened a long time ago. The lead counsel then asked him about the cost of a bag of fertilizer.
The witness replied that he did not know the price. He stated that he had purchased the fertilizer from Abuko, but he did not have a receipt showing where he bought it.