Yankuba Darboe, Chairman, Brikama Area Council
By Makutu Manneh
Yankuba Darboe, chairman of the Brikama Area Council, has accused President Adama Barrow’s administration of obstructing the council’s access to key revenue streams, including taxes and government transfers.
Speaking during the United Democratic Party’s nationwide tour stop in Foni, Mr. Darboe alleged that funds intended for the council were being withheld. “The tax we are supposed to get at Brikama Area Council, we are not getting half of it because of President Adama Barrow,” he said.
Mr. Darboe, UDP’s Deputy Admin Secretary for Media, pledged that if the party’s flag bearer, Ousainu Darboe, wins the 2026 presidential election, the council would allocate 60 million dalasis to Foni in February 2027. He promised that each ward would receive 5 million dalasis, arguing that the sums would accelerate local development. “If one million takes time to bring about development, then five million would not,” he said.
He added that the allocations would continue annually but warned that such support would not be forthcoming under another Barrow administration. “If Barrow goes back to the State House after the 2026 election, you will not have the money, and things will not be available in this country,” he said.
Mr. Darboe urged residents to remain united and focus on improving the future for their children. He said the funds could be used to build hospitals, streetlights, gardens, and a storey building for the local market.
He reminded the gathering that the council had already disbursed 5 million dalasis to Foni in 2024 and 10 million dalasis in 2025.