Old Bakau Councillor Accuses Government of Discrediting KMC General Council in White Paper

By Fatou Sillah

Old Bakau Ward Councillor Lamin Dibba has criticised the government’s White Paper on the findings of the Local Government Commission of Inquiry, accusing the government of unfairly targeting the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) General Council and Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda.

Speaking during Thursday’s General Council meeting, Dibba defended the council’s handling of the municipality’s waste management initiative, known as the Mbalit Project, insisting that it underwent the required procedures and received the council’s approval.

He explained that waste management was among the major challenges facing the municipality when councillors assumed office in 2018, prompting the administration under Mayor Bensouda to introduce measures to address the problem.

According to Dibba, the Mbalit Project was subjected to procurement procedures, reviewed at the committee level, and subsequently approved by the General Council.

“Now, if a government comes up with a White Paper to ridicule the resolution of the General Council, I think they are not fair with us. All that they have said in the White Paper is all false and allegations against our General Council and our mayor,” he said.

Dibba also dismissed allegations of economic crimes against Mayor Bensouda, describing the government’s actions as politically motivated and an attempt to undermine the council’s leadership.

“This is a fight against the council and our Lord Mayor, and we are not going to accept it,” he declared.

Similarly, Bundung Six Junction/Mauritania Ward Councillor Joko Fatou Njie rejected the government’s White Paper and urged her fellow councillors to remain united in defending the council’s decisions.

She cautioned against allowing the council to be used to undermine its own members and expressed support for Bensouda’s leadership.

“As a representative of Bundung 6, Junction Mouritani Ward, I am not interested in any narrative of the government’s White Paper. I totally reject it,” she said.

The councillors’ remarks come amid growing disagreement between the government and KMC over the findings and recommendations of the Local Government Commission of Inquiry, particularly those concerning Mayor Bensouda and the municipality’s administration.