Freedom Newspaper (Raleigh, North Carolina)
Karafa Badjie
13 November 2007
Facts are emerging about the circumstances surrounding the sacking of the disgraced Gambian Health Minister Dr. Tamsir Mbowe. Well placed sources close to corridors of power in Banjul, say the former Minister was implicated in a conspiracy deal , which was reached to sell 'Expired rice" to the poverty stricken Gambian Community . A Lebanese rice importer, who is said to be a close friend of Mbowe was said to be the brain behind such corruption schemes .According to our sources, Mbowe tried to use his powers and influence as a State Minister to authorize the sale of the expired rice, even though the said rice was earlier declared unfit for human consumption by personnel of the Health and Hygiene Department. The sacked Minister was said to have given green light to the Lebanese importer to sell the expired rice, which prompted Government's immediate intervention to protect the impoverished populace from consuming the bad rice.
An order was issued for the said expired rice to be disposed off. Sources said a meeting was also convened at the State House, where the Gambian leader fumed over Dr.Mbowe's misconduct and thus ordered for his immediate sacking. The Government cited potential health implication for its move to ban the said expired rice. Many Gambians in recent past died of food poisoning related illnesses. Food poisoning has been a major health problem in The Gambia.
Due to poor pay and lack of ethics, some health officials entrusted with supervising food hygiene in the country engaged in corrupt practices. Some importers dished out few couple of dalasis to these health workers in a bid to facilitate the importation of their expired goods. Thirds World countries, such as The Gambia, over the years had been targeted as a save heaven for the disposal of such unwanted goods. Thanks to the health ministry, some of these expired goods had found its way into the market.
Some unnamed Indian Super Market owners were also linked to the sale of such expired goods. Lack of commitment on the side of the police to prosecute such offenders, is another major factor affecting public health safety in this country. Many case files gathered dust in the office of the Inspector General of Police. In the end, such cases are dismissed by the courts for lack of diligent prosecution.
It's unclear if the disgraced Minister had received any kickback from the Lebanese rice importer, but Government sources say they cannot rule out such allegations. These sources who wished to remain anonymous say Mbowe had in the past received favors from the said importer, which makes it very likely for the former Minister to be induced.
Health Ministry officials who spoke to the Freedom Newspaper expressed shock over Dr.Mbowe's recent move to be manipulated by the Lebanese importer to poison our people through the sale of expired goods. "Our office staff can issue health certification report to declare the rice unfit for public consumption, but the Minister's decision stands at the end of the day. Many Lebanese businessmen had been treating our staff with contempt because of the close ties with SOS Mbowe. They used to tell us if you don't accept bribe, your boss will give us certification at the end of the day. Many containers of expired goods had been circulated into the Market, thanks to Mbowe. It's was late for the President to discover such malpractices. Personnel of the Food and Hygiene are doing their very best to stop expired from getting into the Market, but there is political will at the Ministry level." Said the Health official who spoke to our reporter.
Attempts to reach Mr.Mbowe for comments proved abortive. The sacked Minister is either avoiding the press or was yet to recover his sacking. He is not picking up phone calls from unrecognized phone numbers. The Minister was indisposed for comments.
Be the first to Write a Comment!
Copyright © 2007 Freedom Newspaper. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections — or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.
AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.
