FOROYAA Newspaper (Serrekunda)
Amie Sanneh, Amie Camara and Madiba Singhateh
10 July 2009
The Gambia Physical Planning Department, accompanied by personnel from the Police Intervention Unit and police, yesterday embarked on a demolition exercise of shop verandahs along the Churchill Town-Tallinding highway.
According to the victims affected by the exercise, they were not given notice regarding the demolition and have described the whole exercise as unfair to them.
One Sanusi Touray, a landlord in Tallinding, said as the landlord of one of the affected buildings he cannot be comfortable if his tenants are not. "This seriously affects us. It means we have to sit under the sun. How can they do their marketing if they are asked to pack all their materials inside?" he questioned.
He said his tenants normally put samples of their items outside for people to see and know what they are selling. Mr. Touray explained that four months ago the Physical Planning came and asked them to reduce the length of their verandah corrugates because it was on the highway.
"We talked to them and they later left," he added.
Mr. Touray described this act as unfair to them and called on the government to look into it. He urged physical planning to give people notice whenever they want to undergo such exercises.
Yunus Ceesay, who runs a tailoring shop in Churchill Town, told us that they were not given any notice prior to this exercise. "These people just came and started destroying the new corrugate I put there as shade two months back without even telling us anything" he lamented.
He said he spent almost D2000 to do that but was quick to point out that, that does not matter and what matters now is when the rain comes how it is going to affect them.
"We did the corrugate and blocks here to avoid last year's flood which greatly affected us and destroyed most of our valuable materials but all destroyed now," he added. Yunus called on the government to do something about this otherwise if the rains come, it would affect them seriously.
Ebrima Badjie who is a glass cutter in Churchill Town was also a victim of this exercise said; this exercise is not a good one. This he said is not in their advantage. "Yes it is good to make the highway free", but argued that this corrugate they put there to serve as shade has nothing to do with the road. "We are not even on the road and there is enough space between my shop and the road," he complained. He said he knows that they just want to disturb them. Mr. Badjie explained that it is always hot and his shop is not spacious. He also called on the government to look into the situation.
Other people spoken to also expressed similar sentiments. According to one of the physical planning workers they want a distance between the shop and the road. He was asked how much space they want. He said 40 meters, but the other physical planner said they should be in line with the fences of the complained shopkeepers, Welders and carpenters were all asked to move their belongings inside because they do want them to be destroyed as the planners were with demolishers who were just waiting for order to destroy when they are told to do so.
They said they were told by the officers that on their way back, they don't want to see anything that were to be destroyed standing on the highway. Another officer was heard saying that they want people not to work on the road but to be away from the road. That he said is the reason why they are pushing them which is an order.
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