The Gambian government has announced an investigation into the sale of assets seized from former President Yahya Jammeh, following widespread public concern.
Some of the assets, including livestock and luxury vehicles, were sold off while a panel was still investigating the wealth Jammeh amassed during his 22-year rule.
A newspaper investigation exposed alleged irregularities and an apparent lack of transparency in the sale of the assets, sparking protests organised by young people.
In a televised address on Wednesday night, President Adama Barrow pledged “full transparency” in the probe, saying assets recovered “belong to the people”.
Jammeh, who seized power in a 1994 coup, is accused of orchestrating the huge theft of government funds, as well as extensive human rights abuses, including killing and jailing his critics.
The former leader, who in 2017 fled into exile in Equatorial Guinea after losing elections, has previously denied allegations of wrongdoing.
In 2017, President Barrow set up a commission to investigate alleged corruption and financial misconduct by Jammeh during his two-decade-long rule.
The panel, popularly known as the Janneh commission, concluded its findings in 2019 and recommended the forfeiture of assets linked to Jammeh and his associates.
The investigation found that Jammeh had allegedly stolen at least $360m (£270m) and spent lavishly on expensive vehicles, aircraft and real estate.
He is yet comment on the accusations but his supporters in Gambia have dismissed the findings against him as a political witchhunt.
Jammeh’s livestock – including cows, sheep and goats, – farm tractors, vehicles, and other valuables were among the assets earmarked for seizure by the state.
In 2019, President Barrow authorised a ministerial taskforce to oversee the reclaiming of the assets, with regular updates to the cabinet.
But an investigative report published by the local Republic newspaper earlier this month accused senior government officials of selling the assets to themselves, friends and family at below market value.
The report went viral on social media, triggering protests in the capital, Banjul, where dozens of people, including journalists were arrested but later released.
Following the public pressure, the government published a detailed list of the assets already sold, which included some of Jammeh’s luxury cars, livestock, boats, construction equipment, household goods, parcels of land and heavy farm machinery.
The long list showed the buyers, prices and sale dates.
However, some of Jammeh’s luxury cars like his customised Rolls Royce and Bentley were not in the list.
It is not clear if the vehicles were sold or shipped out to him as the government had allowed him to take some items to Equatorial Guinea.
The list sparked further outrage over how many valuable items had seemingly been sold at suspiciously low prices.
No explanation was given by the government about the prices but the justice ministry in a statement said the sale had gone through a “legally grounded process”.
“At all times, the government acted within the confines of the law and in the public interest,” the ministry said in a statement.
In his address on Wednesday, Barrow said he had convened a cabinet meeting the previous day to discuss details of the sales, some of which he was learning about “for the first time”.
He said the country’s parliament and the National Audit Office were both conducting parallel inquiries into the matter.
“Their findings will be made public, and my government will enforce their recommendations to address the shortcomings discovered and hold accountable any individual or entity found culpable,” the president said.
He urged Gambians to remain calm, warning that his government “will not tolerate negligence, or any wrongdoing linked to safeguarding our nation’s resources”.
But activists and opposition parties have dismissed the president’s assurance, saying parliament cannot be trusted with the investigation.
Yayah Sanyang, an opposition MP, has called for an independent probe, saying parliament was “full of ruling party loyalists”.
The Edward Francis Small Center for Rights and Justice, a rights group, has demanded that the president take responsibility and freeze the sale of all seized assets.
In 2022, the US seized a luxurious mansion in Maryland, which was said to have been purchased by Jammeh through proceeds of corruption.
In its investigation, the US Justice Department said Jammeh had acquired at least 281 properties during his time in office and operated more than 100 private bank accounts.
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