Gambia’s first GOPSI troop from Saudi Arabia complain about financial benefits

By Ousman A. Marong

Eighty five soldiers of The Gambia Armed Forces who returned home after benefiting from the recently concluded Saudi Arabia training package have expressed their dissatisfaction about the benefits.

A source in the arm forces said the training package has no doubt some unfair play to the troop, adding that it is a disgrace for them.

The source further stated: “We can no longer bear it and would want to let the cat out of the bag.”

The source added that there is a lot of division and nepotism in the army caused by some so-called senior officers which should be a thing of the past in the new democratic dispensation.

He described the disclosure as the launching of what he referred to as exposing hypocrisy and despotism in the army.

 “Can you imagine, we seat in the plane from The Gambia to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for 16 good hours and after having spent one month there only to be paid D15, 000 upon arrival as member of the country’s national army?”

He questioned how on earth should they be paid for only D15, 000 as members of the country’s national army, while their counterparts at the Police Intervention Unit (PIU) who just embarked on a similar training for three month in the neighbouring Senegal and are paid D20, 000 per month with an extra weekly pocket money of D15, 000 during their stay in Dakar.

The military source retorted that senior officers are behind the selection for the training package to both Saudi Arabia and Senegal, saying the selection was very bias as it was not based on merits but only based on ‘whom you know"

 “All they are doing in the name of reforming the army by providing international training packages to the soldiers is a mere cover-up of their inefficiency and give President Barrow the impression that they are doing their work,” he noted.

He pointed out that President Barrow should try to build some trust between him and the army in order to end the mandate of the Ecoming forcers in the country so that the peace and security of the country can be in safer hands of Gambia Armed Forces instead of the Ecoming.

The Public Relations Officer of the Gambia Armed Forces, Lieutenant General Malick Sanyany refuted the allegation, adding that the military works through directions and proper channels and that they are a regularized institution.

“GAF is not a small institution and therefore it makes no sense for the allegers to complain much about the D15, 000 payments. Do the math yourself to see, 85 multiply by 15 how much would it give you.”

 He explained that the training package was sponsored by the Islamic Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and not The Gambia governments.

“It is wrong for them to allege that the selection was unfair and was based on pick and choose,” Sanyang stated.

The military spokesperson concluded that the training package was a spot shot type by the Saudi government which includes accommodation, feeding, air ticket among others, so at the end of the program the officials decided to give each D15, 000 as pocket money, “and I see no reason for complaining about the payment.”