Omar Barrow Was Shot To Death By The Security Officers – Pa Modou Faal Tells TRRC

PHOTO: Pa Modou (Photo Credit TRRC)

By Ousman A. Marong

The Gambia Daily News reporter Pa Modou Faal has told the Truth, Reconciliation, and Reparations Commission (TRRC) that the late journalist Omar Barrow was shot to death by the security officers of The Gambia Armed Forces (GAF).
According to him, he saw the late Omar Barrow lying at the mortuary at the then Royal Victoria Teaching Hospital (RVTH), now Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital in Banjul.
“I saw the dead body of late Omar Barrow on a blue shirt lying down at the mortuary of the RVTH,” said Mr. Faal.
He made this revelation at the Dunes Hotel in Kololi where he was testifying before the commission.

“I was informed by a colleague that the late Omar Barrow was shot to death by members of The Gambia Armed Forces during the April 10-11 students’ demonstration,” he further explained.
He revealed that the Sud FM reporter Ousman Ceesay was manhandled by the security officers while covering the April 10-11 students’ demonstration too.
“The security officers confiscated Ousman Ceesay’s tape recorder while he was covering the demonstration,” he stated.
He informed the commission that ‘plainclothes officers’ once appeared at the studio of Radio Sud FM demanding for the closure of the Radio. “There was a reason given to us to why the radio should be closed down,” he disclosed.
He alleged that former Information Minister Neneh Macduoll Gaye had a hand in the closure of Sud FM radio. He opined that The Gambia and Senegal border crisis also contributed to the closure of the radio.
Narrating his ordeal with the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) officers in 2009 when he and some other executive members of the Gambia Press Union were arrested, Mr. Faal said a former NIA officer called Alhagie Morr Jobe phoned him and informed him that he is wanted at the NIA for questioning and he reported himself to the NIA.

“While at the NIA, I was interrogated about a press release of the GPU against the former president Yahya Jammeh, which was published by The Point and Foroyaa newspapers. I was also forced to log into my email account upon arrival at the NIA,” he outlined. He further informed the Commission that all of them (the arrested journalists) especially Mr. Pape Saine, Managing Director of The Point Newspaper was totally paranoid while in detention, as they had always thought the hit-squad (Jungulars) will come to torture them.
Mr. Faal also described the country’s central prison Mile II, where they were remanded during their trial, as a horrible place and not fit for human beings to stay.
“We have spent 27 days in prison, and we were pardoned when the former Nigerian president at the time visited the country.