Gambia: Govt Welcoming Main Land China Businesses!!
Freedom Newspaper (Raleigh, North Carolina)
EDITORIAL
17 January 2008
Posted to the web 18 January 2008
Gambia\'s President Yahya Jammeh has been welcoming investors from Main Land China into The Gambia. Jammeh\'s close ties with Main Land China is slowly but surely coming to light. Thanks to the expelled Australian sand mining Company in The Gambia, Jammeh\'s top secret has been declassified. Authorities in Taiwan should open their ears and listen to this important statement coming from Banjul, through the Australian firm. The statement reads Carnegie, which insists it has complied with all the terms of its mining license, has been producing zircon and rutile at Sayang in The Gambia for shipment to China, with £2 million funding from China-focused Australian group Astron. Last year, Hopkins said the company hoped Sayang could produce 20,000 tones a year of these materials.
Authorities in Taiwan, must be shocked today by such revelations, but this is the true state of affairs. The Gambia is marketing its products to Main Land China. Most of the country\'s merchandizes are ordered from China. There are Chinese businesses in Banjul. The Gambian Government welcomes the Chinese investors with an open arm.
The Gambian Government hurriedly came up with what we call half truth, distorted and misleading statement, as soon as the Freedom Newspaper broke the story about its link with Main Land China and the erstwhile Australian sand mining company. The Government\'s statement was in the form of an affirmation and not denial. It\'s statement deviated from the main issues raised by Carnegie. We call it a cover up statement.
Read these few lines from The Gambia Government the President of The Gambia and Secretary of State for Mineral Resources, Yahya A.J.J. Jammeh, has given a 24-hour ultimatum to Carnegie Minerals Gambia Limited to come clean on their activities in the country, failure of which they risk losing their license to operate in the country, not to speak of legal actions to follow.
The Government also went on a sea of speculation, this time trying to accused the firm of concealing proceeds its derived from the Main Land China mineral sales. Carnegie Mineral might be exporting minerals from The Gambia, which they are not reporting accordingly. As a result of this, the release added, Carnegie Minerals Gambia Limited is being asked to tell the Gambian public the truth about what they are actually mining, the quantity of minerals from the Gambia and what the actual international price of tonnage exported are. Original laboratory results of analysis of the type of minerals accepted and exported are also requested the Government posited.
In their scanty and distorted statement, the Government never at any given time denied allowing the Australian firm from exporting the said minerals to Main Land China. It also never informed Gambians about how much money the country had so far received from the said deal. Gambians are also interested to know if the said contract between The Gambia and Carnegie was okayed by the National Assembly or Cabinet.
The Carnegie/Gambia sand mining deal reminds us about the 1996 Abacha crude oil gift to the Gambia. Thanks to the Main opposition UDP, the deal was exposed to the public. Jammeh hired Samuel Sarr, a Senegalese entrepreneur, as his Power of Attorney to facilitate the airlifting of the said oil from the sores of Nigeria. Former Protocol officer Batata Juwara was also among the officials coordinating the Nigeria oil gift to the Gambia.
The oil deal later resurfaces in the UK Courts, as one of the contractors Chantrills Corporation sued The Gambian Government for breach of contract. Chantrills was hired to refine and airlift the oil from Nigeria. Over 50, 000 barrels of crude oil were processed per day by the company.
Jammeh failed to pay Chantrill its hard earned money. Unhappy by the way the Government treated them, the UK based oil company sued The Gambian Government.
Proceeds derived from the crude oil deal was wired to private Swiss Bank Account, believed to be owned President Jammeh. Several millions of dollars were transferred to the said account.
Also among the investors duped by this Government was Alementa, a leading groundnut marketing firm. Like, Carnegie, Alementa too had its license revoked. The Government declared the firm person no grata and detained some of its managers. The firm was accused of money laundering.
Alementa in protest sued the Jammeh Government and was awarded damages worth over 12 Million dollars by a Swiss Conflict and Dispute Settlement Court.
We feel sorry for the Australian Company. This Government is good at blackmailing investors it had fallen out with. Instead, of telling The Gambian public, the true story, it\'s asking Carnegie to explain what actually transpired. Shame on Jammeh and his Government.
A serious Government would have come up with a comprehensive statement, rather than trying to conceal the truth. For how long will Jammeh and his partners in economic crimes would continue to live in denial? What\'s wrong with telling Gambians the true story? What\'s the cover up all about?
President Jammeh has betrayed his Taiwanese counterpart by befriending Taiwan\'s arch rival Main Land China. Mr. Jammeh cannot say that Taiwan do not have businesses to handle the mineral deal it reached with Carnegie. Jammeh also cannot deny the existence of such a deal with Main Land China.
We have no interest whatsoever in creating diplomatic row between Banjul and Taiwan. Our primary task is to report the news faithfully, objectively and accurately as it unfolds. If exposing Jammeh\'s diplomatic double standards, means being unpatriotic, then so be it. We love The Gambia more than Yahya Jammeh and his supporters. The interest of this country supersedes the individual interest of Yahya Jammeh. God is on the side of Gambians. Jammeh\'s top secrets are coming to light.
For Taiwan, we say be cautious in the way and manner you relate to President Jammeh. He\'s not a man of words. He makes big promises without fulfilling them. This is just the beginning of Jammeh\'s betrayal against Taiwan. There are more surprises on the way coming. Gambia under Yahya Jammeh, has no permanent friend, but permanent interest. Taiwan should review its diplomatic ties with The Gambia!! We rest our case.
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Gambia: Govt Welcoming Main Land China Businesses!!