Sections
DONATE
SUPPORT WWW.JOLLOFNEWS.COM
Account Login
President Jammeh’s link to organized crime exposed
Sunday, 28 November 2010 01:44
By JollofNews Staff WriterPresident Yahya Jammeh’s alleged link to organized crime has been exposed in one of the most highly revealing interviews on Gambia.
US lobbyist and one time Public Relations and Economic adviser to the Gambian president, John Aycoth, told Freedom Radio that what prevails in Gambia
today was the result of a corrupt system under a corrupt leadership. Mr Aycoth, whose problem with the Jammeh regime culminated in a lawsuit settled in a US court, blamed closed business associate of the president, Amadou Samba, among other “normal cast of his followers” as responsible. He accused Yahya Jammeh of pretence, saying he operates differently from what he says.According to John Aycoth, President Yahya Jammeh cajoled foreign investors into the country promising that they could invest freely without having to have partners, but that these investors were always confronted by Jammeh’s business associates.
“There were several businessmen around the president that basically got upset with me because I had made it quite clear to the president that if any of the companies that are brought to Gambia had to have a Gambian partner, if it was to be his friends who were businessmen that surrounded him let him just tell me,” Aycoth said. He added that on introducing these potential investors to the government, he (Jammeh) repeatedly said no, they didn’t need partners in Gambia to invest, that they could invest on their own.
“He would say that to me, he would say that to the companies that are brought there, but behind the scenes, the companies were all approached by these businessmen saying they represented the president and his interest, and if they were going to do business in the country they had to have them as their partners,” Aycoth said. The US public relations expert told Freedom radio that it was a complete contradiction to what Jammeh told him personally and also told the joint meeting that they had at the State House, on what his policy was for investment in Africa. “So on one hand, he would say you come and invest freely in my country, but on the other hand you had to play the game with his business friends that they had to be the partners and they had to benefit.”
According to Aycoth’s testimony, Amadou Samba and many of Jammeh’s business associates are responsible for many lost opportunities in terms of foreign investment (over M$85) in the country.
“But this is the problem when you have a corrupt government and a corrupt president who basically says one thing and does another,” he said.
The landmark interview also shed light to what was an amateur diplomatic blunder by Yahya Jammeh, nine years ago, when he prematurely congratulated Governor George W Bush, even before he was declared officially winner of the presidential election that marked his first term in office.
According to John Aycoth, the previous Clinton regime shunned the Jammeh regime and he (Aycoth) was tasked to lobby the rival Republican candidate. So a George Bush victory was in the interest of Yahya Jammeh, who was in fact the first African leader to endorse Bush, hence, his blunder of pre-empting the American electoral procedure.
But the most damning revelation in Mr Aycoth’s testimony is President Jammeh’s relationship with people around the world who have either been convicted or face accusation of criminal offenses. One such person is the notorious Russian arms dealer, Viktor Bout, who is current in US custody facing trial. Various reports in the US and Europe link Bout the Millennium Company, owner of Yahya Jameh’s infamous Millennium Airlines. Aycoth hinted that the testimonies of the 'Merchant of Death', as the Russian arms dealer who have ties to huge drug trafficking rings is known, could implicate Jammeh.
The only way Gambians can get rid of Jammeh is to unite, Aycoth said. But, he added, “I know this could be difficult, because he (Jammeh) practically owns the country.
Listen to the full interview on Freedom Newspaper.
Jollofnews Poll
Who do you think should be the next President of The Gambia?
Follow us on Twitter
-
Anti-cuts protest at Clegg's homeHundreds of anti-cuts protesters gather outside Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's home in south-west London.
-
Egypt candidate to seek election suspension: lawyerCAIRO (Reuters) - Leftist candidate Hamdeen Sabahy will file an appeal for Egypt's presidential election...
-
Bristol Rovers Speed Merchant Could Be Racing To Posh(GamSports) – Peterborough United are thought to be one of a number of Championship sides...
Comments
Mike don’t mind of this guy.. same strategy to distract folks as Jammeh constantly does on British colonial rule. These guys need help since they don’t have the godly skills or ability to function in free, just, humane, and modern society. ..Just like those kids cannibalising each other in the Liberia War for a nike shoe etc. Sadly are always been born, one manages to rise to power like Jammeh and the rest is history.
And to so call Gambain, For your information, when someone says excuse my language in English vocabulary (for me I said Wolof which I am),it means "apology" for using foul language. That said, If you cannot think and absorb, I advise you to do that so U can understand how the world is moving and why we African are stagnant. This will enable U to comprehend John Aycoth exposure of Jammeh and its implication on Gambia/Africa economic stagnation for decades despite our endless natural resources...
My view is that the reader is inteligent enough to guage..who are genuine and who are the frauds and trouble makers.
Hence I would be against any form of censure or correction.
Freedom of speech and its expression must be tolerent to diverse views and opinions...even if some are only mean't to provoke an angry response.
I trust I have always been fair to the APRC and Mr Jammeh and his associates..as I have always been supportive to those who wish The Gambia to be a much more open and inclusive society.
I am informed...this support means I will be arrested inside The Gambia.
This "high" tarrif I consider..to be worth any risk.
Scale Stop using different Computers to be giving thumbs down to postings that are critical to you and thumbs up to that favorable to you. Most Gambians will agree to what I am saying.
Based on this writing pattern, I have reason to believe that you are Michael Scales writing under alias, trying to pay back on the previous posting, you are the coward. You are assuming that I am a Jammeh’s supporter because I am against you, I am a very independent person I don’t have to support Yaya Jammeh or support his rivals, I can against both Jammeh and his opposition, so I say fuck you and fuck Yaya Jammeh.
You are a piece of shit like that idiot just like that illiterate domou haranm so called Fankung Fankung in Freedom online radio. Domou harams like you people don’t have any moral or good upbringing to benefit your society or people. Your kind are just born and bred in life just to lick or condone any tat for reward
Summarise it for you...you and that Fankung Fankung are the kind of people who will still try and blame others if Yahya Jammeh is catch raping Siryai. I am not surprised you are trying that here. You are brought up like that. No responsibility, no vision, no empathy, no love for Gambia, no intelligence, no chosand, and finally nothing good in you. People like you and that so called Fankung Fankung have absolutely nothing in life, yet they talk of road, airport, street light etc.. While you don’t even have a home, TV, Car, or travel to know what is Development. Excuse my Wolof people. These people are just rotten and stinky for Gambia.
Oops Samba did I offend your master?
It became apparent to me in my tours of the Ministers offices..That they were left out on a limb...and that there mandate had been taken away. They had neither funding or leadership. Thats why they were made the scapegoats for such appauling failure of government.Thats why so many were sacked and caste down as failures.{sad}
Where I agree with you and disagree with Mr Aycoth...is that to be so subjective in nameing names and situations...has left so many at risk.
But Aycoth...has taken liberties with his priviledged position, to reveal so much. On balance American "diplomacy" in Africa has been immeasurably damaged.
Gambia is the "nut" between Iran and America...anything!!! could happen?
So much pressure ?
I do not envy..the new American Ambassador.
So many broken strings to mend.
{opinion}
I live on the ground and know everything thats going on with Yaya jammeh and I fight it everyday, the problem is not Yaya is his followers. I don't need no back stabbing toubab telling me whats going on.
RSS feed for comments to this post.