Commander Sarjo Fofana, head of The Gambia Navy who doubles as the President of the Court Martial has said that his court’s decision to deliver harsh penalties to the March 21, 2006 coup plotters was meant to put an end to the coup attempts that have occurred in this country since 1994.

Commander Fofana made this statement shortly before reading out the sentences handed down to the 10 military officers involved in the March 21, 2006 failed coup. He described the West African region as turbulent and declared that such occurrences will not be allowed to take place in The Gambia as the attempt by these officers had the potential to cause human crisis.

He added, “As military officers, our primary role is to maintain peace and not to threaten it. Our military must learn to respect the constitutional authority of the land and stop self-seeking agendas which result in destabilization. We need peace and no one can deny that.”