Five newly appointed Secretaries of State, yesterday, took the oath of office at a ceremony held at the Cabinet Room at the State House in Banjul, with President Yahya Jammeh talking tough on the issues of nepotism, dereliction of duty, and other pertinent issues confronting public administration.

Momodou Kotu Cham, Secretary of State for Forestry and Environment; Mass Axi Gye, Secretary of State for Youth, Sports and Religious Affairs; Ousman Jammeh, Secretary of State for Petroleum, Energy and Mineral Resources; and Mrs Marie Saine Firdaus, swore to execute their official duties without fear or favour, affection or ill-will.
Each of the Secretaries of State swore to be faithful and bear true allegiance to The Gambia and not to directly or indirectly reveal matters of state secrecy.

The swearing-in ceremony comes barely a week after their appointment to the Cabinet, following a Cabinet reshuffle that saw the redeployment of Bala Garba Jahumpa, former Secretay of State for Foreign Affairs, and Sheikh Omar Faye, former Secretary of State for Youth, Sports and Religious Affairs to the diplomatic sector and the relieving of Edward Singhatey, former Secretary of State for Forestry and Environment of his post.
Addressing the ceremony, President Jammeh congratulated the new Cabinet members for accepting what he described as a daunting challenge. However, he maintained that the challenge is not insurmountable “if you have it in your heart”.

Dereliction of duty
He informed the ceremony that his government has advanced beyond the planning stage.
“We are now at an implementation stage. I am not going to tolerate any double faces or chameleons. You are either with us or you are not with us. If you are not performing, we will tell you and if it persists, you have to go. You either perform or you are not performing,” he said.

The Gambian leader said he does not take delight in firing people, saying that he is duty-bound to serve in the interest of Gambians. He said failure to relieve public officers in public offices who are not delivering is detrimental to the country; a phenomenon he vowed not to harbour.
“f you cannot deliver,” he continued, “be loyal enough” to resign.
“I don’t appoint people based on ulterior motives. I think we can make this country a better place,” Jammeh told the Cabinet.

He clarified that his friendship with members of his Cabinet are based on performance. He advised Cabinet members to desist from antagonising each other, especially when others are delivering as required by their public responsibilities.
President Jammeh then questioned democracy, ask whether it is an “impediment or catalyst to development”. He then elaborated: “People think democracy is doing and implementing what you want. Democracy is a concept. If you are being paid to work and you are not delivering, then you are violating the principles of democracy.”

He then recalled the experience during the transition, when they used to have a “seek-out” broom geared towards ensuring discipline in the execution of public duties. He recollected that there were few instances of foot-dragging (deliberate procrastination) during that blissful period of the AFPRC regime.
The President warned the Secretaries of State against the shortcomings of delegating responsibilities, as it could result to procrastination and failure. He advised the Cabinet members to be wary of delegating their responsibilities, saying: “If you leave the PS (Permanent Secretary) to do your work, the PS also leaves it with the DPS (Deputy Permanent Secretary), and the DPS would also leave it to the Principal Assistant Secretary, who may not even do it”.

President Jammeh spoke about the attitude of some senior government officials who leave their offices for their homes at 3:00 pm leaving behind junior officers. He denounced this indiscipline in public offices and stressed: “Should I tell an SoS what is wrong? Is it fair? Is it also fair that when I have negotiated something, you sit and fold your hands without making follow-ups? If you do not take your work seriously, nobody will take his or her work seriously.”

“This country does not belong to me. You are not working for me, you are working for yourselves, because this country belongs to all of us. I am now 42 and I do not have the patience I used to have. We are now at the implementation stage,” the President emphasised.

Environment and Forestry
President Jammeh used the opportunity to express his concern about the country’s forestry and environment. He advanced concern for the Department of State for Forestry and Environment to collaborate with the State Department for Health and the National Environment Agency to enforce the anti-litter laws. “They must be implemented,” he stressed.

He also expressed concerns with the indiscriminate waste dumping in the country, particularly in the country’s most populous area, Kanifing Municipality. He asserted that it is “frivolous” to say that the KMC does not have funds to administer basic social services.
“How can you have funds when you are overstaffed?” he questioned.
He disclosed that it is typical in the local government authorities to find people who are employed, when they are in fact redundant.

“Is it fair to employ people when they do nothing for the council?” he questioned again. “Nepotism is what we came to fight. How can we accept something that we came to fight?” he further queried.
The Gambian leader underscored that it is no excuse to say that “you appointed” people because they are APRC party militants. He said this practice runs parallel with the very doctrines - accountability, transparency and probity - that inspired them to step forward for change.

He urged the authorities in public offices to cease this unpalatable phenomenon, saying: “If you want to employ someone based on nepotism, give him or her a farm to work on”.
Jammeh then condemned the act of “junior criminals” at the Department of State for Forestry and Environment, who had attempted to stop people from harvesting their fields on the pretext that it was on his directives. He also condemned the act of confiscating materials and logs from people on the grounds that they do not have licences. However, he added that these junior staff in turn sell these materials without puting the proceeds into government coffers.

Youth participation
The Gambian leader dismissed widespread misconceptions that the Department of State for Youth, Sports and Religious Affairs was created to solely administer sports in the country. He stressed the need for clear-cut objectives for the youth to participate fully in national development processes, through thorough orientation.
He frowned on the relations between the state department and the youths, saying that the only time the department comes into contact with the youths is during the bi-annual national youth gathering - the NAYCONF (National Youth Conference and Festival).

President Jammeh then pointed out the need to organise young people (who are school drop-outs) into a structure that would make them productive.
“Without the youth, the country won’t move. You cannot talk about national pride when basic social services are provided by foreigners,” he stated with deep concern.
The President acknowledged that there is poverty in the country. However, he maintained that 80 per cent of poverty in The Gambia is “self-induced”.

He offered that the exit out of poverty requires the need to enable the youth to “understand that they have a pivotal role to play and that nation building is a sacrifice. If the country is so difficult, foreigners will not be living well and dressing well in the country”.
However, the President blamed ignorance as a contributing factor to this undesirable situation.
He emphasised the need to transform Gambian youths into useful citizens, reminding the Department of State for Youth, Sports and Religious Affairs that their role must not focus squarely on zonal tournaments and international competitions.

Continuing his address, President Jammeh observed the need for each state department to adopt the culture of sending staff for training, which according to him, will address the country’s  human resource deficiency, and motivate staff to excel.

Diet and health
The Gambian leader then delved into the health of Gambian people, saying that most of the strange illnesses being experienced in country are dietary related. He observed that people have failed to make use of locally grown produce, leading to a string of illnesses, including hypertension. He said this illness mostly affects women aged 40 and above.

He then observed that obesity, which was never a problem in the country, is now posing a challenge to public health.
“This is because we have changed our diet,” he said.

President Jammeh then slammed family planning as detrimental to the health of a child, noting that it has been discovered that those women on family planning age faster than those who are not. He also noted that family planning reduces the fertility of women, and their ability to produce more than three children, adding that some are even born with defects.
He warned the people that anything sent to Africa should be look at “10 times” before using it.
According to him, there is a natural system of family planning practices, which can be found among the Mandinkas, Jolas or even Serers.

Fallacy
President Jammeh then advised members of Cabinet to be wary of those who pretend to have advised him on their appointment. He maintained that it’s a fallacy that anyone spoke to him about their appointment, noting that such attempts are calculated to undermine their allegience and exploit them in the process.
“Your best marabout is your heart,” he told members of the Cabinet.

The Gambian leader repeatedly warned the Cabinet members not to appoint anyone because the individual claims to be a “friend or relative of the President, or the person is a party militant. You will be buying a one-way express ticket out of the system if you do that”.

However, he pointed out exceptional situations, where a letter is presented and signed by him. He also advised the Secretaries of State to contact the Secretary General and Head of Civil Service on such matters.
The Vice President and Secretary of State for Women’s Affairs, Aja Dr Isatou Njie-Saidy informed the newly sworn-in Secretaries of State that in the Cabinet, they disagree to agree, regardless of their differences. She also told them that the government is poised to achieve the Silicon Valley dream, describing it as a reality.
“Accelerated development is expected from all of us. The Cabinet is a family and all are expected to work as a family,” she said.

Abdoulie Momodou Sallah, Secretary of State for Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology, who spoke on behalf of his newly sworn-in colleagues, elaborated on the numerous achievements made by the Jammeh administration. He thanked President Jammeh for the confidence reposed in them and then assured him of their resolve to deliver.

Teneng Jaiteh, Secretary to the Cabinet, chaired the ceremony, which was also attended by other members of the Cabinet.