Sunkary Badjie, the elected Councilor for Somita Ward was last Friday elected as the Chairman of the Brikama Area Council. Mr. Badjie was the Acting Vice- Chairman of BAC from 2006 until dissolution on the 1st of November 2007, three months prior to the January 24th 2008 Local Government elections.

Lamin Haja Bojang, the elected Councilor for Brikama Nyambai Ward, who was one of the three contenders for the chairmanship, was made Vice Chairman.

It will be recalled that the latest amendment to the Local Government Act empowers the President to dissolve or remove elected councilors and also authorizes the non- election of area council chairmen through universal adult suffrage, thus providing that elected councilors to elect amongst themselves those to be chairman and vice-chairman of the Council, an amendment that provoked the UDP, NRP and Hon. Momodou K Sanneh, the Minority Leader in the National Assembly to file a lawsuit at the Supreme Court, to contest the amendment. The suit was however dismissed.

Lamin Waa Juwara, the leader of the opposition NDAM party, who was part of the outgoing interim management committee that was set up to look after the affairs of the Council prior to the elections, has been returned to the Council as a nominated member.

Mrs. Aja Ndey Jatta, APRC Western Region Women’s Mobiliser, Chief Bakary Badjie of Foni Bondali and Lamin Kassama, a youth representative, were also made nominated Councilors. In all, Western Region consists of 24 wards and four people to be nominated to make it 28 Councilors.