The mayor of Banjul has disclosed that the Banjul City Council under her stewardship registered numerous developments in her first 100 days in office in contrast to claims that did no development.

Rohey M. Lowe in a press briefing yesterday at McCarthy Square in Banjul outlined her achievements in 100 days, saying: “I can already share with you that my team and I have already identified several issues that stand in the way for our city to function effectively.”

This she said includes the D8 million debt owed to several banks and suppliers with interests and overdraft charges, informing that the council has now settled that burden.

“Unexplained expenditures without supporting documents worth over D1.6 million in 2017 alone; lack of payment to employees’ retirement benefits and pensions liabilities in the amount of D3 million; payment of salaries to about 150 none or former employees. We have dealt with them all,” she further disclosed.

Still on her achievements, she disclosed that she dealt with unjustified daily and monthly allowances on fuel paid to senior managers; non-payment of operational licence by a number of stores doing business in our city. She added that for the past years, the council has been relying on generators rather than on NAWEC electrical grid due to non-payments, which she has settled.

“The council gave me the courage necessary to conduct the city’s business differently for a more transparent, fiscal and administrative path. I and the council have worked together to adopt the measures needed to begin our path to recovery.”

“We have taken the administrative steps to implement a transparent record keeping system that is efficiently recording the functioning of the city council with regard to the inherited debts to several banks. We have negotiated a path forward. We are currently doing the city’s business using only one bank, which limits waste and unnecessary fees,” she pointed out.

“We have stopped all payrolls to non-active employees and stopped allowance payment to directors for sitting in a general council meeting. The council has reconnected with NAWEC for its electrical supplies, ending costly generator use. We are now using a coupon system instead of cash purchasing of fuel for council’s vehicles to eliminate waste and fraud. As a result, our fuel budget has gone down drastically.”

She said a new policy has been put in place to ensure that loans eventually and exceptionally given to staff members are kept up to date and monitored for the application of due interest and to ensure repayment.

Source: The Point