By: Fatou Krubally
Project finance manager Muhammed Cham on Thursday faced tough questioning at the Local Government Commission of Inquiry over duplicate payments, salary advances, and allowances linked to his tenure at Banjul City Council (BCC), admitting financial discrepancies but insisting all dues were accounted for and repaid.
Cham appeared before the Commission to respond to findings from an internal audit report that flagged questionable withdrawals and duplicate payments, notably a payment of D139,576.34 related to a BCC retreat in January 2025.
According to auditors, the retreat was funded both by the European Union Project and BCC, raising concerns over duplication.
“The auditor saw expenditure coming from both the EU project and BCC for the same retreat,” Cham confirmed, though he maintained that he would need to carry out a reconciliation to verify the exact figures.
Cham also acknowledged receiving several salary advances during his time in office, including D30,000 on March 3, 2021, D36,000 on November 11, 2021, and D18,000 on December 28, 2021, but assured the Commission that these were fully recovered through six-month deductions from his salary.
“Yes, they have all been recovered,” he stated, adding that supporting documents would be provided.
He was further questioned about a D40,000 allowance he received on November 19, 2021 which, he said, was payment for allowances he was previously denied while acting as director of finance. This, he said, was separate from the D67,200 paid to him as cumulative monthly director’s allowances.
“The D40,000 was another allowance altogether,” Cham clarified.
The Commission also probed the current status of the BCC’s management designation allowance. While Cham previously testified about increases in the allowances for top officials, he said he could not confirm the latest figures since the increment was effected after his tenure as finance head. “It is still being paid,” he said, promising to provide updated figures.
Cham further distanced himself from any financial dealings with the Rafella Network of Local Elected Women in Africa, saying he was not involved in any payments to the group and that such payments only began after Mr. Kamar assumed office in November 2020.
