By: Fatou Krubally
The Chief Executive Officer of the Banjul City Council (BCC), Mustapha Batchilly, yesterday admitted before the Local Government Commission of Inquiry that the D400, 000 payment disbursed to the Mayor’s office was unlawful, lacking basic financial oversight and documentation.
Batchilly confirmed during intense questioning by Lead Counsel Patrick Gomez that the payment granted as an impress did not follow any of the legal procedures required by the council’s financial manual. No impress ledger was kept, no terms and conditions were outlined, and no retirement of the funds was recorded. “There was no impress ledger,” Batchilly admitted. “I had the belief that the chartered accountant was supposed to keep it.”
Gomez did not mince his words. “You empowered political leaders while the people suffered. That’s what you CEOs and finance directors do,” he said, accusing Batchilly of acting as a “robot CEO” who rubber-stamped requests without questions. “You cost the people millions of taxpayers’ money embezzled, mismanaged and you come here talking about a receipt?”
The financial manual states that impress should only be issued during emergencies when the usual pre-authorisation procedures cannot apply. Batchilly conceded that there was no such emergency and that the mayor, who was not considered an officer of the council, was not legally eligible to receive the impress.
Pressed on who was responsible for the failure, Batchilly said: “All of us the mayor, the finance director, and myself.”
He further admitted that funding requests from the mayor’s office were routinely approved without scrutiny. “In 99 per cent of cases, we sit together and then go to the paperwork,” he said, describing how informal, undocumented meetings often preceded significant financial decisions. “It would have been more proper to keep records,” he added.
One specific voucher, dated 18 August 2022, approved D400,000 for flood victims based only on a memo from the mayor no needs assessment, no supporting documents, and no justification. “This is not usual,” Batchilly admitted.
The inquiry, which continues to expose systemic financial mismanagement across local councils, has now placed BCC’s top leadership under serious scrutiny, with Batchilly’s testimony reinforcing claims of negligence and abuse of office.
