As Election Campaign Ends
Joof Expresses Gratitude to Campaign Committee
Tuesday 23rd January 2007

By Ahmed Carayol

Sulayman Joof, the APRC candidate for Serrekunda West Constituency, has expressed gratitude and appreciation to his campaign committee for the “very good work” they did while he was in Nigeria attending an extraordinary session of the ECOWAS Parliament.

He especially thanked the Secretary of State for Information, Mrs Neneh Macdouall-Gaye, and Mr Gibou Jagne of Serrekunda for their strategic intervention in his campaign rounds during his absence.

Joof, who returned on Friday, told The Point in an interview that he was keeping track on what was happening in his absence and was very satisfied.

Elected Chairman of the Committee on Macroeconomic and Microeconomic Policies, Joof said the meeting he attended was an extra-ordinary one to continue the unfinished business of the inaugural session of the Parliament.

 The meeting was also to adopt the rules and procedures of the Parliament and the composition of the 10 standing committees of the parliament, adding that he was very happy and honoured to be heading one of the ten committees of the Ecowas Parliament.

Mr Paul J. Pierra, Councilor for Latrikunda German Ward, said that  “Joof is the chosen man for the Serrekunda West Constituency”, noting that it was the electorate who selected him and took him to President Jammeh who accepted him.

He noted that the election of Joof as a Chairman for one of the committees in the ECOWAS Parliament was not a victory for Joof alone, but a victory for The Gambia.

As a result, he said, the electorate should have the courage to return him to the National Assembly for a third term and for him to continue to serve the ECOWAS Parliament.

 “If he should lose his seat here, then The Gambia would lose that position,” he added.

He further said that those critics who say Joof did not bring any developments into the constituency “ do not know how the system works”, noting that if President Jammeh is delivering then the NAMs are delivering.

 “NAMs,” he said, “do not have a vote to work with; it is the Departments of State and the Municipalities that are responsible for building roads, collecting garbage, providing water supply etc, etc.”

 He further noted that Sulayman Joof single-handedly solicited funding from SOS International to construct the bridge linking Latrikuda, Manjai Kunda and its environs.

 According to Mr Pierra, Joof also appealed to the Department of State for Health for support to convert their unused quarters in Latrikunda German to a health center.

 “This has been approved and when completed will serve the people of the area and beyond,” he disclosed.