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By Madi Jobarteh
The Edward Francis Small Centre for Rights and Justice wishes to congratulate the Inspector General of Police Seedy Muctarr Touray and all the men and women of the Gambia Police Force for winning the coveted Best National Police of West Africa 2023/24 Award at the Africa Security Watch Awards 2024 in Doha, Qatar.
Being one of the smallest police services in the region yet coming out on top indeed deserves commendation and celebration. The award is indeed a huge moral and reputational boost for not only the GPF but also for the good image of The Gambia.
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We wish to therefore take advantage of this award to further encourage the IGP and his officers to receive the achievement with a deep sense of responsibility, reflection and enhanced commitment to the excellent performance of their duties in line with the law. We wish that the IGP will take this award as a personal challenge, hence commit himself even more to expedite police reforms for the effective transformation of the police into an institution that a democratic republic deserves.
For that matter, we wish to urge the IGP to take a thorough and impartial review of his institution to identify weaknesses and challenges to transform them into strengths and opportunities. While we acknowledge the budgetary, administrative and political challenges confronting the GPF, it is also true that there is immense expertise and experience both within and without to tap into in transforming the police into a formidable institution under his watch.
In light of this award therefore, we wish to provide a few observations and recommendations to the IGP Seedy Muctarr Touray for his consideration:
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1. Our first observation and recommendation to the IGP is to consider the issue of public trust and confidence. No police service can effectively perform its functions when it lacks or has minimal public trust and confidence in the institution. For decades the Gambia Police Force has suffered mistrust from the public simply because of corruption, abuse, inefficiency and politicization of its functions. Hence this is the time for IGP Touray to look into the relationship with the public in order to cultivate a more open and trustworthy interaction and relationship.
2. While indeed efforts toward this end can be recognised especially through its community policy program and effective communications drives through its public relations office, the IGP should also look into the image and conduct of police officers both at police stations and in the community. The verbal comportment, physical appearance and the general conduct of police officers, and the management of police stations matter immensely in building trust and confidence of the public. As a public institution of repute, police officers and police stations must always appear professional, neat, respectful and efficient.
3. The IGP should look into the issue of police checkpoints. The culture of mounting police checkpoints across the country has become a major liability on citizens and businesses with no tangible benefit to the police in combating crime. The frustrations people and businesses on the move face at these checkpoints only serves to erode public trust and appreciation of the police. We therefore recommend that the IGP remove checkpoints altogether and rather adopt smart policing methods with the use of modern gadgets, techniques and strategies. It is undemocratic to mount permanent checkpoints across the country that is said to be democratic, stable and peaceful.
4.Another area of great concern to us is the issue of public assemblies in the way the IGP responds to them. The police should not become an obstacle to citizens’ right to protest. Citizens have a right to hold public institutions, businesses and other entities accountable, as well as express issues and concerns dear to them through peaceful protests or demonstrations. The recent misconduct by officers at the UTG student protest and the attempt to deny the people of Sukuta and activists to protest at Salagi Forest are among few of the cases in which the police overstep their bounds. The IGP must ensure that the police are always available to enable people to protest and not to seek to obstruct them.
5. This also means the IGP must be willing to grant permits to citizens to protest or assemble or go about their activities unfettered. For example, the recent denial of permit to the UDP to go on a country tour because of the ongoing presidential tour is unjustifiable. There is indeed capacity for the GPF to handle both the presidential and UDP or any other party tour at the same time without challenges. In this regard, the practice of denying permits or imposing unreasonable conditions by confining protests to uninhabited places or to short distances or timeframe are insincere and intended only to stifle the right to freedom of assembly which is guaranteed by the Constitution.
6. We urge the IGP to refrain from carrying out unlawful arrests, detention and imposing trumped up charges on citizens. Since 2017, several citizens have been ‘invited’ to police stations, or arrested, detained and charged with sedition, false information, unlawful assembly or incitement to violence for merely expressing their opinions about the Government or the President. After the arrests, either the police release them on bail or charge them when there is no case to take to court. As of today, several people – journalists, activists, politicians and ordinary citizens are charged yet most of them have never been taken to court. In some cases, the police would seize their phones and refuse to give them back. These actions tantamount to abuse of power, violation of the Constitution and abuse of human rights which do not make the police enjoy favourable public perception and cooperation.
7. Finally, and in light of the foregoing issues we have raised, the IGP must ensure therefore that the police are law-abiding. Since 2017, there have been several court rulings against the IGP for unlawful arrests and detention. The latest is the case involving journalist Pa Modou Bojang who was awarded D15 million for damages. Before that there was the case of comedian Bora Sisawo, as well as the case of Neneh Freda Gomez and Lamin Sey, just to mention a few. In all of these cases, the courts imposed hefty fines on the IGP to pay these people which he has refused to comply with until today. The IGP must know that to fail to comply with a court ruling is contempt of court, which is a serious crime.
The issues and concerns raised here are just the tip of the iceberg for which the IGP must take a closer look at his institution. If this award is to mean anything, the police must be seen to be law abiding in order to cultivate and enjoy full public trust and confidence. The police must do their job efficiently and professionally. Therefore, we urge the IGP not to see this award as any award. Rather he must see the award as a challenge for him to ensure a better police service.
While we recognise the immense challenges confronting the police, we urge the IGP to expedite and strengthen the process of true transformation. Most Gambians perceive the police to be corrupt and inefficient and under the influence and control of Government officials including the President. This negative public perception does not augur well for the police hence the urgent need to reform the police in such a way as to make the Gambia Police Office a professional, apolitical, efficient and law-abiding institution serving all Gambians equally with honesty, diligence and respect.
To achieve this objective, EFSCRJ hereby offers to provide human rights education and training to the Gambia Police Force if requested. We consider the Police as a key partner in the promotion and protection of human rights for the strengthening of democracy and the building of peace in our country.
Once again, we congratulate the Gambia Police Force for winning this prestigious award and challenge them to demonstrate to Gambians that indeed they truly deserve this award.
In the spirit of Edward Francis Small, for The Gambia our homeland.
Madi Jobarteh is the executive director of the Edward Francis Small Centre for Rights and Justice.
