Pay our allowances or we'll not prosecute the 'criminals' - DPP Chenge and colleagues tell gov't -

It may seem a joke, or a wild and unimaginable fairy tale, that anyone working for the government of the Gambia could have the audacity to refuse to work because of back-pay - not salaries, but allowances!

Well, Richard N. Chenge, Director of Public Prosecutions, and his colleagues at the Department of Justice, have since Monday, June 21, gone on strike because their allowances have not been paid for three months.

According to credible sources close to the department, DPP Chenge has instructed his fellow Nigerian prosecutors to stay away from the courts until their allowances are paid in full.

On June 21 when former drug enforcement boss Bun Sanneh appeared in court, Chenge was a no show, but a junior prosecutor, Ebrima Jah appeared for the State only to apply for an adjournment.

On Tuesday, June 22, Chenge as the Chief prosecutor, failed to show up in court for the continuation of the ongoing drug offense charges against former police chief Ensa Badjie and Major Kaluta Manneh. And again on Wednesday, June 23, Chenge refused to appear for the State against Bun Sanneh.

Our credible sources say the Nigerian-born prosecutor has vowed not to lead the prosecution team on serious criminal offenses unless their allowances are fully paid in retrospect.

The back-pay stand off, if anything, confirms widely held views by many Gambian observers that the Nigerians have completely corrupted the Gambian judiciary; that Nigerian judges, magistrates and prosecutors are nothing but Mercenaries.