Email Gambia News to a friend
Print version
Comment on This Gambia News

Gambia News: Gambia snubs Abuja court over missing journalist

The case of a missing Gambian journalist, Chief Ebrima Manneh, opened at the ECOWAS Community Court of Justice in Abuja. But The Gambia government’s unexplained absence in court has setback the case.

Mr Manneh was accused of passing damaging state information to a foreign journalist during the African Union summit in Banjul last year.

But since his arrest by the National Intelligence Agents a year ago at his office, the pro-government journalist was no where to be found, with the government repeatedly denying that he was under its control.

This prompted the Accra-based Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA) to file a suit against The Gambia government on behalf of Mr Manneh at the regional court. The action seeks to release and compensate the missing journalist.

When the case was called, the Nigerian human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, declared his intention to proceed, but he could not because there was no single representation of The Gambia government.

"The court confirmed that the Gambia Government was duly served through its High Commission in Abuja,” MFWA said in a statement.

An oral application by Lawyer Falana to be mandated by the court to visit his detained client was also refused by the panel of judges.

The case has been adjourned till 26 September purposely to enable the government to appear before the court.