President Adama Barrow, who came to office last month after a shock election win in December, promised to stamp out corruption in the small west African state. “In this era, New Gambia, we are saying no to corruption,” he said in an exclusive interview conducted in his office at the State House on Wednesday.
“We are discussing amongst ourselves, the Cabinet, for the way forward. But be assured that we will do everything possible to recover any missing or stolen property that belongs to Gambians. “It is our priority to make sure that we recover anything that is missing.”
The former property developer, who was sworn-in on Jan. 19, was speaking a day after allegations that Jammeh may have misused millions of dollars in public funds during more than two decades in power.
Jammeh, a former army officer who came to power in a 1994 coup, initially conceded the election to Barrow but then refused to stand down, forcing neighboring countries to mobilize troops to assure Barrow’s appointment.
The former president fled into exile in Equatorial Guinea last month. A preliminary investigation by the Finance Ministry showed $5 million missing after money was diverted in 2014. Finance Minister Amadou Sanneh said the scale of misappropriation had left the economy “completely destroyed”. Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Barrow said the country’s debt currently stood at around $1.08 billion -- 115 percent of GDP.