By: Kebba Ansu Manneh
All the Licensed Foreign Exchange Bureaus in The Gambia will close business on Tuesday in honor of the brutal killing of Fatoumatta Kargbo by a Senegalese national on Friday at the busy Westfield.
Mamadou Bah, President of the Association of Licensed Foreign Exchange Bureaus in The Gambia (ALFoB), has confirmed to TAT that all forex across the country will be closed on Tuesday 23rd, January 2024.
He told TAT that the action by ALFoB is necessitated by the gruesome murder of one Fatoumatta Kargbo, an employee of one Forex Bureau at Westfield, on Friday, 19 January 2024.
Haruna Tine, a Senegalese national, has been suspected of the alleged murder and has since been apprehended by the police and is reportedly receiving treatment at the Ndemban Clinic, Bakau, for attempting to take his own life.
“We are closing all forex exchange bureaus tomorrow, 23 January 2024, in solidarity with our deceased colleague who was gruesomely murdered at Westfield. Because tomorrow at 2 pm is her burial, we (ALFoB) find it fitting to cease all our operations nationwide,” Mamadou Bah, President ALFoB.
He added: “We want to express our condemnation of this brutal and callous action resulting in the murder of Fatoumatta Kargbo. It is miserable and uncalled for, and as our colleague and family, the least we can do is to show our solidarity by closing down businesses nationwide.”
He told TAT ALFoB that the security of all bureaus will be a priority, but for the moment, the association is dealing with Madam Kargbo’s untimely demise. He added that the loss of the young lady has shocked the entire community of foreign exchange operators.
He sincerely apologized to customers who may be affected by the decision while advising that anyone who wants to receive money can contact commercial banks as an alternative to the bureaus.
