By Ousman Saidykhan
On Tuesday, the joint Committee of the National Assembly investigating the alleged petroleum products scandal granted Access Bank’s plea to have their testimony behind closed doors. The Committee claimed that the issue is sensitive and involves customers.
Access Bank is one of the banks where the companies in question conducted transactions. The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) investigation revealed that the transactions were carried out without due process.
FIU alleges that certain individuals received a “kickback” of six hundred thousand Dalasis (D600,000) monthly, reportedly withdrawn from their Access Bank account by one Aurimas Steblys.
The Joint Committee of Finance and Public Accounts (FPAC) and Public Enterprise Committee (PEC) of the National Assembly are investigating the illegal sale of 36,953.614 metric tons of petroleum products valued at $30,000,000.00.
The Scandal involves Apogee FZC, Creed Energy Limited, and Ultimate Beige Logistics, which were accused of bribery and tax evasion in the sale of petroleum products anchored in a vessel in The Gambia.
Access Bank’s team, including its top management and legal officers, arrived and sat in the parliament’s auditorium, facing the investigators, as they prepared for the sitting.
“We are pleading with you. Since this issue is quite sensitive and involves customers, we will make a plea that we have the discussion on camera, with your permission,” said one of the bank representatives on Tuesday morning.
The Committee, through the co-chair of the joint Committee, informed the media the Committee had no choice but to have the media leave the room for the sitting to be held in camera.
“It has to do with consumers, and their privacy as far as the business is concerned should also be protected. It is in this vain that we Committee decided, upon their request, that the sitting be held in camera,” Alagie S Darboe said.
It is not the first time a witness has testified behind closed doors. The Governor of the Central Bank of the Gambia, Buah Saidy, also appeared on camera on Monday, October 7th, in his second appearance.
The Committee was granted a 90-day period to complete its inquiry and report back to the plenary after the Lower Saloum lawmaker moved on July 22nd for a parliamentary investigation into the Scandal.
Hon. Sainey Jawara, who appeared before the investigators as the first witness, said he wanted to save the government from a huge revenue loss.
The vessel carrying the petroleum products is believed to be from Russia and stayed in Gambian waters for over three months without taxation.
According to reports, it was meant for Ghana but was not allowed by the Ghanaian authorities to anchor at their ports because it needed to meet the country’s importation policies.
It is the parliament’s first investigation of an allegation of such magnitude.
