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| Trust Bank the customer area, this morning |
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| McCarthy Square on eve of the celebrations |
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| Banjul by day |
These photos were sent to me this morning. It is a scene taken of the customer section of Trust Bank, Banjul Branch, as it appeared at mid-day today, Banjul time on the eve of the celebrations of the 20th Anniversary of the illegal coup d'etat that ushered in the misery Gambians face today.
The source who sent these photos described these scenes as distressing. The Trust Bank scene is particularly jarring to our source who commented thus: " Even no money today at Trust Bank which is the biggest commercial bank. Uncle, Gambia is dying."
We were also informed that the "wax ashobi" for the celebrations is being sold by Yaya Jammeh ar D 800 which you can get in retail shops in Banjul for D 350 for the same quality but they dare not buy from him (meaning Jammeh) laments a business operator.
We were also informed that businesses continue to pay 3% sales tax in addition to the 15% VAT, contrary to what the regime told Gambians that the new value added tax was to take the place of the sales tax. "we pay everyday and the men in uniform come begging' says another frustrated business operator. This promise has proven false.
The high incidence of taxation is one of the reasons why businesses are fleeing Gambia for more business-friendly Senegal. A business operator summed it up this way : "We pay everyday and the men in uniform come begging."
Gambians have begun to feel the pain that has been inflicted on them by the regime of Yaya Jammeh even by those who have not been physically tortured but are feeling the economic hardship resulting from 20 years of bad economic policies.
The "soldiers with a difference" have indeed made a difference in the lives of Gambians by reducing the economy to rubble while pretending that everything in just fine. Gambians know better
