The Senate has mandated its Committee on Judiciary, Human Rights and Legal Matters to investigate the allegations of ill treatment against Judges serving in the legal sector of the judicial arm and Ministry of Justice of The Gambia under a Bilateral Cooperation Agreement between the two countries. The Agreement which was signed in 1965 and renewed in 1980 requires Nigeria as the donor country to deploy qualified personnel to fill various positions in the public service of Gambia.

Presenting the motion at the plenary session of Tuesday, 8 May 2018, Sen. David Umaru (APC: Niger) noted that there have been reports of hatred and xenophobia being meted on Nigerian Judges and legal personnel in The Gambia. According to him, the reports received indicated that the Gambian Judiciary and Ministry of Justice had refused to provide suitable working facilities, equipment and accommodation to serving Nigerian Judicial Officers. Other complaints bordered on the non-payment of salaries, arbitrary disengagement or dismissal from office without reasonable cause, the deliberate exclusion from foreign programs and training, harassment and verbal abuse, threat of deportation, and intimidation.

In addition, Sen. Umaru brought the attention of lawmakers to a recent incident involving one Mr. Richard Chenge who while serving under a Bilateral Cooperation Agreement between Nigeria and Gambia as a Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), was declared persona non grata and ordered to leave The Gambia within 72 hours. He stated that the numerous allegations leveled against the Gambian Government raised concerns about its commitment to the bilateral ties stemming from the Agreement.

Lastly, he mentioned that the complaint of the affected Judicial Officers was yet to be addressed by appropriate authorities despite their written submission on the issue. The Committee is expected to review the status of the Bilateral Cooperation Agreement between Nigeria and the Gambia and make appropriate recommendations on the subject.