The Gambia's national GSM operator, Gamcel, on Wednesday handed over one thousand (1000) bags of sugar to The Gambia Supreme Islamic Council (GSIC) for onward distribution to the Muslim communities across the country, at a ceremony held at the Gamcel head office in Kanifing.

Wednesday's ceremony was attended by the top brass of the Gambia Supreme Islamic Council, Mayor Yankuba Colley of the KMC, some members of the National Assembly, among others. Speaking at the ceremony, Seedy Jaiteh, senior human resource manager of Gamcel,  thanked the members of the Supreme Islamic Council for always honouring their invitations. He said the donation is meant to fulfil the responsibility that the company has taken upon itself to extend a helping hand to Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan.

He revealed that Gamcel  used to do  the distribution themselves, but knowing that there is a body responsible for Islamic matters, they decided to give their donation through the institution - GSIC. Jaiteh sought for prayers from the scholars at the ceremony for a speedy recovery from the technical problems they are undergoing due to the natural occurrences. He said though they had worked hard to avert such problems, those are natural and are difficult to tackle.

Dr Mbaye-Kebba Kah, secretary general of the Gambia Supreme Islamic Council, spoke of the role of the council in the country. He assured Gamcel that the donation would reach the target beneficiaries of the company. He added that the GSIC is here to help people show them what is accepted in Islam and what is forbidden. He called on all to help the GSIC and urged other companies to emulate Gamcel.

He informed the gathering that GSIC recently opened a charity account for people who want to help the needy, orphans and the poor. For his part, Momodou Lamin Touray, president of the Gambia Supreme Islamic Council, called on Gambians to patronise Gamcel, noting that anything Gambians invest in the company will at the end come back to them.

He used the opportunity to call on others in the business community to desist from increasing the prices of goods that they sell to Muslims in this holy month of Ramadan. He said it has been observed that businessmen now use the month to enrich themselves, something that is forbidden in Islam. Yankuba Colley, mayor of the Kanifing Municipal Council, also echoed the words of the GSIC boss on the increase in the price of goods. He thanked Gamcel for always being supportive of the GSIC, and further urged all Gambians to patronise them.

Mayor Colley also implored on the GSIC to talk to the Imams to incorporate issues concerning the escalation of the prices of goods into their Friday Khutubs in mosques. Ndey Sainabou Jeng Widely known as Yaay-Ministerr also spoke at the ceremony. Imam Badjan led the closing prayers.