The President of the Republic, His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, yesterday evening, donated 1,750 bags of rice to the flood victims in Banjul, Kanifing Municipality and Western Region, at a presentation ceremony held at the State House grounds in Banjul.

The Kanifing Municipality received 1000 bags of rice, Banjul City Council received 211 bags of rice and Western Region received 539 bags of rice respectively. Addressing the gathering at the presentation ceremony, the Gambian leader said, the donation is earmarked for the victims of flood in Banjul, KMC and Western Region. He recalled the recent  downpour that led to the destruction of many houses and properties and thanked the people who have been rendering assistance to these flood victims through the Disaster Management Governing Council, headed by the vice president.

President Jammeh said he decided to give rice instead of the D1M that was earlier announced, noting that the money can easily be embezzled. "Even with the rice, if you distribute it among the flood victims I will know. If you don't distribute it also, I will know. But it is easier to distribute rice than money. That is why I decided to use the D1M to buy rice and give it out to the mayors and governor of Banjul, KMC and Western Region respectively, to distribute it among the flood victims in their municipalities and region," he remarked.

President Jammeh advised the local government authorities to distribute the rice in a transparent and fair manner, saying that corruption will not be tolerated. He warned that the rice is for the disaster victims and nobody else, and that, the distribution process should not be politicised, instead, it should be made available to all the disaster victims in the earlier mentioned municipalities.

Speaking to journalists shortly after the presentation ceremony, Lamin Sanneh, governor of Western Region, thanked President Jammeh for having the foresight to support the flood victims. He expressed appreciation to the president's intervention, noting that the gesture is highly welcomed. Governor Sanneh disclosed that about 500 victims are affected in his region. He recalled that President Jammeh, earlier this year, donated D150, 000 to those who were affected by the rains. He promised that the rice would be distributed fairly among the flood victims.

For his part, Yusupha Sanyang, deputy mayor of KMC, also thanked President Jammeh for the gesture and promised that the gesture would reach the beneficiaries in his municipality as expected. Sanyang noted that disaster doesn't only require support, but also preventive methods to avert its occurrence.

Musa Mendy, chairman of the disaster management council at KMC, also assured that the rice would be fairly distributed among the victims of flood. He thanked President Jammeh for the gesture. Presentation of farm produce from Bajiran and Seyone. Before the start of the presentation of the rice to the flood victims, President Jammeh also received the people of Bajiran and Seyone, who presented 49 bags of rice and 10 bags of coos to him, being the produce gained from his farms in these two villages (Bajiran and Seyone), in Marakissa ward, Kombo Central, Western Region. Commenting on this development, President Jammeh, thanked the villagers of Bajiran and Seyone for their hard work in cultivating farms for him. He dispelled the rumour in Bajiran and Seyone that he (President Jammeh) regarded the people of Bajiran and Seyone as oppositions.

President Jammeh however warned people to stop circulating wrong information in society, claiming that it is said by him. "Anyone who uses my name to say things I didn't say, I will send you to jail. People offend me when they say certain things and claimed that it is from me. In fact as from now on, if anyone say anything and claimed that it is from me, report the individual to the nearest police station or to the governor's office and the matter will be investigated. What happened in Bajiran and Seyone will not be tolerated and if this is repeated, the people involved will be in trouble," President Jammeh warned.  "As from today, Seyone and Bajiran farm manager is not under the Sifoe farms, instead they will be on their own. The tractors are based in Sifoe but they should work in all my farms in the Kombos," he remarked.

The Gambian leader spoke at length on the problems that happened in Bajiran and Seyone. He said if the people of Bajiran and Seyone are oppositions, then they would not have cultivated farms for him. "If it is about opposition issues, then even the birds know that Kiang West is opposition but I have a farm there. They cultivated it and they present the farm produce to me at Kanilai. Oppositions will not work at the Kanilai farms neither will they cultivate farm for me," he further said.

President Jammeh finally thanked the people of Bajiran and Seyone for their efforts in cultivating farms for him. Seedy Colley, a native of Seyone, expressed delight at presenting the farm produce to President Jammeh. He assured the Gambian leader of their commitment to work hard and respond to his back-to-the-land call.