Where Is Ousman Rambo Jatta?

It’s now 365 days (one year) since Ousman Jatta (a.k.a Rambo) United Democratic Party (UDP) Councilor for Old Cape Town Ward at Bakau was arrested by personnel of the much feared, all too pervasive National Intelligence Agency (NIA) and detained at various Police Stations across the length and breadth of the country. Jatta’s arrest followed his protest against alleged election malpractices during the September 25 Presidential Elections in The Gambia. It was established that the opposition Ward Councilor protested against a group of people in two fully loaded Army vehicles who claimed to be soldiers determined to cast their votes. Mr. Jatta then protested after suspecting that these gangs believed to be non-Gambians dressed in military uniforms had intended to illegally vote for Yahya Jammeh for purely tribal reasons.

Rambo Jatta as he is affectionately called, heroically denied the group voting at the Bakau Cinema polling station. In the end, they turned around and went to a more volatile station where they probably cast their marbles even though everyone knew they were non-Gambians. 

Following his bold protest, he reported the incident to his Party leader Ousainou Darboe and to the foreign election observers who also visited the scene on polling day, much to the embarrassment of the Jammeh government. They were so shocked that they resorted to revenge. The following day, exactly on the fateful day in which the Elections Results were announced Jatta was picked up at his Cape Point Residence, by plain -clothes security personnel who first detained him at Bakau Police Station.

Family Sources said their breadwinner drove his arrestors on his own car (a common occurance in Gambian law enforcement) to Bakau Police Station where the Vehicle was packed for some days but later disappeared. “A day after his arrest, he was taken to Kairaba Police Station because the family members stormed the Bakau Station and a day later to Sanyang Police Station. “He was from there moved to Sibanor Police Station weeks later following frequent demands and publicities by the family members and the media”, an anonymous family member told The Gambia Echo.

Following these developments, the family through the services of their Party leader, Ousainou Darboe filed a lawsuit against his continuous detention. He was then moved from Sibanor to an unknown destination, but it took time only to discover that Rambo Jatta was detained at Fatoto Village in the farthest fringes of The Gambia’s Upper River Region. Following court orders for his immediate release, he was again taken to Sare Njai Police, which is a further distance in the remotest villages of The Gambia’s Upper River Region.

The police and the NIAs where summoned to the Magistrate courts for his release but to no avail. They all denied that Rambo is in their custody, despite numerous reports that he is in their possession, reports that they never deny. This was followed by another lawsuit before the Commonwealth appointed Judge at the High Courts in Banjul who on two different occasions ordered for Rambo’s unconditional release but the authorities do not just care.

One of Rambo Jatta’s family members told The Gambia Echo that, “my brother had tried to avoid problems with any person especially, his political rivals in our neighborhood that was why he went to his office alone. Unfortunately, he could not escape the devils. We encountered lots of provocations when the election results were announced but we ignored the troublemakers” laments the family member.

Dodou Kassa Jatta, Rambo Jatta’s elder brother said Rambo had done a lot for Bakau. “He facilitated or sponsored over two hundred schoolchildren most of whom are orphans. All these sponsored children are now in limbo because their sponsorships come through Rambo’s account. Some of the sponsors came last season from different European countries, but returned home with their sponsorship packages because their trustee (Rambo Jatta) could not be found.” According to other family sources, Rambo had also established a school in Sanyang where over two hundred students are enrolled, all of whom were benefiting from sponsorships, but as of now, everything is grounded. 

 The Jatta Kunda family is appealing to the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights, ECOWAS, African Union, European Union, United Nations, and all other regional and international human rights and other humanitarian organizations to step in and help in securing the release of Councilor Ousman Rambo Jatta from his incommunicado and illegal detention for one year now.