First Gambia’s Media NGO Established.
Media Agenda, a non-governmental organization aimed at strengthening and promoting the welfare of the media has been established to work with media in The Gambia and Africa.
Madi M. K. Ceesay, Director of Media Agenda and founded, said the NGO will facilitate the training of journalists, lobby lawmakers and politicians in the formulation of media laws and to develop the prestige and enhance the social the social role of journalists thus maintaining the standard of the profession.
He noted that the principal of the institution is building the capacity of media practitioners in The Gambia and the sub region.
He pointed out that Media Agenda is a non political and non-profit making body and principally concerned with the development of the media noting that the NGO will help build the capacity of media organizations in Guinea Bissau, Cape Verde, Liberia, Guinea Conakry Sierra Leone as well as in The Gambia.
Ceesay revealed, that training for journalists by the NGO will commence in June 2007 adding that about 275 journalists will receive training in various fields with in the next 24 months and the main fields of study includes bas editing. ic journalism, economic and financial reporting, investigative journalism, sporting reporting and sub.
CHIEF MANNEH’S WEREABOUT NOT KNOW
Chief Ebriama Manneh, print journalist working for Daily Observer, was arrested by the two agents of the National intelligence Agency in his office in Bakau early July 2006 and up to press time his where about is not known by friend and family members of the journalist.
According to reports the journalist has been detained at the NIA headquarters in Banjul before being transferred to Gunjur ,Sare Ngai and Fatoto Police Stations. Reporter from independent media house last saw journalist in FatotoUpper River Region of the country in January 2007The independent reporter went to all police stations in the country, but could not establish the journalist whereabouts. Sources at Fatoto have it that Mr. Manneh was transferred to an unknown destination sometime in February Many believed that he is taken to a station in Kombo.
More witness against journalist Fatou Jaw Manneh’s
The National Intelligence Agency officers (name with held) testifying in the sedition trial of journalist Fatou Jaw Manneh, has told the court that President Jammeh is not somebody who totally lacks direction adding the president was responding to the article alleged to be an interview with Fatou Jaw Manneh, doing his visit to U.S. A.
The witness said that, he read the said interview on the Freedom online newspapers and the accused journalist was a subscriber to that online newspaper
The witness pointed out that the freedom a Gambian who based in the United States owns Newspaper and the article was published on 23rd October 2005 and he read it the article in the first week of its publication.
The witness also said that he article was on the internet for long time and many people could have also read it on the net adding that the internet is for universal coverage and that it does not go directly to anybody but to the whole world.
State counsel E.O Fagbenle asked the witness to read paragraph three of the said article, in response, he read “Betrayal, Jammeh is tearing our beloved country into shared, he debunked our hopes and became a thorn into every issue that is related to progress in he Gambia; be it social, political and economical. Worst of all he is a bundle of terror continuing”, he noted that Jammeh became president in 1994 and was elected to office on term-basis but he (the witness) can not see any act of betrayal done by Jammeh .