Amie Bojang-Sissaho, programme coordinator of GAMCOTRAP, a women’s rights organisation has denied stealing money from Yolocamba Solidaridad, a Spanish-based NGO.
She said her organisation did not steal any money from Yolocamba Solidaridad neither were they involved in any fraud with money provided by Yolocamba Solidaridad.
She also denied that GAMCOTRAP had received any other funds of a project that total to more than 206,000 Euros as claimed by Begona Ballesteros Sanchez in her statement.
She made these statements when her lawyer, Amie Bensouda asked if they steal the money Yolocamba Solidaridad provided to them.
Ms. Bojang Sissoho, alongside the executive director of GAMCOTRAP, Dr. Isatou Touray are standing trial at the Banjul Magistrates’ Court on allegation of theft.
They are accused of stealing €30, 000.00 provided to them by Yalocamba Solidaridad, but denied wrong-doing.
Monday’s hearing started at 2pm before acting principal magistrate, Taiwo Ade Alagde.
Continuing her defence, Ms. Bojang-Sissoho told the court that GAMCOTRAP did not edit any report in August 2009 as stated by Begona Ballesteros, director of Yolocamba Solidaridad in a statement.
Ms. Bojang-Sissoho told the court that GAMCOTRAP implemented the project it had with Yolocamba Solidaridad as planned.
Ms. Bojang-Sissoho was also asked to identify the people in the two pictures and she told the court that they are Jon Lazaros and Musa Jallow.  She told the court that the pictures were taken with a GAMCOTRAP digital still camera with a memory card.
She told the court that Musa Jallow was the finance officer at GAMCOTRAP but he left in around May /June 2011.  She also told the court that Omar Dibba still works with GAMCOTRAP.
Ms. Bojang-Sissoho also told the court about the 10 million dalasi project GAMCOTRAP submitted to Yolocamba Solidaridad in 2010.  She said in January 2010, the director of Yolocamba, Begona Ballesteros Sanchez brought in the cooperation agreement in Spanish and Dr. Touray told her to translate it into English; and that Yolocamba Solidaridad director promised to do so when she returned in February 2010 to attend a conference but she never did so.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Bojang-Sissaho has closed her testimony. She is expected to be cross-examined by the prosecution when the case resumes March 7, 2012.
It could be recalled that this is the 44th appearance of the two women’s rights activists since the court hearing started on the 3rd November 2010.
And it could also be recalled that on the 31st January 2011 the director of Yolocamba Solidaridad, Begoña Ballesteros Sanchez told the Banjul Magistrates’ court that “I did not accuse anybody of theft, I did not report anybody to the police nor brought them to court.”