The Minister of Environment and Climate Change Rohey John-Manjang has revealed that the recent destructive flooding didn’t spare her house and properties. 

Last weekend, The Gambia experienced record-breaking downpour which submerged some areas in the city and Greater Banjul Area.

Ms John-Manjang said her house was flooded when heavy rains battered her community of Jabang. 

“It was late in the night that my guards noticed that water was coming into their room and by the time they could react it was already in the house.  

“Unfortunately, my master bedroom was flooded. The water was everywhere in my fully furnished house, my guest house and my guard room. My store where I have my food items was also flooded. I lost everything in the store – bags of sugar, rice, onions, you name it,” she said. 

She blamed the flooding around her Jabang residence to blockage caused by buildings and indiscriminate dumping.

“For us here, the water was blocked by the structures on the way, some by indiscriminate dumping. We couldn’t manage the huge amount of rainwater as a result, it flooded back to our houses,” she said..

Meanwhile, she called for action against climate change saying “we just have to admit that this is climate change and adjust. We need to respond to advices given by the experts.

“Yes, we are all stakeholders but this thing affected almost everyone. I can also tell you that even the chief of staff office and the chief of protocol office at the state house flooded.”

Reporting by Adama Makasuba