Imam Baba Leigh has described rival Imam Abdoulie Fatty as an “entertainer” for leading a group of clerics who invoked God’s wrath on MPs that voted against a bill seeking to legalise female circumcision in the country. 

The two imams have been at loggerheads over female circumcision and religious basis for the traditional practice. 

Last week, the Gambian parliament voted by a majority to upheld the Jammeh-era law that ban FGM in the country. 

However, Imam Fatty and his supporters criticised the MPs that voted to keep the ban, claiming that they would be “cursed” for keeping the ban. 

Reacting to Imam Fatty’s statement, Imam Leigh said: “Imam [Abdoulie Fatty] is good at entertaining people.  How can you curse people whom you share different opinions with? I feel sorry for Imam Fatty, even if I have different points of views with people, I will pray to Allah to give them the right guidance but not to curse them.”

He added: “Those advocating for the bill to be passed, a sense of tribalism can be detected in it even those of you watching can relate. My view on the issue of FGM is in line with Imam Ousman Jah, Basiru Drammeh and others but we are the only ones they made mention of even in their sermons simply because we don’t belong to the same tribe. This needs to stop.”

“They always mention my name. But who cares? My name is more than big enough to tolerate all the criticisms at the end of the day. They can say whatever they want to because they are the ones who will lose, not me. Baba Leigh is a winner, I was born to win and I will never lose because I know where I set my foot,” he said.

Reporting by Adama Makasuba