Gambia’s ambassador to South Africa, Fatoumatta Jahumpa Ceesay, is facing criticism after a leaked audio recording surfaced in which she appears to insult members of the opposition United Democratic Party (UDP) and several activists.

In the audio, which has circulated widely on social media, Ms Jahumpa Ceesay is heard defending Sabach Sanjal lawmaker Alhagie Babou Ceesay, who has been accused of referring to youth-led protesters as “cockroaches and mice”.

Ms Jahumpa Ceesay, a member of the former ruling party APRC, dismissed the controversy, claiming UDP parliamentarians were exaggerating the lawmaker’s comment.

She added that such criticism would not have gone unchallenged if she and her deputy, Ousman “Rambo” Jatta, were present in Banjul.

“Alhagie Babou Ceesay didn’t mean the protesters. He was referring to those politicians disguising themselves among them as cockroaches,” she said.

“But those bastards, the UDP National Assembly members, are the ones blowing his remarks out of proportion,” she added in the leaked audio.

In the same recording, she referred to some UDP lawmakers in derogatory terms and accused well-known activists, including Pa Samba Jow, Neneh Freda Gomez, Fatoumatta Touma Njai, and Essa Faal, of inciting the protests. No evidence was provided to support these claims.

The Gambian government has not yet commented on the remarks.

By Adama Makasuba