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Message: [QUOTE="Munyaradzi Mafaro, post: 47941, member: 636"] Mustapha Bachily fought back hard against serious accusations during his appearance at the Local Government Commission hearing. The former Banjul City Council boss faced tough questions about secret deals and hidden money moves. He told investigators that every major decision went through the mayor first. Bachily said he held daily meetings with top staff and kept the mayor updated on everything. The ex-official insisted his leadership style brought people together rather than cutting them out. Money matters came under heavy fire during the intense questioning session. Bachily admitted the council had strict spending rules that he followed closely. He said no big payments happened without getting approval from the mayor beforehand. The former CEO explained that some payments appeared to come from the mayor because they helped poor families through charity groups like the Red Cross. He agreed the payment system could have worked better but defended the process as legitimate. Land deals also sparked heated debate during the commission hearing. Bachily cleared up confusion about whether the council sold property or just rented it out. He said they only handled lease agreements and had made the rental periods shorter. Some paperwork problems existed but all lease deals followed proper procedures according to his testimony. Staff problems plagued the council during his time as leader. Bachily admitted they had hired more people than they needed in several departments. He said new rules put in place after 2019 helped fix many of these workplace issues. The mayor will face the commission again on July 7 to give her side of the story. [/QUOTE]

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