By Omar Sabally
The Jagne family in Medina Serign Mass, Lower Nuimi District, North Bank Region of The Gambia, had lost 13 of its sons in the boat accident which occured on 4th December, 2019, in the Northern Coast of Mauritania, claiming 63 lives.
According to reports, the boat said to be carrying 195 people, departed the coast of The Gambia on November 27, 2019, from Barra, North Bank Region. It has been confirmed that 63 of passengers on board had lost their lives, including 11 women.
At least, the 84 persons rescued, were assisted by Mauritanian authorities, the Red Cross and International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Imam Muhammed Jagne, father to two of the deceased youth, disclosed to this medium that, all the thirteen boys-aged between 13 and 20 years-were living in Jagne Kunda; and 10 of them bore the surname Jagne, while the trio carried the surnames: Sambou, Secka and Sarr.
Describing their demises as “huge and painful”, Imam Jagne said none of 13 was married or had a child. He lamented, “Losing a single individual is painful, much more, losing 13 who are all youth.” He maintained that as parents, they never supported the back-way and hence, their children did not inform or seek permission from them to take on the journey.
The bereaved father said that they didn’t know how the children obtained the money to pay for the boat or where and how they saved the money that they paid for this perilous journey.
“On the day of their departure, they told us they were going for a naming ceremony in Barra. But when they did not return the following day, we suspected they were onto something else; but we came to know they were part of the boat when the accident was announced”, Imam Jagne explained.
He told Mansa Banko Online that the 13 who passed on were “all good and respectful children”. Saying they believe other youth have heard of the disaster, Imam therefore, hoped it would discourage them from venturing into such a journey in future.
Meantime, the Ministry of Youth and Sports had expressed great shock and sadness at the tragic migrant deaths at sea off Mauritania. The Ministry said it regrets and mourns the deaths of these young people, describing it as “an irreplaceable loss to The Gambia and her people”.
According to the Ministry, it is committed to the empowerment and development of Gambian youth and would continue to work with development partners to provide enough opportunity for the young people. It urged young people to take advantage of the opportunities provided to them by the government through the Ministry of Youth and its satellite institutions, and other youth projects. The Ministry promised to scale-up its advocacy on irregular migration and safe alternative of migration.
The Youth and Sports Ministry further expressed heartfelt condolences to families of departed souls and prayed for Allah to give the affected families and the entire Gambia, the strength to accept this great loss.
It reaffirmed government’s commitment to investigate the incident and ensure the safe return of survivors.
The rescued Gambian migrants have since returned home, as investigations are in the offing, to get to the bottom of the matter.
