Dear Sheriff,
Greetings this early Thursday morning, February 6, 2020 from my little corner in the cool groves of Kerr Serign.
In accordance with our pact sealed a decade and a half ago while you sojourned in the realm of the Hanoverian Lady and I was in the “land of the free and the home of the brave”, I pen to you yet another epistle on a matter of critical national importance.
We live in interesting times; and in this post-truth world, it is a daunting task to deal with sensitive matters in a hypersensitive society like ours. But my mantra is quite clear, a line from the lyrics of your fellow native of Brikama ST: Tonyaa kesso yeh execute (the truth must be executed!)
The issue of tribe has been one of the most contentious matters in what I have been calling our “so called” New Gambia for more than two years. Despite its beauty and enriching quality in our social fabric, the matter of tribe has virtually become a ticking time bomb in our these troubled times.
You are no stranger to this matter for I have consistently seen a quarter page of a advert in your newspaper, The Standard addressing this matter.
First, I must say that in our desire to dent the potential negative aspects of tribal matters, some of us have taken the escapist and simplistic route of coining the false slogan “my tribe is Gambia!” Oh what a farce! Indeed those who pushed this mantra must have some good intention but this type of approach is characteristic of our typical attitude of trivialising complex matters and hoping to attain solutions to difficult problems by taking easy measures. What has been the result regarding the problem this sloganeering has attempted to resolve?
The problem of tribalism is worsening in our country and if anyone failed to notice this, then the week following the January 26 protests about our current leaders contentious mandate has revealed the cancerous nature of this rumour called tribalism.
Indeed this scourge has no place in a nation of believers, Muslims and Christians. For this first time in my life I have heard people calling on their tribesmen and women to go out and attack their perceived enemies that belong to other tribes. This is truly alarming!
Sherif, it is my belief that our ethnic groups and their diverse traditions and customs are a blessing to this beautiful country whose cardinal prayer is “and join our diverse peoples to prove man’s brotherhood!” So why should we sit down and watch this blessing being transformed into a curse that could plague our society for generations? Have we learnt any lessons from the genocide of Rwanda?
Truly we must watch our media space, both traditional and new media; especially social media because the amount of hate speech in this country is flabbergasting. With hindsight, we know that tribal/ethnic wars have always been preceded (and ignited) by hate speech so this is where our task of preventing a dangerous ethnic conflagration must commence.
My morning recitation of the Holy Quran, today took me to the 17th Chapter, called al Isra (the night Journey) but also called Bani Israel (the Children of Israel). The 53rd verse of this chapter stood out for me as Allah solemnly warns us: “And say to My servants (that) they speak that which is good and kindlier; surely the Shaitan sows dissensions among them; surely the Shaitan is an open enemy to man.”
Shall we not then watch our mouths Sherif, or would we continue to read these Holy scriptures without taking lessons/instructions? Are we going to be like the people Allah speaks about in Surah Jumuah when he asserted in the fifth verse “The example of those who were entrusted with the Torah and then did not take it on is like that of a donkey who carries volumes [of books]. Wretched is the example of the people who deny the signs of Allah. And Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people.”
Is it not interesting that the previous verse quoted regarding dangerous speech comes from a chapter named after a nation that was set up as a confluence of tribes? Am I then wrong, my friend, in an assertion I made some two years ago, that “in our desire to solve the problem of tribalism, we must not risk to attempt to “kill the tribe for the nation to survive” as preposterously postulated by some sloganeering groups egged on by the fuel of irrational exuberance?
Verily my position is that we can manage and conserve our ethnic diversity while preserving the ethos of our oneness as Gambians. To quote my late mother’s Mandinka proverb depicting peaceful coexistence, “nyo kaanaa sosoe faa; sosoe kaanaa nyo faa!”
Is Israel not existing in tact as a nation despite their tribal hues? Why can’t we live together in harmony despite our diversity? Just like the patriarch Israel (or Jacob) and his children produced the various tribes, so have my parents given birth to me and my siblings, blessing me with nephews and nieces who became Wolofs, Jolas, Fulas and Mandinkas. How can I hate my own blood?
Our creation as tribes and nations is indeed for a reason as Allah is never frivolous. In his classic declaration he explained in verse 10 of Surah Hujuraat: “O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.”
Is the reason stated in the above verse not partly captured in the last segment of the verse in the First Book of Samuel, chapter 16: 7: “for the Lord sees not as man sees; man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”?
Sherif, let us admonish each other that we must eschew excessive judgmental behaviours and learn to love and appreciate one another for only Allah can judge who is better. Yet, He (Glory be to Him) embraces us all in his Mercy and Grace; even those who deny His existence and omnipotence receive His Love and Kindness in this world. Shall we not learn a lesson?
My good friend, I believe that some cynical reader of this epistle will call you or send a message questioning my authority on such a sensitive matter given the fact that I once read an official statement of The Gambia Government that was quite obnoxious and offensive to a particular ethnic group. Yes I did; and I regretted it and apologised for that gross error even though I did detail the circumstances that surrounded that incident in several interviews; I actually explained that I had advised the powers that be at the time against issuing such a statement. I still stand on that apology; but that erratum of mine will never keep me gagged when the nation faces clear dangers and Caesar seems to be fiddling with the distraction of self-perpetuation while the cinders of conflict are being fanned with the waves of hate speech.
Ours is a beautiful country and we have managed to keep our diversity alive as a united country so we should not break this harmony. I have heard some people claim that our neighbouring country, Senegal, is a detribalised society but I think this opinion is both false and misleading. We hear the rumbles of discord beneath the apparent harmony at the surface of that society. At least we have never encountered violent civil strife based on region or language and we pray for our neighbours to sustain and expand the gains made in trying to restore peace and harmony in their own backyard.
Gambia exudes the beauty of diversity as portrayed by our media, a beautiful melange, promoted by our State Broadcaster, The Gambia Radio and Television Services (GRTS). They should be encouraged to improve their role in preserving this heritage and be more proactive in shaping the colour and tone of our national discourse for greater peace and enduring harmony “towards the common good!”
And finally, as we approach yet another celebration of our independence anniversary, my good friend, I bid you bonne fete with these lyrics from our national hymn:
For The Gambia our homeland
We strive and work and pray
That all may live in unity
Freedom and peace each day…
Yours,
Momodou Sabally
The Gambia’s Pen
The imam and the journalist: The story of Baa-Kawsu and Taranga FM
Following his appearance at the ongoing Truth Reconciliation and Reparation Commission on Thursday, popular preacher and Islamic Scholar, Imam Baa-Kawsu Fofana became an instant social media sensation and his frequent sips from the football-size silver kettle aka ‘’Tashaalo’’ going viral.
As illustrated by such a rare public display of ‘nonconformism’, the Imam is as humorous as he is controversial. Love him or loathe him, Baa-Kawsu is a master communicator who knows how to penetrate the psyche and dinner table conversations of the Gambian society. Ask some, they would describe him as a bigot who uses his platform to castigate the minority (Jolas) and mock the weak and vulnerable in society (albinos). To many though, he is a highly regarded Islamic scholar who speaks truth to power without mincing his words.
At a time when the Gambian public was suppressing deep dissatisfaction with the status quo and the custodians of the Ummah were dancing with the devil, the ‘Mori-baa’ became famous for his highly charged critical reviews and condemnation of the ruling political and religious class. He would attack Jammeh as Bakary Banjul (which he would be later questioned about during his gruesome grilling at the NIA) and refer to Imam Fatty, one time State House Imam, as the ‘Imam Borabaa’. Such a rambunctious style of preaching attracted congregants from far and wide who flocked his masjid in Sanchaba in thousands. Communities across the country would be inviting him as the Guest Speaker at ‘Gaamos’ and other Islamic gatherings. Quickly, the Imam became a huge center of public attention, and because controversy sells, the local press caught on and also developed an interest in what he had to say.
His popularity coincided with one of the most interesting episodes of my broadcasting career. Around 2011 to 2012, the Mandinka news programme that I produced and presented on Taranga FM called ‘Bitilo Kibaro’ became one of the biggest radio programmes in the country. Being the only independent news programme targeting the illiterate majority at the time, Bitilo Kibaro became the first point of call for news and current affairs for many in The Gambia. It was setting the narrative and driving conversations in the country. Although the radio network did not cover the whole country, I had heard testimonies of people uploading all editions of the week on a memory card and sending them to their families in the provinces to bring them up to speed with current national and global happenings. Another man told me he would listen to the entire 40-minutes news programme on a phone call anytime he traveled to the provinces. Even at the Mile II Central prisons, I’ve heard that the show was religiously followed.
By virtue of its widespread popularity, the authorities turn their attention to Bitilo Kibaro monitoring everything being said there as they did with the Imam’s turbo-charged sermons.
As faith would have it, the popular Imam and the biggest radio programme at the time would cross paths, after severally featuring stories about his comments on current issues like the ever-controversial moon-sighting debacle, the eid days hullaballoo, Jammeh, Imam Fatty, the Supreme Islamic Council, among other hot issues.
The blistering sermons led to the infamous televised showdown with the President of the Republic and the leadership of the Gambia Supreme Islamic Council, which Jammeh declared as ‘the last warning’ for him to either behave or be sent his ‘5-star hotel’. Being the stubborn man that he was, Imam Fofana refused to be silenced but doubled down on critical sermons, and in the process, attracting more people to his Masjid for Jumaah prayers. Before long, he got arrested and tortured for about nine (9) days by officers of the notorious now-defunct National Intelligence Agency. After his release, he placed himself under a self-imposed silence declaring that it wasn’t time to disclose what happened at the NIA. ‘When the time comes, everything will be disclosed’’, I recalled him telling me.
Soon afterward, that was exactly what took place: he granted us an interview and laid bare everything that transpired during his encounter at the NIA. He said he was asked about why he would refer to President Jammeh as ‘Bakary Banjul’ or ‘Banjul Mansa’, and not his right honorific. They also asked about his beef with Jammeh, the Jola ethnic group, as well as the supreme Islamic council, he added. I can remember him telling us that he was taken to a dark room, where huge men, who reeked of alcohol, rained blows and slaps on his face and hit his head with canes. Perhaps more startling for me was his revelation that the torture exercise was being recorded on video. ‘Recorded for who?’, I remember asking myself. ‘Maybe for Jammeh’s own amusement’, I thought. Bakawsu’s detention and torture marked the beginning of a renewed attack on the religious class, especially the ones critical of the regime. It culminated in the unannounced arrest and detention of Imam Baba Leigh of Kanifing South Mosque four months later.
A few days after airing parts of the Bakawsu interview on his ordeal in detention on the Mandinka News programme, NIA agents surrounded BaaKawsu’s home to arrest him again but how that showdown truly transpired remains a mystery to this day. According to reports, family sources said he disappeared into thin air while being arrested and that they could not tell his whereabouts. Months later, the country would hear from him in Cassamance where he sought refuge until Jammeh declared a general amnesty in 2015.
On the same night of BaKawsu’s arrest, personnel of the NIA on board three pick-up trucks stormed the premises of my radio station, Taranga FM, at around 10:00 – 11:00 p.m. ordering the operator on duty to shut down the radio immediately. The Standard newspaper also got shut down in the same week. The closure of the radio marked the start of untold suffering and fear for most of the employees. I could remember feeling that I was being monitored and followed any time I went out.
Our media house would remain closed for about two years and most of us who couldn’t wait any longer had to move on to other media houses. I went to the newly opened Star FM radio where I rekindled the same kind of news programme to empower the masses with information so that they could participate in governance and development.
Thus, on Thursday, when I heard the Imam mentioned the interview in question during his testimony at the TRRC, it brought back grim memories of the personal sacrifices and risks that we took at a time when journalism in The Gambia was a risky business.