Until recently, it could be said that there’s no Gambian atheist. If there was, he certainly held his unsavoury beliefs close to his chest. There’s the mushrooming however, of the new Gambian, who proudly wears his atheistic beliefs like a badge of honour, and argues with the believers from an altitude of haughtiness, with an attitude of condescension.
It was only yesterday, when I came across one of them advising us not to fast, due to its harm on our health. It was hard not to laugh at the lack of any intellect behind that ill advice. I mean, how unread do you have to be, to not know that the medical world is near unanimous as to fasting being the best thing since penicillin! This ignorance of basic knowledge and common sense has been at the crux of disbelief in God, from time immemorial. It seems to me, that one has to be deficient in basic common sense to become an atheist. How else? Perhaps this anecdote will help.
A man came to two people and showed them a mango seed. He urged them both to take care of it as there were hundreds and thousands of mango seeds in it. The first one laughed and taunted him. “How can there be a 100 000 mangoes in this little thing?”
The second one saw the sense in his statement and grew the seed. After a few years, when the mango grew and bore fruits, the other realized his narrow mindedness, and pledged to grow them too. He died that year!
When atheists ask for proof of God, of the hereafter, of matters of the unseen, and of faith, I’m often tempted to dismiss them and wait for death to be the judge between us, that we may know who was right. However, my belief in an afterlife of damnation for atheists makes me pity them, and I’d engage them, at least for a while.
See, when two babies are in their mother’s womb, and one of them is delivered, does it not stand to reason, that the one who yet remains in the womb would perceive that his twin sibling is dead? We excuse that assumption, because the intellect of the baby is yet unformed, and the world outside of the womb has yet not manifested to him.
How ridiculous would it be, if you see a grown man crying, because the internet connection has failed and he can no longer see his friend on Skype, so he assumes that he must be dead? The same way, the misunderstanding of disbelievers amuse us, for that which we understand without questioning, they poke silly questions at, thereby, only making themselves look foolish in the process.
The oxygen in the world is set at 22 percent. At 24 percent, accidental fires in the world will increase by too many folds as to make life on earth unlivable! The earth observes a rotational breakneck speed of thousand kilometres around the sun, which by the way also rotates. If the sun moves any closer to the earth, the world would explode like popcorn! Move the sun any further away from the earth and there’ll be no life on here. Who sets the speed of these two giant bodies? Who controls the equidistance? Which scientist calculated and pegged oxygen at 22 degrees? We could go on and on.
We tell them, that we’ll only believe a world without a Creator, when they can cause a big bomb to explode in a stadium full of people, and the only effect from the explosion is that everyone in the stadium is placed right back in their car. Indeed that’s an easier thing to do, than for the perfect world in which we live to have come from a random explosion.
So, while we bear a bit of hunger to please the One who fashioned us in the womb, and to Him is our return, we pray for peace for our brothers in Palestine and all the oppressed around the world.
Views expressed in this publication are those of the author. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of The Fatu Network
“I Was Seven Months Pregnant When My Husband Was Abducted,” A Jammeh Victim
Ms Adama Conteh, widow of the late Lamin Tunkara, a Gambian national who was allegedly murdered with approximately 50–56 Ghanaians said she was seven months pregnant when her late husband was abducted by the former President Yahya Jammeh.
“My husband was abducted in 2005 when I was seven months pregnant,” said young Adama Conteh.
The young widow who was speaking at a press conference held at the Victims Centre, broke into tears while explaining the abduction of her late husband. She narrated that he was first taken to the Police Headquarters in Banjul where he spent about 3 to 4 days and was later transferred to the Kairaba Police Station before his disappearance. She started sobbing and could not explained anymore.
There are reports of another Gambian, one Edrisa Njie said to be also abducted with the Ghananians making the total number of the Gambian victims to two.
Ms Ayesha Jammeh of the Victims Centre speaking on the ‘New Evidence’ in 2005 killings of West African migrants explained her trip to Ghana where they had meetings with the families of victims, The Ghanian President and Civil Society Groups.
“All they want is justice for their families,” Ayesha Jammeh said.
She described their meeting with the Ghanian President as successful, saying he was very interested in the case as he was the country’s Foreign Minister at the time.
“Having Yahya Jammeh prosecuted by Ghana is a step for The Gambia,” Ayesha added.
Ms Marion Volkmann, Human Rights Lawyer who worked on several Commissions of Inquiry including the trial of Habre, former Chadian President said it is better to have the former President Jammeh in Ghanaian Prisons than living in a Palace at Equatorial Guinea until the Gambian case is fully ready to extradite him.
Mr Madi Jobarteh, TANGO– Advocacy Coordinator of the #Jammeh2Justice Campaign said he is part of the campaign to bring the former President Jammeh to justice.
“We have a responsibility to heal the soul of our nation,” Madi Jobarteh said.
“Every Gambian irrespective of our profession have a responsibility to cleanse the dreadful reputation, name and soul of The Gambia,” he added.
Jobarteh revealed that the former President
Yahya Jammeh is currently living in a Palace at Equatorial Guinea which he said is not his rightful place. He calls on the Gambia government to support the Ghanaian government in their effort to bring Yahya Jammeh to justice.
The activist further called on the Gambian media to get to the bottom of things rather than only relying the revelations of Human Rights Watch.