Who Are We….?

Mr President, I sometimes wonder about our identity. It is hard to differentiate between us and the westerners on the one side, or the Arabs on the other. We have assimilated so much that sometimes we are even more European than the Europeans themselves. It seems that we despise what we are.

We do not value our culture and heritage and as such we have almost lost our sense of identity. One is hailed for looking like a European or an Arab. This is manifested in the way we speak, the way we dress, the way we associate with others and so on and so forth.

Every nation on Earth is trying to work on its indigenization of its culture, heritage and language. India and Turkey are good examples of this. They spend millions of Dollars to sell the image of their countries. We have seen Turkey inviting journalists from different parts of the world, paying their airfares just to sell their image. We on the other hand are trying to adopt; whatever it is that will make us look in vogue.

Mr President… I think it’s time we also endeavor to entrench Gambianness in our youth, be proud of our culture and heritage. Let us teach and learn our culture, heritage and languages. Let us celebrate our heroes of yesterday and show the world what we are, where we are coming from and what is it that makes us unique as a people. Certainly, we also have a lot to be proud of, a lot to celebrate. We indeed have a lot to offer the world. But if we don’t let our young ones know what is our own; then they will not appreciate it.

Mr President, this in my opinion has to start with our school system. The previous government made efforts in starting the teaching and learning of our indigenous languages but it seemed rushed and as such left a lot to be deaired. Proper research should be conducted to come up with suggestions and recommendations which will take everything into account so that once it is started, will progress into phasing out the colonial language. This is important because the learning of a second language is surely a hindrance to understanding certain things.

I’ve written before that had we been learning maths and science in our languages, the massive failure would have been reduced. If we want to make a mark in the international stage, we must pay particular attention to maths and science – in our languages.

Mr President, my advice is that your government should engage the University of the Gambia to conduct the necessary research into this so that we find out all the pros and cons of this.

Already, there are NGOs who are doing great work on this front. We can tap into the great works they have already started. Let us learn, teach, promote, spread and entrench our culture, heritage, language and identity in the world.

Mr President, Gambian sons and daughters are excelling in every field and in every part of the world. We do not lack the expertise and knowhow to transform this land into a great nation in the world. Let us tap into our human resource base, this is our greatest asset.

Have a Good Day Mr President…

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned Citizen

From 30 November to 11 December 2015, Paris chaired and hosted the 21st Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP21). Since 1995, the COP has been held each year in a different country and attended by the 196 parties (195 states + the European Union) that have ratified the Convention to review implementation of the Convention and negotiate new commitments. It is for this reason that COP21, and Paris Agreement in particular has been heralded as a major and an unprecedented milestone in saving the planet, today and tomorrow following the Paris Accord. But Trump just announced today that the US is pulling out because he said the deal is bad for business for the US. Nothing can be further away from the truth. To expose his lies, let us look at what the Paris climate agreement is saying?

 
The Paris Agreement

 
In the agreement all the 195 countries pledged to reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2025-2030. This pledge is contained in what is called Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC), a set of proposals from each country as to how it intends to reduce emissions. Therefore contrary to Trump’s misinformation the Paris Accord did not impose anything on any country.
In the run-up to COP21, every state party to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) was invited to communicate its INDC, detailing the steps it is taking to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2025 or 2030. Accordingly, even a small country like the Gambia gave its proposal, which is to reduce overall emissions by about 44.4% in 2025 and 45.4% in 2030. In this plan, the Gambia Government included two unconditional mitigation options, i.e. to increase investment and use of renewable energy and also in the short-term, to make the country transition to low-emissions and climate resilient development pathway.

 
According to the UN, there is unanimous agreement from scientists, that the earth’s atmosphere is growing warmer due to greenhouse gas emissions generated by human activity. The aim of the Paris Conference was therefore to come up with a response to this problem, which is threatening to wipe out the human presence in certain parts of the world. The UN said the agreement marked a change in direction towards a new world, which confirmed the target of keeping the rise in temperature below 2°C. Scientists believe that a greater increase in temperature would be very dangerous. The agreement even establishes, for the first time, that the world should be aiming for 1.5°C, to protect island states, which are the most threatened by the rise in sea levels. The Paris Agreement therefore asks all countries to review these contributions every five years from 2020. The agreement acknowledges that $100 billion (in loans and donations) will need to be raised each year from 2020 to finance projects that enable countries to adapt to the impacts of climate change such as rise in sea level, droughts, among others, or reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The agreement specifies that this amount should increase otherwise called the Green Climate Fund.

 
COP21 recognized that not all countries are equally responsible for global warming. Thus one of the main principles of climate negotiations is that countries have common but differentiated responsibilities when it comes to climate change, depending on their wealth in particular. The agreement establishes an obligation for industrialized countries to fund climate finance for poor countries, while developing countries are invited to contribute on a voluntary basis. The ten largest CO2 emitters are, in the order of the size of the emission, China, the United States, Europe (a single contribution for the 28 Member States), India, Russia, Japan, South Korea, Canada, Iran and Saudi Arabia.
The other two key measures for tackling climate change are adaption and mitigation. In adaptation, it is expected that states will take measures to reduce the impact of climate change such as building dykes in coastal zones. Mitigation measures and policies are meant to encourage the development of renewable energies and supporting lower-emission modes of transport.

 
Politics of Climate Change

 
The issue of climate change has always been a contentious issue where states, especially more powerful and richer countries such as the US and EU have dragged their feet in responding to the demands and urgency of the matter. Since the first climate conference in 1979 in Geneva to the 2005 Kyoto Protocol which only the US and Australia refused to ratify among the 36 targeted developed countries, to COP15 at the 2009 Copenhagen conference which approved the shared target to limit global warming to 2°C, it has been found that poor leadership has been the major stumbling factor in addressing global warming. It is in light of this that the full agreement of the countries of the world in Paris was extremely commendable and significant. But this leadership does not rest only with advanced countries and the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, but poor and developing countries like the Gambia also bear equal responsibility to ensure the development and implementation of proposals to tackle global warming among other measures intended to support poor and farming communities to adapt to the situation.
It has been noted that when global warming is effectively tackled, not only does it save farm lands, ensure better rainfalls and prevent other vagaries of the weather, but also, these gains translate in more job creation. The UN has noted that better climate change policies could produce 6,000 green jobs in Macedonia by 2030, 58,000 in Tunisia, 40,000 in Senegal. Meanwhile, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), by 2020, 75 to 250 million people across sub-Saharan Africa could face water shortage, and rain-fed agriculture could contract by 50% in some African countries. The World Bank adds that rise in temperatures could cause permanent GDP loses of 4-5% for Africa.

 
Trump Disaster
Hence the announcement by Trump is nothing but a bunch of false alarms and irrelevant statistics intended to scare the people of the US and the world. None of what Trump said is true. The fact is that in the US alone, California, which is the sixth largest economy in the world, is one of the topmost places on earth with advanced climate change policies and programs that are paying off well. These policies and programs are the basis for the immense growth in that single state within the USA. If one state within the USA can succeed why cannot the US as a whole implement those same policies and programs and succeed? But Trump does not want t hear that because Trump is looking at his businesses and not jobs for the hardworking American people he always trumpet.

 
What the world has to realize is that Trump is in this for his own business empire. Right now in Scotland, Trump has been fighting the Scottish authorities against their attempt to build some wind turbines near his golf course in that country. Even when it is clear that those wind turbines are good for the Scottish and UK economy and will create jobs, yet Trump opposes it for years now just because he thinks that is not good for his business. Hence Trump is not pulling out of the Paris Accord for any nationalistic reason but only for selfish reasons. His claim that US is to give billions upon billions to India or redistribute its wealth to every country is not true. Certainly the American negotiators that went to Paris for this agreement are not stupid fools to just sell America to the world. Hence Trump is merely engaged in a hype in order to hoodwink the ordinary masses of the US who are absolutely unaware of the how the world works to make them feel that he is there fore them. But trump is there for no one. Trump is there for only Trump. Period.

 
Therefore, by pulling out and given that the US is the second largest emitter of greenhouse gases means the security and the future of the world is now severely threatened. Trump is the world’s biggest liability right now! All countries particularly developing countries must condemn this decision. The United Nations must propose sanctions against the US right now. All countries must take measures to impose taxes and stiff measures on US companies as well as American products such as cars, fridges, aeroplanes and similar technological items to make the US pay for the emissions that come as a result of the manufacture of these products.
Time to impose stiff sanctions against the US!

After 22 years of direct and severe harassment of the media by the APRC regime, it is utterly callous of any media house and journalist in the world to celebrate Yaya Jammeh in any manner or form. Yet the Daily Observer, without remorse decided to irresponsibly dedicate a front page birthday wish to a tyrant, majority of whose victims in the media community in fact come from that very newspaper. Even if Yaya Jammeh owns the Daily Observer, one would expect that the Editor-in-Chief and staffs of that newspaper would remember their former colleague Chief Ebrima Manneh who was kidnapped and killed on the orders of Yaya Jammeh. This is one single case among many other Daily Observer journalists who were subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention and torture with many more having to flee to save their lives at various times. Yet 22 years later, the Daily Observer had no good judgment but to celebrate such a predator of press freedom in the Gambia.

 
The Daily Observer of today is indeed a huge shame if one truly considers the very origin of that paper and the glorious history of its original proprietor Kenneth Best of Liberia. In 1990 this honourable man established the Daily Observer as the first daily newspaper in the Gambia. He believed in our country so much so that he made the credo of the newspaper, “Forward with The Gambia” which can be seen everyday in the front page of the newspaper. It was at this newspaper that some of Gambia’s finest veteran journalists either started their career or improved themselves to international repute.

 
I was myself a beneficiary of Daily Observer training in 1994. Some of our leading journalists that passed through the paper include Mathew K Jallow who was an editor, the current Information Minister Demba Jawo, GRTS chief Ebrima Sillah, former Information Minister Sheriff Bojang, sports journalist Lamin Cham, our UK-based expert Ebrima Ceesay, our US-based experts Baba Galleh Jallow and Yoro Jallow, and indeed Ndey Tapha Sosseh who became the first female Editor-in-Chief of the newspaper years later, and many others. The story of the Daily Observer and its contribution to the development of the media is glorious and deep. Hence it was utterly tragic that this noble paper had to land in the hands of Yaya Jammeh in the first place. Since then it has distinguished itself for gutter journalism, as it became the mouthpiece of the dictatorship using its pages to ridicule Gambian dignity and destroy Gambians lives with impunity.

 
But the folks that work in the Daily Observer are Gambian citizens. Thus one does not expect that when Gambians shed blood and tears to remove that tyranny, this paper will still fail to recognize their own sovereignty and dignity and align themselves with the new aspirations of the country. But it appears the editors and staffs of the Daily Observer do not understand the trials and tribulations of the media in this country hence they could insult their own fallen colleagues in their face by celebrating a journalist killer.
In fact the first victim of Yaya Jammeh was Kenneth Best himself when he was illegally and forcefully deported from the Gambia on 30 October 1994. Without any charge or court appearance, security agents bundled this man out of his house to drive him straight to the airport for deportation to his war-torn Liberia from where he fled the tyranny of Samuel Doe to the Gambia. Yaya Jammeh never cared if the man was going to face any risks when he returned! How callous!

 
Is the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Observer telling us that he does not know that there was a man called Deyda Hydara who was shot to death by agents of Yaya Jammeh called the Junglers? Does the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Observer wish to tell us that he did not know the Junglers burnt down the former Independent Newspaper printing machine as well as Radio 1FM? Does the Editor-in-Chief wish to tell us that he does not know about the illegal closing down of Citizen FM, The Independent Newspaper, Taranga FM, Daily News Newspaper and Standard Newspaper over the years?

 
Is the Daily Observer not aware of the jailing of GPU Executive members and editors of Foroyaa and The Point newspapers in 2009 for sedition? Is the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Observer telling us that he is not aware of the torture of numerous Gambian journalists such as the current parliamentarian Madi Ceesay or Musa Saidykhan and many others? Is the Daily Observer telling us that they are not aware of the terrible bad laws against the media in the Gambia and the insults that Yaya Jammeh had consistently heaped on the media? Yet this Editor-in-Chief and his editorial and management teams have no scruples but to trumpet the very tyrant who is behind all these atrocities and bad anti-media laws in the Gambia.

 
Let me remind the Daily Observer that in 1994, Yaya Jammeh said

 
“Journalists are the illegitimate sons of Africa. Citizens should not buy newspapers so that journalists can starve to death.”

 
The time has therefore come for Gambians to totally and completely boycott the Daily Observer because this newspaper has demonstrated that it does not feel and sympathize with the misery of its own fallen colleagues. By this Yaya Jammeh birthday advertisement they have insulted Deyda Hydara and Chief Manneh and the entire media fraternity and their families. They have insulted the entire Gambian nation in total disregard of the blood and tears that our people had to shed in the hands of the tyrant they now cherish.

 
I call on all companies, NGOs, individuals and public institutions not to buy or advertise with the Daily Observer ever again until the Daily Observer withdraw that Yaya Jammeh celebration and apologize to the people of the Gambia and never to do it again. The time has come for us to take our destiny in our own hands. We must therefore never ever allow any government, any president, any NGO, any imam, any company and indeed any media house to ever again ridicule our dignity and destroy our rights and our lives. Daily Observer has confirmed that they are a direct accomplice in the murder of Gambians and this must be addressed. Never ever patronize the Daily Observer!

 
In that same vein, I call on the President of the Gambia Press Union Emil Touray to summon the Editor-in-Chief of the Daily Observer to demand a retraction and apology to the media fraternity. The Daily Observer has endangered and weakened the GPU and the entire media community by their despicable action. At this very moment the GPU is before the Supreme Court to deal with some of the bad laws of Yaya Jammeh hence we cannot have a media practitioner who could at the same time celebrate Yaya Jammeh. That is a painful paradox and insult!

 
There is freedom of expression and freedom of the media but these do not include the freedom to aid and abet a dictator. That is propaganda, sycophancy and direct threat to the rights and lives of citizens hence criminal. Yaya Jammeh represents the destruction of the media and no amount of free press allows a journalist to celebrate a predator of the press. If such a journalist should celebrate a violator of media freedom then all journalists must disassociate themselves from that journalist.

 
Finally I call on all those Daily Observer journalists who have conscience and uphold the freedom of the media to protest against their newspaper and demand a retraction and an apology. Stay away from work or issue a petition for the resignation of your Editor-in-Chief or resign altogether from this mercenary newspaper. Do not let your career be stained by this gutter journalism. Stand with your fallen colleagues and remember that you could have been Chief Manneh or Deyda Hydara or any of those victims. How do you think Deyda or Chief Manneh is feeling today? How would you have felt if you were shot or tortured to death by Yaya Jammeh only to realize that today your own newspaper was celebrating that very Yaya Jammeh? Have conscience and stand up to defend press freedom and national sovereignty.

God Bless The Gambia.

Madi Jobarteh

Porridge is a warm breakfast cereal akin to Gambian cuisine. Health experts unanimously agreed that eating porridge has a lot of health and nutritional benefits. British nutritionist Kevin Rail once wrote that eating porridge helps people to regulate their appetite because whole grains and whole-grain derivatives have a high amount of dietary fiber. This substance helps fill you up, which prevents you from overeating.

If you do not overeat, you will maintain or even lose weight. Fiber also helps keep blood-sugar levels on an even keel and reduces the risk for high cholesterol. Porridge also gives energy; helps recover tired muscles, develop strong bones and boost your immunity.

Porridge is a staple food in Gambia and one village in particular, Jaali, is known to be great porridge eaters. Though the origin of porridge continues to be clogged in mystery, most people credited the village of Jaali in the Kiang West District of the Lower River Region for the beginning of the dish. Today, the name porridge in The Gambia is synonymous to Jaali. Legend has it that in Jaali, the three square meals of the day used to be porridge and a result it has earned the local parlance “Jaali Mono” (meaning Jaali Porridge).

“Even if “Mono” doesn’t originate from Jali, its tradition can be traced to the village because we are known for it and moreover throughout my wide research about the history of Jaali, I have never come across a claim that “Mono” originated from anywhere else aside from here,” Lamin Metanding Drammeh, a religious leader and native of Jaali told me.

Jaali is some 155 kilometres away from Banjul, The Gambia’s capital, and a three-hour drive via the South Bank. The community of Jaali is said to be some 800 years old. The name of the community, JALI, sources say was derived from a Mandinka phrase ‘Kuli-Jah-Leh’, meaning a lake where people hang leather. The community acquired this name from foundation owing to the activities of the founders. According to sources, the founder of the community of Jaali was a hunter and near his hunting site was a lake; it was near this lake that he always spread his hunting garments which included leather from animal skin. Little did he know at the time that this isolated hunting site would become his home. People at the time began referring to the lake in their Mandinka parlance as ‘Kuli-Jah-Leh’ (a lake which is used to spread leather) and when the site became a habitation for the hunter and people began enjoying the treasures of the new home, they began calling it Jaali, a short form of ‘Jah-Leh’.

The routes of the founding of the community can be traced as far as Sunna Karantaba in the Cassamance region of Senegal. It was from this village that a hunter named Massi Samateh set out on a lone journey in the search for the treasures of life; a journey that brought him to the Kiang valley of The Gambia. Upon entrance into the Kiang Valley, Massi Samateh acquired sanctuary at Jamari from where he continued his hunting expedition. It did not take long before the hunter fell in love with his new hunting site, a site known by the indigenes as Masi Sita. He then made a request to his Jamari hosts to grant him the land that hosts hunting site for settlement; a request that without any reservation received the stamp of approval. Massi Samateh then began erecting the pillars for his new settlement and stayed on it alone until his brother, Janneh Drammeh whom he left behind in Sunna Karantaba also followed his routes to locate him, a move that lead to the establishment of the settlement of Jaali. The two brothers together triggered the expansion and development of the community.

Sources advanced that this Janneh was an Islamic scholar and when he locate his brother Massi who by then was a Soninke both settled not far from each other. Massi’s children sources went on, enjoy when Janneh’s children are reciting the Holy Quran and at one point asked their father if they can also learn the songs their brothers sing. Their father did not reject the request Janneh made sure that all the children were able to learn the Quran. Soon Massi abandoned his isolated settlement of Massi Sita to join his younger brother at Jaali. By this time, Janneh already built a Mosque where he used to pray with his family. And since Massi’s children can now recite the Quran, they were converted to Islam and the first son was made imam whilst Janneh himself maintained the alkaloship.

The children of Massi and Janneh intermarried, leading to the growth of the village’s population. The main occupation of Jalikans was hunting and farming and these will be critical in the beginning of the “Jali Mono”. The story of Demba the missing hunter is still narrated in Jali several centuries after the actual event took place. He was said to have gone hunting and didn’t return after a day’s work on his farm and as a result, a search party was dispatched after the village talking drum announced his disappearance. Youths of the village were mobilised to locate him and they armed themselves with sacred charms, axes and spears to defend themselves from unexpected attacks and wild animals. When Demba was found, he was already packing his booty he looted from the bees and set on going home. He had to wait until dark to use a fire to plunder the bees while at the same time escape the deadly sting of the killer bees.

Animal husbandry is also very akin to Jaali and as the village continues to expand exponentially with the arrival of more people, sources said at one point in time, almost every household has a herd to its name. In the mornings, the herdsmen will go to the herds to milk the cows and because of the large quantity of herds at the time, fresh cow milk became abundant in the village to an extent that in the evening, villagers threw the milk away because they had enough of it. “So because there was milk in abundance with the supply far exceeding the demand, the people decided against throwing food away and asked each other to come up with an alternative use of the milk. They unanimously agreed that they will prepare a dish that can be eaten with the milk and that was how they started to cook “Mono”, Lamin Metanding Drammeh further intimated.

“However, at the time, there was no sugar available to sweeten the “Mono” but any generation one lives in, its people must have a way to go about it. So because honey is another tradition of Jaali, they decided to use that to sweeten the “Mono” by allowing both the honey and porridge to boil and prepared slowly until a thick consistency is reached. When it is done, the cooking pot will be withdrawn from the fire by allowing the porridge to cool a little before they can pour milk on it and serve for breakfast.”

When preparing the porridge, you combine the grains and water. Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce heat to a simmer and cook covered; you cook until all the grains are tender. The people of Jaali decided that they should give a new name to their latest dish and because it takes lesser time to prepare, they gave it the name “Mono”, a short name for the word “Akamono” (meaning it can ripe easily.)

“There are five different types of “Mono”. You have what you call “Tiyakerr Churo”, where you mix rice grain with peanuts; “Yerenke Mono” by pounding coos grain and later make it into small particles; “Chura Koyo”, by allowing rice grain to boil until it form porridge particles in the pot; “Jisuma Mono” (it is originally called “Duma Mono” because you boil water and pour it on coos grain) and “Bero” where you boil water and pour it on rice grain. The family name is what is called “Mono”, Drammeh added.

According to Ousman Barrow, another native of Jaali, the reason why Jaali was added to the beginning of the word “Mono” had to do with its display of cultural diversity during a traditional competition held in the administrative capital of the region, Mansa Kokno. At that competition, the various villages of the region were asked to prepare their traditional dishes and Jaali as customary prepared a delicious “Mono”.

“At the same time, they slaughtered a goat which was cooked and stored in a safe place and then waited for everyone to gather. So when everyone gathered, they just pulled the head of the goat and dip it into the porridge and were straight away given the winners’ prize, then everyone shouted “Jaali Mono ye forse ta”, meaning “Jaali Mono” has taken first,” Barrow added.

Before Barrow even completed his final line, Drammeh intervened to rebuke the claims, and jokingly said that it was their cousins from the opposite side of the river (Tankular) that decided to make a traditional joke of it. Whether that is or not the case, Jaali has deservedly earned itself the credit of the beginning of porridge in the region and their invention is today consumed by most households in the country.

By Baboucarr Camara

Where Are My Taxes….?

This week I spent fifty dalasis on waste disposal. I used to pay D10 for a bag of waste to be transported by donkey cart. Now though, each bag is fifty dalasi. This expenditure is rising on a regular basis and considering the skyrocketing prices of basic commodities in this country, one can imagine how one would loathe to spend such amount on something as basic as waste disposal.

I wondered therefore where my taxes go? We pay taxes to the government through various ways so as to ensure that the state has the resources it requires to serve the citizenry. If any citizen refuses to pay tax, or somehow manages to evade the tax collectors, such a person is not a goof citizen and could be prosecuted if caught. Similarly therefore it becomes the duty of the government to provide certain services to the people who pay taxes to put something in our national coffers.

I live in Bundung Borehole and for the past two years, I have not seen a single waste collecting vehicle from the Kanifing Municipal Council. Mr President, among the duties of a government is the utilisation of the taxes paid by the citizens to provide them services that improves their lives and uplifts them.

Granted, the government cannot do everything for the citizens of the country but at least the basic needs should be fulfilled. The provision of services like water, electricity, basic healthcare, collection and disposal of waste, cleaning the environment are some ofmost basic services citizens expect from a government to whom they pay tax. For the ease of providing these services, we, the Gambian people, have empowered you to set up various ministries, departments, agencies and so on. If therefore, one of these is not function as it should, the blame goes back to your government.

The failure of the KMC to quickly solve the problem of the Bakoteh Dumping Site remains an epic example of lack of knowhow, expertise or honesty on the part of its leadership. So when there I still have to pay for a donkey cart collect and dispose of spite of paying taxes, I wonder again:

Where are my taxes?

Have a Good Day Mr President….

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned Citizen

Further to my correspondence of last week, please allow me to add new dimension to the story for public debate & discourse given the dilemma facing the interior ministry in Banjul. In the write-up, I’d critiqued the Belgian firm, SEMLEX, and the overall flawed procurement process therein acquiring such a lucrative contract for the country’s identification and border security scheme. What upsets most was the optics of the deal with millions of dollars destined for the pockets of foreign investors through capital-flight.

The premise of this article concerns Pristine Consulting (Gambia). My understanding is that back in 2010, the company was contracted for the short-lived Gambia Biometric Identity System (GAMBIS) project intended as an integrated system in which Government aims to capture bio-metric details for all citizens and aliens in the country. The project includes National Identity Card, residential Permit and driving Licenses; to expand into passports, birth, death and marriage certificates respectively. Here was a domestic reputable entity providing employment to local talent yet pushed aside for foreign firms. Information gathered showed that the dictatorship at the time failed to fulfill its side of the bargain, souring relations.

Based on that corruption-induced deal as intimated last week, I strongly implore government to terminate all ties with Semlex, and to contractualize Pristine Consulting to produce all facets of The Gambia’s national identification. Folks, forty years of nationhood – how useless are we as a country if we have to rely on foreigners for a mere I.D card, orange juice, mango juice, tomato paste, and so on – This has got to stop thru import-industrial-substitution, thus promote & consume‘Gambia Made’.

The rationale behind this idea is two-fold. First, the Gambian people demand domestic industry be given chance in government procurement, cutting red tape, plus the money stays home. The Africa progress panel headed by, Kofi Annan, has lamented capital-flight as a major hindrance to African growth denying local banks of much needed liquidity to lend local farmers and businesses. Secondly, information has it that there are countless fake dalasi notes in circulation due to years of mismanagement & counterfeiting. The Finance ministry, liaising with Central Bank should make it a priority issue to change the ‘Dalasi’ bank notes for newer designs made of polymer technology. That is the style as found in European cash notes, strong, durable, and counterfeit-proof. The image of Yahya Jammeh needs removing from the ‘dalasi’ notes too. And well done to the government in doing-away with all symbols bearing that misrule away from public space. A smart move for psychological and ‘healing’ purposes.

Talking to an official from the reputable banknotes printer, DeLARUE, (classified) a renegotiated contract with Central Bank of the Gambia has the potential for knowledge and skills transfer, training, and partnerships with Pristine. So the plan is for a Gambian entity to be strengthened for potential partnership with DeLARUE as terms per deal. I am a little concerned watching Ministers going round Europe signing on deals without proper checks or institution-wide consultation. The lesson Africa should learn from China is ’empower you domestic industry’ to be job and wealth creators; and to stand tall dignified. My take is any deal with a foreign firm pertaining to a Gambian nexus should involve skills training and knowledge transfer, so that we don’t have to pay for that same service ever again. As such, a five (5) year deal with a reputable banknotes merchant as DeLaRue shall help upgrade and upscale Pristine Consultancy to reputable status in terms of technology transfer – as a future Bank notes printer serving Gambia and countries in the region. These are the sort of thinking negotiators should be aiming towards in securing jobs & good deals for the taxpayer.

As for the passports fiasco in DR Congo, the opposition has appealed to the Justice Ministry to investigate corruption scandal involving Kabila’s government and Semlex. A lot is at stake here as to how the Gambia government handle this dilemma. I am further worried by the out-of-court settlements being lined up with foreign companies per Jammeh era paying out millions without giving out details for public scrutiny. To the President’s credit, the country is on a right footing barely four months in office – but as citizens, and analysts, and educators, we shall continue to demand more, and the very best from our government.

Written by Gibril Saine, London.

Recently I wrote an article about the fundamental beliefs of the Ahmaddiyyah/Qadianiyyah which was
meted with a swift rebuttal. This rebuttal has actually painted to me a vivid picture of the average
Ahmadi’s mindset. I honestly, did not think for once that any genuine follower of this group would go
out of his way to belie facts that are well established from the writings of their founding father. It
makes me conclude that either they are deceptive or blindfolded; Surah Baqarah verses 6 – 10
addresses both scenarios. From the gentleman’s rebuttal, it’s evident he couldn’t stay on substance
but rather resorted to profanity and digression which has been their recourse to dissenting views. In
fact this same uncouth and vulgar attacks were launched on Imam Fatty too when he made his stance
unequivocally clear on Standard Newspaper just after the Talinding Cemetery incident. This is what
the Quran they to claim to staunchly believe in say about arguing with opponents: “Invite to the way
of your Lord with wisdom and good instruction, and argue with them in a way that is best. Indeed,
your Lord is most knowing of who has strayed from His way, and He is most knowing of who is [rightly]
guided”. (Quran 16:125).

 
The general impression among the non muslims and our secular minded muslim brethren is that our
opposition to Ahmadiyyat stems from religious intolerance. They fail to appreciate that our difference
is fundamental doctrinal. Thus for the benefit of those with such perception and perhaps confused by
the young man’s quotations and so called refutations, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad – the founder of the
Ahmadiyyah movement had at least two distinct phases in his life which I have alluded to in my earlier
article. One extended from his childhood into his early adult life. Being born in a Muslim family,
during this period he was a devout Sunni Muslim. It was during this period that we saw such writings
where he declared time and again his Muslim Sunni faith. Without any formal public education, he
helped himself freely with various religious materials available to him forming his own opinions and
conclusions. If there was any deviation from the established mainstream Islam doctrine, it was hardly
noticeable.

 
During the later part of his life, his thoughts and beliefs exhibited a noticeable change and initially at
least he made attempts to backtrack from his statements or writings to dampen the backlash of
Muslims. However with the passage of time he became more and more defiant and audacious in his
heretical views. It is this other aspect, this transformation, of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad’s personality
which is hidden from the public eye and which is hardly ever mentioned and quoted in the
propaganda literature of Qadianism Movement (Ahmadiyyah). The question is why are they hiding
this part? If they believe in the fundamentals of Islam as we do, why don’t they denounce this
blasphemy and kuffur of their founder and join mainstream Islam?

 
In my previous piece I deliberately left out sources because it honestly never occurred to me that
someone would take me to a challenge for it. With the subsequent turn of events, I will try to
systematically address the Qadiani’s refutations as best as I can. Praise be to Allah that most of these
have been scholarly dealt with and answered by our venerable scholars in the past so I don’t take
credit for anything as a very little student of knowledge.

●Regarding their theology about Allah, albeit the writer claims that they believe in Allah just as
we do, let him explain to us these snippets from the writings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad or is he
going to resort to their usual default response of branding it anti Ahmadiyyah propaganda or lies
and fabrications? Not a surprise because Mirza Ghulam Ahmad has called Ummah worst than
that; “whoever is not sure of our success is in fact, a bastard. He wouldn’t be a legitimate man.
(Roohani Khazain: V: 18, P: 31)”
I (Mirza Ghulam Ahmad) dreamt that I myself am God and I believe in this that I am (God). (Roohani
Khazain v.5 P.564)
In one of my revelation (Kashf) I saw myself as God and I believe in it. (Kitab Al- Brae P: 85. Roohani
Khazain V: 3 P: 103)
True God is He Who sent down His messenger in Qadiyan. (Dafe Balaa P: 11 Roohani Khazain V: 18 P:
231)
Once the Messiah (Christ) stated his condition that (In a state of revelation) he felt himself as if he
were a woman and God expressed His desire of virility (God had intercourse with him). For the while a
hint is sufficient. (Islamic Qurbani Tract No: 34 by Qazi Yar Muhammad)

 
Is this not sufficient for you folks to internalized your involvement with this movement and begin the
search for true Islam? By the way, how come there is no single major renowned scholar of The
Gambia starting with Bun Jeng up to the contemporary ones who considers your jamaat as part of
Islam? Oops I forgot the only scholars in your eye view are those that are Qadianis, all others are
illegitimate sons of prostitutes. (Auzhubillah). But only the sons of the prostitutes didn’t confirm &
accept me. (Roohani Khazain: V: 5, P: 547-548).

 
●Their belief about the Quran
The brother is trying to put a spanner on the spoke of the wheels in order to deceive the gullible and
uninformed readers. Why is he offering D25,000 just for this point out all the so called allegations? In
any case I will list down here some of their verses and writings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad and you the
readers can judge if their Quran is different or not:

 
“I say with swearing upon God that I believe in these inspirations in the same way as I believe in Quran
and other books of God. And just as I consider Quran undoubtedly and surely the book of God,
similarly I believe that wahi (revelation) which descends upon me is the word of God.” (Haqeetqatul
Wahi, Roohani Khazain vol.22 p.220)

 
Holy Prophet’s revelation also turned out to be false. (Roohani Khazain vol.3 p.472) – meaning the
Quran is false.

 
He declared that Quran is also full of filthy words and enumerated several words in Quran as being
filthy according to current standards. (Roohani Khazain vol.3 p.115-117)
Mirza’s WAHI told him: Verse 33:40″‘Muhammadur Rasoolullah wallazeena ma’ahoo ashiddaohoo’ ala
alkuffar rohamao bainahum’ in this Wahi God has named me Muhammad and Rasoolullah.” (Roohani

Khazain vol 18 pp.207)
“I have said several times that according to the verse (of Holy Quran) ‘wa akhareena minhum lamma
yalhaqoo behim’ as Burooz I am the same Prophet, the Khatamul Anbiyyah, and 20 years ago God
named me Mohammed and Ahmad in Braheen-e-Qadianism and declared me His Being.” ​
(Aik ghalti ka azala, Roohani Khazain vol. 18 p.212)

 
“Quran is God’s Book and the words of my mouth.” (Advertisement dated 15th March 1897, Roohani
Khazain vol 22 p. 87)

 
“I believe in my WAHI (revelation) as I believe in Quran and Torah.” (Roohani Khazain vol.17 p.454)
“The basis for our claim is not Hadith but Quran and that WAHI which comes to us. Yes in support we
also quote those Hadith which are according to Quran and DO NOT CONTRADICT MY WAHI. As for the

 
REST OF THE HADITHs, I THROW THEM AWAY LIKE A WASTE PAPER.” (Roohani Khazain vol 19 p.140)
Verse [17:1] of Holy Quran: ‘Praise be to Allah, who took His Servant on the Night Journey from Masjid
Haram to Masjid Aqsa’, its real and literal application is the Mosque built by father of Mirza Ghulam.
(Collection of Advertisement vol.3 p.286)

 
Unless you belie the founder of your creed on these blasphemous claims, I don’t know how the
statement “MY WAHI” would be construed as the Quran that was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh). Now you tell us if Mirza Ghulam’s WAHI is the same as The Quran. May Allah remove the seal
from your hearts, ears and eyes for you to see the truth and follow it. Therefore it is clear from the
above that your kitab is definitely not our Quran. If you however, believe Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is a
prophet after Muhammad (pbuh) then how do you explain Ahzab (33.40) “O believers, know that
Muhammad (pbuh) is not the father of any man among you, but he is the Messenger of God and the
seal of prophets”? If you have faith like you claim, then it should not be daunting for you to reject and
denounce these conspicuous kuffur instead of adopting a denial approach. The one million dollar
question still remains, what and why are you hiding?

 
●Their belief about the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)
The Qadianis had a pamphlet in circulation in various parts of the world, ‘Ahmad in praise of
Muhammad’ which contains such quotations from the books of their founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad,
trying to prove that he was intoxicated with the love of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), full of
praises for Allah, Holy Quran and Islam. These quotations portray a very beautiful character.
However, the flip side of the coin from the writings of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad is as follows;
He was the second advent of Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and better and superior than the first
coming (Roohani Khazain vol 16 pp.272)

 
“When I am the Holy Prophet incarnate and when all the accomplishments of Muhammad including
the prophethood are reflected in my mirror of my shadiness, then who is the man who has claimed
prophethood in a separate being?” (Ek Ghalti Ka Izala, Roohani Khazain, vol.18, p.212)
Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has come again in this world as Mirza Ghulam to propagate Islam.
(Roohani Khazain vol.17 p.249)

 
Ahmadi should not differentiate between Mirza Ghulam and Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) because
“Anyone who differentiates between me and Mustafa (pbuh) has not seen me and not recognized
me.” (Roohani Khazain vol 16 pp. 171).
Those who join Mirza’s Jama’at become a SAHABI of Rasoolullah. (Roohani Khazain vol 16 pp.258-259)
“I am Adam, I am Noah, I am Abraham, I am Isaac, I am Jacob, I am Ishmael, I am Moses, I am Jesus
son of Mary, I am Mohammad (S.A.W).” (Roohani Khazain vol 22, p.521)

Again unless, I am dumb but these statements are very conspicuous and self explanatory. If you
believe otherwise, why don’t you once again denounce and reject your so called prophet and hold on
to the mainstream Islamic version?

 
With regard to declaring this group disbeliever, the writer’s total disregard for the scholarship of
mainstream Islam is indeed too clear to comment on. In fact in addition to the World Muslim League
fatawa and Fiqh council of Cape Town, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan also issued a fatawa in 1974
pronouncing this group as disbeliever and beyond the pale of Islam. In fact Mirza Ghulam Ahmad
declared those who do not believe in him as disbelievers; – (Anwaar e Khilafat P. 99) it is our duty, not
to take non-Ahmadi as Muslims, nor should we say prayers with them, because they deny one of the
God’s Apostles. While the non-Ahmadi are infidels, so are their six-month old children also. And as
infidels they cannot be buried in the graveyard of the Ahmadi. (Akbhar Paigham-e-Sulah: 16th of Aug
1936).

 
Umar ibn Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “Verily, in the time of the Messenger of
Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, the people would be judged by revelation, but the
revelation has ended. Now we judge you according to your outward deeds. You cannot have double
standards, one foot in Islam and another in kuffurr and expect us to believe you and count you as one
of us. Even if we say hypothetically, these are not part of your creed like you claim, why do you still
believe, follow and hold in high esteem a heretic founder whose kuffur is so obvious?

 
On a final note, I can promise you that sooner or later we will banish you from our graveyards unless
you denounce this new religion of yours. We have lived with Christians far too long yet we never had
these issues because the line has been clearly drawn. Similarly, you have your religion and we have
ours so stop forcing yourselves on us when our creed and theology are fundamentally different. May
Allah show the light of Islam to all those who have been led astray by this fraudulent propaganda in
the name of Islam. May Allah protect the faith of all Muslims from such deceptions. Ameen

BB SANNEH

The Gods Are Not to Blame….

There is a lot of inefficiency in both our private and civil services. We take almost everything for granted and in the process compromise our work and business ethics. This in turn breeds inefficiency, laziness and huge losses to our society. All this is because of the ‘Maslaha’. You often hear people say ‘Gambians are civil’, ‘Gambians are friendly’ and so on and so forth. We overlook very critical details because of this so-called and unsolicited civility.

Mr President, the world is moving at a very rapid rate and we cannot allow ourselves to lag behind because we want to ‘Maslaha’ with some people. Isn’t that what was wrong with Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara’s government, too much Maslaha? The man was soft and kind to a fault. Unscrupulous civil servants saw this in him and they capitalized on it. Some embezzled funds, others destroyed whole projects and many other forms of evil practices were committed because ‘Baba Jawara dinama baalal’. This promoted corruption, nepotism, malfeasance and all sorts of backward behaviour. It was not even unheard of for Jawara to simply transfer someone accused of some wrong to another department. That is obviously not punishment.

Another non-progressive attitude of Gambians is the misguided belief in what they call ‘Ndogali Yallah’. Many people do not have an idea what it means when it is said that something is predestined by God and as such, even if someone is culpable, no action will be taken. But Mr President, if someone breaks the law, then it should be such that some form of justice takes place. Otherwise we would be promoting impunity. Take for instance, the case of the young lady who was involved in an accident and taken to the hospital yesterday. But because there was no police report and that the police were not present, the doctors and/or nurses refused to attend to her until police arrive. Unfortunately for her, she gave up the ghost before a police officer could arrive. What a tragedy!

One can understand the need for the police and the hospitals to work together in cases like this because it is at least one way to help in curbing the growing trend of crime escalation. But can’t there be a way to do that while still saving lives in the process?

There were suggestions that the people responsible should be taken to court to face justice. Then there came counter suggestions that the family of the victim does not want the matter to be a police case because ‘the driver who hit the girl is actually a relative’. But it is said that the young man was drunk. So you see, their belief that ‘lanyinoo lemu’ is compelling them to drop everything and move on. Commendable on their part if only it does not contribute to promoting impunity in the young man and others in the country!

Mr President, it is time that Gambians start owning up to their actions. Take responsibility and do not blame it on God. After all, Gambia is a secular state and people should stop blaming God for their failures. God is not to blame!

Have a Good Day Mr President….

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned Citizen

The Muslim month of Ramadan comes as one of the most highly anticipated moments in the Islamic lunar calendar. This is common knowledge owing to the simple fact that the majority of us here are followers of the Islamic faith.

Forget about the occasional light-minded banter we dished out to one another in the run up to the holy month, the spirit of caring and sharing is first epitomized in the goodwill messages we as a people exchange the very minute the sighting of the moon is made public. Social media platforms get inundated with messages of forgiveness and prayer.

As far as I know, Ramadan remains that sacred month it has ever been. Even as a young chap growing up, the recurring theme that had been on everyone’s lips is that the month of fasting is the period of ‘neemo’; a time when the floodgates of Allah’s blessings and mercy are opened to the faithful on an immeasurable scale.

That makes this month a very special one, with everyone doing his or her bit to get their own portion of the ‘baraajoo’ or ‘tiyabo’that commensurates their deeds. There is intense worship and supplication; the number of worshippers at ‘masjids’ swell even at the work place; local radio stations and of course our only TV station admirably roll out programme upon programme preaching such things like the Dos and Donts of fasting and how this fundamental pillar of Islam was prescribed upon those who had inhabited the earth before us. (Refer to Surahtul Baqara Verse 183-185)

Equally, there is also the sleep-inducing melodious Islamic songs and Quranic verses on the airwaves, filling us with a sense of tranquility. If you happen to be at the Saateebaa market, audio tapes of the late Muhammed Lamin Janneh fill the air, evoking memories of a soft spoken scholar who in his earthly days won many hearts and minds. And years after his passing, Omar Bun Jeng too continues to remind us about his undying legacy through his powerful recordings; works that come very handy for us all .

Thankfully at least for now, those disturbing ear- bashing ‘boom’ ‘boom’ reggae things are placed on the pause button. The drivers themselves have put the brakes on such an irritable stuff. However, even as this holy month brings with it some degree of serenity and sanity in commercial vehicles, the rather nauseating practice of spitting through car windows becomes a habit for some people during this period. I remember a day when I had hastened to alight from a ‘gele-gele’ just because my positioning in that vehicle meant drops of spittle had been clinging on to me. Sadly, one risks being told to find your own private car if you happen to complain in such circumstances. Some people still need reminding that this ‘Deen’ is all about purity and decency both spiritual and physical.

From a massive upgrade in dress codes such as the ‘Hijab’ on the part of women to improved comportment levels, Ramadan in The Gambia is indeed a rectifier of societal conduct, going as far as regulating most people’s moral compass. Such is the degree of respect accorded to this holy month.

However, the difficulty in getting transport after work and its attendant problem of traffic jam especially on the Latrikunda Sabiji-Tabokoto highway requires a great deal of patience for someone eager to quench his or her thirst after a long day at the office.The same can be said of working women who like to beat the rush hour to prepare the ‘ndogu’.Another familiar sight during this holy month is that of people lining the roadside around the Westfield/Cooperative area cursing the bluff of drivers who seem revel in their ordeal. A pitiful situation that raises questions about man’s concern for man at a time when a show of generosity towards one another pays off handsomely.

Such lamentable scenarios, adding to the manner in which the price of basic goods go through the roof, are few frustrating experiences the faithful in The Gambia do endure every other Ramadan. Long may we continue to bask in the virtues and feel good factor that are the hallmark of this month.

By Famara Fofana#

Wait a minute. Who is doing you a favour here, Mr President? The unwitting fixers or the genuine sceptics? In all honesty, you are seemingly a consummate servant-leader. In other words, you are a deligent architect of consensus and an intrepid navigator of tempestuous political waters. However, your navigation visibility is being blurred by some unwitting fixers smoothing the steering for you to sail into unsettling drift. Nature educates while some can be borne psychopath and others may unfurl marcissism from early childhood, irrefutably, almost anyone can become Machiavellian given the right marinating ingredients. Lamentably, this worrisome crusade to sanctify your leadership to win win no matter what, how, when or where might mutate you into another Babili from Iceland. “Oh hell no”, they will muster, “Barrow will never be another Babili in new Gambia”. Conversely, Goloh Ajuma never arrived as a Babili but graduated distinctively by our meticulous mentoring. Given the same conditioning ingredients, you could radiantly.

 
Albeit the overwhelming demand to fix Goloh’s 22 years of carnage with limited resources within the blink of an eye can produce detachment and low sense of accomplishment, you must not let the false prophets bar you from bridging the disconnect between your government and the Gambians in the diaspora. Once you perceived us as the stumbling block, cause that is their objective, you will hasten into a defensive corner and that is where Machiavellianism sets in. Instead of letting this unhealthy sanctification fester, do the right thing by taking ownership of servant-leading the Gambian people. Most often good leadership demands ‘fixing the problems no one else wants to touch’. Admittedly, you earnestly desire to deliver Gambia to the promised land but you are dispelling the mutinous calls as a relevant threat to your leadership. Take a close look at the Foni post election saga, the Kanilai miscarriage discharge, the Farato rampage and the vile video threats to our security services. What do they share in common? Do they ferment any potent with far-reaching and profoundly costly effects?

 
Perhaps Mr President, you are calculating what steps to take in order to drive the desired remedy that would register deafening approval. Approval? “What is he at again?”, you might ponder. Well, Mr President, apart from the desire to live successfully, the most luring addictive is the hunger for approval. I can’t be wrong here. We all now and again crave for that approval. However, to successfully accomplish popular demands, one must be able to balance between excessive approval and the daunting fear of rejection. Excess of either could push one from the cliff of success into abysmal failure. We all do not want you to fail neither do we all want you to succeed. Consequently, carefully select the good we offer and bin the ones you find no use for. To this Yunus Hydara buttressed, “You are right, our people to value criticism and take the essences from it. If we all think alike, someone is not thinking. That is dangerous for a country that is still very vulnerable”. Truthfully, sometimes we are blinded by ego to either think or accept that dissenters are unsatiable haters who market no good. Sceptics, unlike conformists, often portray situations as they are instead of how you want them.

 
Ah…Mai Ahmed Fatty again! They said he spoke more Babili than Babili. But what is a gold nugget to a pig? The felon is wrong but his feathers must not be ruffled. Well, we might as well let them orchestrate their carnage and applaud them for their gallantry. A group of young devils unleashed the gates of hell and the guiding angel is warned to be caressing. How do we expect diplomacy to restore law and order in a vulnerable country that witnesses new episodes of lawlessness every other day? No softy…softy. Yes, do not break the law but don’t go soft with unruly recalcitrants who think they are the law. Even in the so-called civilised world, people who break the law are dealt with accordingly. How can you be nice to a group of drug peddlers standing up against law enforcement officers? Or someone chillingly issuing nerve-wracking threat to the security on a video and circulating it on social media? Or a group of villagers thinking they are a nation within a nation? Gambia needs to settle and compromising her security will only render her ungovernable. If you don’t want to serve the term don’t commit the crime.

Sulayman Jeng
Birmingham, UK

‘Man is a selfish animal.’ (Karl Max) This statement of Karl Max perfectly sums up our collective society’s outlook of life, in the distant past, the recent past and even at present. This selfishness characterizes most of our interactions and how we relate to one another. It is this selfishness that brings about greed, which turns the wheels of ambition and the desire to be better [for oneself and, than others]. Thus, it is not bad in itself. It is the applications that can be bad.

In the first regime, many people made themselves praise singers of the president just to be in his good books. They used that to gain favours, positions, financial rewards, prestige and all the other goodies. The then president, Sir Dawda Jawara, being soft and lenient to a fault allowed these wolves in sheep’s clothing to railroad his administration and portray him as being weak and ineffective. In the end this caught up with him.

Then, we had another type of human being – basically, the same selfishness and greed but with little or no interest to conceal it, and no remorse – who again was surrounded by these people. In some instances the same people who joined him in crucifying Jawara on the microphone, started heaping praises on him. They praised him, spied for him, tortured for him, and allegedly some even killed for him. I used to be shocked whenever I heard a dismissed official write to thank the president. Come on! Seriously? The guy just sacked you [mostly for no reaon ] and you run to GRTS to thank him. Thank him for what exactly, violating your rights?

Now, Mr President, they have started again. Some people who were known to be Jammeh loyalists, who sang his praises, who informed on Gambians to him have now turned a new leaf, so to speak. They are now saints who ‘tried to end Jammeh’s dictatorship,’. They present themselves as being part of the struggle from the beginning. They will narrate how great you are, how humble you are unlike the ‘Monster’…

Behold! These were the same words they uses against Jawara to Jammeh and now…. Well, you guessed it, they are using them to gain something from you. Take nothing for granted, take nothing at face value, investigate everyone you want to appoint. They must not be allowed to railroad our Brand New Democratic Government. They sense your kindness, your being soft and it reminds them of a certain kind gentleman and they want to pounce.

Here is my advice to those of you who think you can use sycophancy to gain something from our new president. Your beautiful rationalisation of your actions on social media will not do the trick this time, because we know you. We will call you out, by name if necessary. So keep away from our President!

Have a Good Day Mr President….

Tha Scribbler Bah

A Concerned Citizen

The most important news in The Gambia since the election happened last week. It’s not the Attorney General’s bombshell news briefing on the freezing of 88 bank accounts, 131 landed properties, and 14 companies belonging to or directly associated with the exiled despot. Nor was it Lawyer Awa Sisay Sabally’s applause-worthy call on President Barrow to appoint without any further delay a Vice President. It was something that didn’t receive the same level of attention as the above. Nonetheless, it was the ultimate news of this political transition.

At the national stakeholders conference on justice and human rights at Kairaba Beach Hotel, Chief Justice Hassan Jallow affirmed that, in the light of many amendments that could affect the 1997 Constitution (the current Constitution), the state intended to draft a new Constitution. One news outlet quoted him as saying, “There is a strong case for the drafting of a new constitution under the leadership of a new group of experts set up by the state.” Reading the words that are in bold (the emphasis are mine), I was overcome at once with ecstatic relief. With a gleeful heart and bated breath, I crowed, “Hallelujah! God bless the Chief Justice!”

Given the defects of the current Constitution and the deliberate dilutions it suffered at the behest of the upended regime, the need to draft a new one should have been an obvious foregone conclusion. The fact that it hadn’t been until the Chief Justice’s revelation should have been the biggest scandal for the new government. In the run-up to the election, the Coalition included constitutional review in its reform agenda. The Memorandum of Understanding didn’t expound on what this ambiguous term would entail. Two things, however, implied an overhaul.

First, the central agreement of the Coalition was that their candidate for President would serve only three years in office to carry out a transition of democratic reforms, followed by a fresh election. Since that candidate was to be elected for a five-year term as required under the current Constitution, the cleanest, and probably the most legitimate and justifiable, way to accomplish this agreement would be to draft a new Constitution that would come into force in three years. With the new Constitution adopted in three years, the current one would cease to be in existence, and the current five-year term of the President would be curtailed to three years without anyone having to engage in any convoluted tampering with an already battered Constitution.

Second, almost all Coalition figures and their outspoken allies during and after the election kept promising how governing would be different in the third republic. And right after Barrow was sworn into office, the new administration began claiming that we are now in the third republic. To the extent that it matters, we aren’t in the third republic. We are still in the second republic. Barrow is the second president of the second republic. A new Constitution will usher in the third republic. An ordinary transfer of power through an election under an existing Constitution cannot ring in a republic. Otherwise, the United States would have surpassed 40 republics when it’s still in its first.

Those factors notwithstanding, the Coalition turned out to have something different in mind. Barrow, at his first press conference after he took office, was asked if the new government planned to write a new Constitution. He responded that they would only make amendments to the current one. You can imagine my disappointment. (For me, replacing the current Constitution with one that’s far superior must be the dominant issue of this transition.)

Why the Coalition never called for a new Constitution outright defied logic. I became upset at the body as a whole, but more so at its two most influential wings. Though several opposition parties had come together to form the Coalition, the key players in real terms were UDP and PDOIS. They are also the only opposition parties with substantive but clashing positions on the current Constitution. Their rivalry over it began from the beginning of the second republic. To PDOIS, the current Constitution is essentially good, if not great. In or outside of the Coalition, PDOIS, to my knowledge, hasn’t called for a new Constitution. The party can always provide a long list of great provisions in the current Constitution in their defense of it. Nevertheless, all in all, they are wrong, but at least consistent.

To UDP, on the other hand, the current Constitution was to all intents and purposes the despot’s Constitution. All the reason their failure to call for a new Constitution demands more than the charge of inconsistence. The party’s taciturnity on the matter borders on hypocrisy. It’s rendered more unconscionable by the fact that while Barrow technically ran as an independent, his political home remained UDP. This, in addition to the fact that they were the largest party in the Coalition, gave them more sway on this question. So I was left confounded by their seemingly newfound faith in a set of amendments to remedy the current Constitution. I even wondered whether gaining power finally has given them second thoughts about reining in the imperial presidency, and establishing a democracy on separation of powers with checks and balances. Why would they entrust the President with powers that they rightly didn’t want vested in the despot? I wondered still further if they now disagree with Lawyer Lamin J. Darboe’s erudite observation that, “Undoubtedly, [the current] Constitution permits the legal mismanagement of Gambian public life. With its hollow protections, it would still be an instrument of violence, if only potentially, even in the most benign of hands. It has no place in a proper democracy!”

The case against amendments alone goes beyond the stubborn fact that too many amendments needed to be carried out. The most obnoxious parts that must be expunged from the nation’s Constitution — paragraphs 11, 12, 13 and 14 of Schedule 2 (the so-called Indemnity Clause) — are themselves indemnified from any amendments either by the National Assembly or by a referendum thanks to paragraph 17 of the said Schedule. These paragraphs confer absolute blanket amnesty on the despot and the entire regime of the Armed Forces Provisional Ruling Council (AFPRC) for any decision or action they took during the military rule, which might include stealing millions from our national treasury and engaging in extra-judicial killings. Hence my utter disappointment when the Coalition stated their position on the current Constitution. It’s all too clear that amendments alone wouldn’t suffice. They wouldn’t and couldn’t undo these monstrosities of Schedule 2.

The most obscene thing about the referenced sections of Schedule 2 is its arrogance and moral turpitude. The military junta overthrew the elected government, albeit an ineffectual one. They launched multiple Commissions of Inquiry into that government in the name of “accountability, transparency, and probity.” They made so much noise about “rampant corruption” that had occurred in that government. And then, lo and behold, they turned around saying never mind all that. All Presidents, National Assemblies, and Courts must hereby be denied forever the legal authority to do to the junta what the junta did to the preceding government. Why wouldn’t they want their own example be applied to them? Why what’s good for the goose not good for the gander?

It should be noted that advocating for a new Constitution mustn’t be misunderstood as arguing for the entire current Constitution to be junked. Just as the current one largely kept the framework of the 1970 Constitution and still contained significant changes, the new one will emulate similar but nobler objective. I may even hazard a guess that the new Constitution will preserve about 70 percent of the current one. Properly done, however, the 30 percent difference will make a world of real difference between constitutional democracy and constitutional dictatorship. Let’s consider the case of the Chief Justice as an example. Whether one liked the appointment of Hassan Jallow or not, we must all bear in mind that just as Barrow appointed the justice all by himself under the current Constitution, Barrow can remove the justice anytime all by himself. The constitutional requirement that the President must consult the Judicial Service Commission is a bureaucratic waste of time by way of meaningless rigmarole. The Commission’s advice is, strictly speaking, a matter of mere formality. It’s non-binding in any shape or form. Is this what we want? For one person, however conscientious that person may be, to have that much power? And we wonder why we don’t have an independent judiciary? Presidents mustn’t consult at all any Commission whose authority is subservient to the President’s. The consultation regarding appointment of judges should be made to the National Assembly and the National Assembly’s vote to approve or disapprove should be binding. And judges must not be removed except by impeachment for unlawful conduct. That way, judges cannot be appointed or removed whenever a President feels like it.

Even if we feel rest assured that Barrow and future Presidents would never be anything like the despot, we shouldn’t leave so much of our fate at the mercy of their discretions. For instance, Barrow’s failure or refusal to appoint a Vice President after four months in office may not be violating the letter of the Constitution, but it’s totally contrary to its spirit. It’s also not just a cavalier attitude toward complying with the law, it puts the line of succession to the highest office in the land at risk for no good reason. Worse still, appointing someone who, for whatever unfair and undemocratic requirements, is disqualified from holding the office of Vice President to oversee the Vice Presidency isn’t only a display of insouciance toward the Constitution, but also an apparent act of violating the oath to uphold the Constitution without fear, favor, affection or ill will.

Talking about not trusting people in power to always do the right thing, one of my longstanding beefs with the current Constitution is the National Assembly’s ability to amend the so-called non-entrenched clauses. Like elsewhere, our experience has shown that politicians always claim to be acting in the national interest, but, far too often, they behave on partisan motives. Even when they truly act on the national interest, such actions are hardly divorced from their partisan interests. Politicians will always be politicians. They will almost always use whatever power is at their disposal to advance their own partisan interests. The amendments to the current Constitution proved that the drafters were wrong to assign the National Assembly the power to amend the Constitution save the entrenched clauses. And the entrenched clauses cannot remain functionally sacrosanct if their force can be undermined by the amendment or abrogation of related, supporting, or underlying clauses. As the supreme law of the land, everything in the Constitution should be deemed consequential. If they are not, they shouldn’t be in the utmost law. If they are, they should be beyond the grasp of the momentary passions or partisan motives of politicians. Yes, the power to make laws is invested in the National Assembly. But the one law they must not make is the law that gives them the power to make laws. The entire Constitution must be entrenched. No clause or paragraph or even punctuation mark must be amended without a referendum. The people must have their say. That’s the only assurance to protect the Constitution from being perverted by self-serving, power-grabbing politicians.

There are many other reasons to draft a new Constitution. Among them, the current one is poorly put together. It lacks the coherence and elegance a great national document deserves. To back up this contention, I must rely once again on Lamin J Darboe’s perceptive conclusion: “In The Gambia, [the current] Constitution is devoid of serious artistic beauty due mainly to the apparent absence of any real intention to ground the polity in objectively verifiable rule of law. This may be attributable to the fact that the political midwives of the Constitution were also present at the critical juncture of its creation. As they were interested, had absolute power, and wielded the veto, the resulting product was way short of the minimum standards a document like a national constitution must acquire to pass the requisite test of balance and neutrality, a document, so to speak, that can serve as a fitting legacy for posterity.”

It’s therefore gratifying to know that the new government had a change of heart. It’s also reassuring that the source of the news was the Chief Justice. And even more reassuring, he did more than share word about the plan to draft a new Constitution. He justified both the necessity and wisdom of such an undertaking. The importance of this is just too great. Monumental, in fact. That’s why the Chief Justice spoke for me. We now have the chance to establish the third republic that seeks that elusive equilibrium between security and liberty. We must institute a government that has all the power to protect the rights of the good folks of Kiang. At the same time, that government must have no power to set aside at will the rights of the good folks of Kiang. Then, we can celebrate our Constitution and our Republic.

By Foday Samateh