The Gambia Police Force must be informed that they have no authority to deny citizens from holding public institutions and public officials accountable. Brikama Area Council is a public institution and the Governor, Chairperson, Councillors and Staffs of Brikama Area Council are public servants. For that matter any resident of West Coast Region who feels dissatisfied by the performance of the Brikama Area Council has a right to express himself or herself or protest or go to court to address his or her grievance.

The right to freedom of expression, assembly, association and petition are entrenched clauses guaranteed in our Constitution. Hence residents of West Coast Region have a right to protest against the Area Council and indeed about any issue in their region. The Gambia Police Force must not prevent residents from holding the Area Council accountable.

It is clear that Brikama Area Council has failed to deliver adequate, quality and efficient public goods and services to the people of West Coast Region. For example, the poor hygiene conditions in markets across the region and the poor roads as well as the limited utility services provided by the Council deserves public outcry. The Brikama Area Council has not been transparent to the people of West Coast Region by telling them the amount of revenue it collects and how much it invests back to the people. Hence the people of West Coast Region have a right to protest against the leadership and management of Brikama Area Council.

The Gambia Police Force and the IGP in particular have no authority whatsoever to deny the people to hold their elected and appointed public officials accountable. What is expected of the IGP is to provide the necessary security for the protesters and other citizens so that there is peace and order. But the IGP has no reason whatsoever to prevent citizens from protesting. There is no security situation in any part of the Gambia such that protests cannot take place in any part of the Gambia. If so, let the IGP say it loud and clear.

I urge the people of West Coast Region to totally ignore the IGP and continue with their protest with or without a permit. It is your constitutional right to demonstrate peacefully! Let the IGP arrest all of West Coast Region and see what the rest of Gambia citizens will do.

In fact, according to the Public Order Act, it is not the IGFP who should grant a permit for protests in the regions. Section 5 stipulates that it is the Governor of the Region to do so. Therefore, withdraw your application from the IGP because he has no authority to grant permit for a demonstration outside of the Banjul City and Kanifing Municipality. Therefore, ignore any denial posed by the IGP!

I wish to put it to the IGP Alagie Mamour Jobe that he does not own West Coast Region neither Brikama Area Council and certainly he does not own the people of the Gambia such that he would arrogate to himself the power to determine what citizens can do or cannot do. Alagie Mamour Jobe is just a mere appointed public servant who is mandated to uphold the Constitution of the Republic of the Gambia which has guaranteed the rights of Gambians. Hence Alagie Mamour Jobe has no power or authority in anyway to flout our Constitution and our sovereign rights.

Therefore, let IGP Alagie Mamour Jobe and the Gambia Police Force not injure our democracy and undermine good governance. The Gambia Police Force must not disregard our Constitution rather it must be seen to uphold and enforce the Constitution. That is the only job for the Gambia Police Force. By denying citizens to protest so that they can hold public institutions accountable it means IGP Alagie Mamour Jobe is covering up, aiding and abetting abuse, corruption and waste by our public institutions. This is unacceptable.

We, The Citizens, must not ever again allow any public institution or public official to abuse our rights and flout our Constitution. This country belongs to citizens and not to the President or the IGP or the Governor or the Chairperson. These elected and appointed public servants must be seen to protect the rights of citizens as specified in our Constitution. The Constitution has guaranteed our rights and we must not allow any so-called public official to deny us that right. We have a right to protest and the Gambia Government has a duty to protect that right and not to stop it.

I hereby warn the IGP to desist from any action that will harm the rights and the person of those protesters. I hereby warn the IGP to give full protection to the protesters and other citizens who are not part of the protest. If the IGP arrests anyone for protesting that will constitute unlawful arrest for which I and like-minded citizens will sue the IGP. The time has come for citizens to take up their citizenship duty as per the Constitution. No to Dictatorship.

For the Gambia Our Homeland

Former Secretary General and Minister of Presidential Affairs Momodou Sabally has further emphasised his criticism of plans to transform The Gambia Technical Training Institute, GTTI, into a university of Science and Technology as recently announced by government.

Speaking to graduating students and the audience including the National Assembly Member for the area, the Chief and other local authorities,  assembled at Somita Senior Secondary School on Sunday July 21, 2019, Sabally harped on the need for government to get its priorities right; and to focus on improving the quality of basic and secondary education rather than dispersing scarce resources on the creation of a new university while our only University, UTG remains underfunded and ill-equipped. His remarks dovetailed into the school principal‘s report which highlighted that the school’s laboratories have not been equipped yet.

Sabally further advised the graduates to proceed to tertiary institutions and to get further training, and implored them to“Seek the means to improve your talents and skills on a continuous basis, and develop the habit of life-long learning. Education is your golden key to the gates of bliss and fortune in this Information Age that is gradually cementing the blocks of the knowledge economy that the world is running on.”

In a graduation speech a few days earlier at Jiboroh Upper Basic School, Sabally addressed students on the topic of discipline and asserted that in order for our societies to effectively combat the problem of indiscipline, “government needs to lead the process of reviving our cultural institutions like circumcision rites so that we can rebuild what we lost in terms of our sacred, sanctifying and edifying cultural practices.”

“Whatever I have achieved in life today, by the grace of Allah, could not have been attained without the disciplinary regime I went through with my teachers during the early period of my education. But all this disciplinary regime at school was based on the foundation of our cultural institutions of discipline – rites of passage: Circumcision and it’s myriad processes of instilling discipline.

“Alas, we have thrown away these cultural institutions in pursuit of our so called modern civilisation and now look at where we stand!

As young people I implore you to obey your school rules, respect your teachers and remain focused on your education. Life is not easy, has never been easy. Therefore discipline is your insurance against the inevitable turbulences you have to go through to make it in life.”

In other commencement speeches he delivered during the past two weeks, Sabally spoke to graduates of New Covenant School on the importance of formal education on July 19, in Faji Kunda and also dwelled on the importance of the education of the girl child when he addressed the community of Kerr Auldi in the Central River Region on July 13, 2019.

With Gambia as a former British colony, it was virtually natural for Gambians to emigrate to Britain during the colonial period and after our independence. There was a sense of familiarity and we understood their ways a bit after dealing with them during the colonial days. The connection was already there. The United States and Scandinavia followed after independence too. Today, you will find large numbers of Gambians in all these places that have settled for decades and have families there. In rare cases, you will find third generation Gambians in some of these places, but it’s mostly first and second generations, since we started emigrating in significant numbers.

Given this backdrop, one would assume that by now, we would have had solid and cohesive Gambian communities in most of the places we have chosen to emigrate to in substantial numbers. But that’s not the case, judging by how fragmented we are regardless of our population in a particular area. The fragmentation is born out of the unhealthy and unnecessary competition that exist among us, in my opinion. Instead of collaborating to help and support one another, we unnecessarily compete on all fronts for individual achievements. We are too busy trying to outshine each other on the individual level, that we are oblivious about the big picture of community and the strength it can bring.

The number of Gambians in London and other major cities in England is pretty considerable given The Gambia’s population, but I am not aware of a Gambian Community Center in any of those cities set up by Gambians to help orientate and integrate new arrivals by assisting them with training, job search, or educational opportunities. The same could be said for major cities here in the United States with a noteworthy Gambian presence too, such as Atlanta, Maryland, Raleigh, Seattle and New York. On the other hand, I am aware of such Community Centers established by other immigrants in cities, such as the Confederation of Somali Community in Minnesota. They provide educational programs for Somali students of all ages, develop talent, and provide a comprehensive workforce and technical training to build job skills. They also do immigration advocacy when community members get caught by the “Immigration Net.” I am also aware of an Ethiopian Community and Cultural Center right here in Oakland and many other cities, including London, that does the same things.

There is strength in numbers, and a united community will benefit all. But for us (Gambians), an individual is first and community last. We are consumed by the “teyki competition” to see the big picture of community. The more we can isolate ourselves from the community the better, and we are now proud and virtually brag about our kids not liking our food or understanding and speaking our languages. What you now hear is “hai, kee morm daygut Olof deh” or “kee morm like-gut sunge laka yee, hamga hamut bopam.” Our kids don’t like our food so we buy them Chinese food? The Chinese kids that were born in the west do eat Chinese food (their food), but our kids who were born in the west don’t eat our food? This is neither cute nor wise, and we need to snap out of it and refuse to enable this pattern of robbing our own kids of their identity.

Here in San Francisco, every time there is a Chinese parade or cultural event, the performances are filled with third and fourth generation young Chinese kids, they are the ones inside those big dragons in the parades and they are the ones beating the drums. They have been taught the Chinese culture and they are carrying on the traditions with pride, despite never even been to China, for many of them. The same could be said about other immigrant communities too, such as the Japanese and Mexican communities. Regardless of where one is in this global world, it is important to be able to know and accept your identity because it is an integral part of humanity, and food and language play a big role in that. Lots of other people go to Gambia to learn about our languages and enjoy our food as part of their human experience, yet some of us are denying our children the opportunity to lean our own languages and appreciate our food. What an irony!

Irrespective of where you find yourself, you should still value and appreciate your identity. And if we deny that to our children, we would have done them a huge disservice. Knowing and accepting their identity will strengthen them so they too can appreciate Gambia and be able to give back, as we embark on this arduous journey of trying to build Gambia.

Honourable Minister and my dear respected kotor,

I salute you with great reverence and with good reasons for that respect: You have always been a great source of inspiration for us throughout the nineties and beyond, as one of the brightest stars in our academic firmament. Indeed I have never met a public official so eloquent and imbued with brilliance like you.

That respect remains to this day. And it is because of the high esteem in which I have always held you that this epistle, which should have been penned much earlier, got delayed. Indeed it is very difficult to criticise public officials on policy matters in our little town called Gambia. This is due to the fact that our people prefer to hush down issues and make gossip mills out of important matters rather than coming out boldly to challenge the relevant authorities.

We used Yahya Jammeh’s heavy hand as an excuse for this but the same attitude remains, by and large, post-Jammeh. And that is why I developed a new descriptor hashtag #HushHushNation as I still ride on my foundational one #CantCageMe.

It is sad to note that whenever I publish open letters to serving public officials, some people assume that I have personal problems with those officials despite the obvious fact that the matters I raise are issues of genuine public concern. Therefore I am very careful and I do not rush to issue critiques of public officials; I became extra cautious on this one because of the respect and admiration I have for you.

However, the matter at hand is so critical and so urgent that if I do not write this letter, I would not be able to sleep peacefully. The subject is education, a matter I deeply care about in this country.

When I first heard that The Gambia Technical Training Institute (GTTI) virtually our only vocational training institute worth its name was going to be transformed into a university alongside the Management Development Institute (MDI), I thought it was some kind of a joke or a case of newspapers misreporting a matter too complex. Alas, I was wrong and I knew that to be the case when I read yet another news report announcing Cabinet approval for what I have now labelled the worst decision in our educational history.

Honourable Minister, I believe that you may disagree outwardly but in the inner recess of your heart, you would firmly agree with me that our only public university, the UTG is not in good shape at all. The students of this university do not have adequate classroom and sanitary facilities. UTG still lacks the right numbers of professors and lecturers to be able to fully and effectively carry out its mandate.

Funding for the UTG is inadequate and the leadership at that university is certainly suboptimal, to be euphemistic about a very serious and critical situation. Most times I have said that the energy, and brilliance, exhibited by the students of the UTG far outpaces the leadership at that university and something should be done about that to help us duly harness the brimming potential of our dynamic young minds.

After two decades of operation our only public university does not have a proper library, talk less of modern laboratories. Recently one of the programmes in that university (UTG) in the area of science could not pass the test of accreditation from relevant authorities but desperate efforts had to be mounted to make sure that programme is given a pass.

Why then do you think that it is prudent to create a new university of science and technology and in the process rob us of the only vocational training institute we can boast of as a nation in dire need of skilled technicians in every field?

Honourable Minister, I am sure you have seen my comment on Facebook on this matter but it is important that I repeat it here for emphasis as I conclude part one of of this epistle: A country that doesn’t have a single solid high school level physics lab has no business trying to set up a so called university of science and technology…stop misleading our President!

‘Jeurejeuff kotor Badara’, you have served us well from the previous government as a very effective permanent secretary at the Ministry of Basic Education. You continue you serve us well as Minister of Higher Education and we appreciate your service. But this move on GTTI is not a wise one. Let the conversation continue in part 2, inshaa Allah.

Your Faithfully
Momodou Sabally
Former Secretary General and Head of the Civil Service, author.

The rebuttal by Mamadou Tangara that he never sought the extradition of Ndey Tapha Sosseh from Mali is laden with loopholes for which Tangara cannot exonerate himself from such an immoral and unpatriotic act. After serving a dictator for so long in such a strategic capacity, Tangara cannot make me believe that he believes in and upholds any higher values and standards otherwise why would Tangara, a highly educated and marketable intellectual as he is and knowing the brutality and despotism of Jammeh, decided to stick with Yaya Jammeh until the end? No human being deserves trust and respect who aids and abets a tyrant and a tyranny that is notorious for rape, torture, murder and plunder of public wealth.

In his rebuttal Tangara acknowledged that indeed Tyrant Jammeh expressed concern about the presence of Kukoie and Ndey Tapha in Mali. Knowing Jammeh, does Tangara want to make us believe that Jammeh will only express such a concern and not go further to seek the extradition, abduction or murder of these individuals? By acknowledging that Jammeh raised that concern it is clear that indeed Jammeh would indeed send him to Mali to execute that concern. Tangara knows, like the rest of us, that Jammeh has no values, no morals, no patriotism and no fear of God to seek the destruction of the rights and life of a human being especially those he perceived to be his enemies.

Further, in his misleading rebuttal Tangara said he did warn one Jibi Bah to be careful of Jammeh but then he could not reach out to Ndey Tapha for “obvious reasons”! What are those “obvious reasons”? How could Tangara find it difficult to contact Ndey Tapha when it was Tangara himself who said that Ndey used to send him pictures and reports of her activities. Tangara went further to even claim that he had once “handpicked” Ndey for a training in Mali. The question therefore is how could someone be so close to you that you even recommended her for a training but then you cannot make a mere call or text to save her life? Who is Tangara trying to hoodwink?

By alerting Jibi that he was in danger from Yaya Jammeh and by urging Malian authorities to provide security for Ndey if indeed true, how come therefore that Tangara could not reach out to the main person herself to alert her? Or else, how come Tangara could not also reached out to Mrs. Adelaide Sosseh, one of the most popular and accessible Gambians and the mother of Ndey to warn her? How come Tangara could not even find any trusted person under the sun to warn Ndey? If Tangara could play the kind of role he claimed to have played in the release of Amadou Scattered Jammeh, how come he could not play a similar role in the case of Ndey by reaching out to her?

I am sure Ndey Tapha Sosseh is not ignorant or an ingrate or plainly malicious against Mamadou Tangara. If Ndey could acknowledge the divine intervention provided by the late Kalifa Bajinka how come Ndey could forgot or misconstrue the role played by Tangara. We had seen other witnesses also mention the saviour role Kalifa played but no on ever mentioned Tangara. Why? As Tangara himself acknowledged indeed Ndey is a smart and intelligent woman and I add that she is also one of the most decent, honest and trustworthy human beings on earth. Therefore, I do not see why Ndey would face the world only to lie against one man called Mamadou Tangara or forget or misunderstand how Tangara helped her!

What I can deduct from Ndey’s testimony and from the misleading rebuttal of Tangara is that indeed Tangara is one of the most prodigal sons of this land who unleashed excruciating affliction on the body and soul of our nation. This is because Tangara is one of the most highly educated human beings in the world. Tangara knows that Yaya Jammeh was not only uneducated and ignorant, but he was also corrupt, vile, immoral and despicable who has no good for any society. Yet Tangara decided to share even one day with Jammeh to enable him to continue to unleash havoc on Gambians. By his education and experience, one would have imagined that Tangara would not even have hesitated for once to join the Jammeh Cabinet. Not only did he join that Gang of Imbeciles, but he also went further to bask in its glory and defending that regime with all of his might and soul! Shame.

Let Tangara resign now and offer an unconditional and unreserved apology to Gambians for his role to sustain a brutal regime whose only character was to kill and rape hundreds of Gambian men and women and boys and girls. Tangara cannot claim that he was not aware of murderous, corrupt and criminal nature of Yaya Jammeh and the APRC Regime! Yet he served them well!

Well before the TRRC all Gambians know that it was Yaya Jammeh and his Junta who killed Koro Ceesay. Tangara cannot claim he did not know that it was Yaya Jammeh who ordered the shooting to death of 14 Gambian students. Tangara cannot claim not to know that it was Yaya Jammeh who ordered the killing of Deyda Hydara, Chief Manneh or Mamut Ceesay and Ebou Jobe or Solo Sandeng. Tangara cannot claim that he did not know the existence of the Junglers, and the culture of tortures and extrajudicial killings perpetrated by them under the command of Yaya Jammeh.  Yet despite this knowledge, which all Gambians also know, Tangara silently and obediently continued to serve that tyrant. What kind of human being is Mamadou Tangara? Which God and what religion does Tangara believe? What values does Tangara uphold?

At the end of the day all that I can say is that it is in fact Pres Adama Barrow disrespecting Gambians. For it is so disappointing and insulting that indeed President Adama Barrow could think of nothing other than to appoint people like Mamadou Tangara into the highest office of the land. The decision to appoint Mamadou Tangara into the Cabinet of the Gambia is the most stupid, immoral, unpatriotic, ungodly, insulting and treacherous decision anyone can make. Whoever appointed Mamadou Tangara into our Cabinet can only be described as a traitor, betrayer and unworthy son or daughter of the Gambia. It is such a shame and insult of unparalleled proportions!

Ndey Tapha Sosseh is a patriot. She is among the best sons and daughters of the Gambia. She is not comparable by any standards to Mamadou Tangara and all those traitors and immoral sons and daughters who sold their soul to Yaya Jammeh to betray Mother Gambia! Ndey Tapha Sosseh could have equally prostituted herself to Yaya Jammeh and become an ambassador or director or governor or permanent secretary or minister. But no, she chose the Gambia instead while Tangara disowned the Gambia and chose Yaya Jammeh. If Tangara wants to cleanse himself let him take the courageous and honourable step by resigning and apologising to Gambians immediately but he cannot use Ndey Tapha Sosseh to cleanse himself. Ndey Tapha Sosseh is far more decent and patriotic than that! Shame on Traitors!

For the Gambia Our Homeland

Former Secretary General and Presidential Affairs Minister, Momodou Sabally, has applauded Gambia’s erstwhile leader Yahya Jammeh for his courage and vision in establishing the country’s first ever university (UTG).

He made these remarks,  Friday, July 12, 2019 while addressing graduates at Sibanor Secondary School.

“This is indeed a day worth celebrating both for you and your parents. 25 years ago, no one parent could have imagined their children accomplishing Secondary school education under their own roof and under their own watchful eyes in this blessed and historic town of Sibanorr.

“So then we must give the devil his due and commend our former Head of State Sheikh Professor Dr. Alhagie Yahya AJJ Jammeh who had the vision, courage and tenacity to initiate the actual democratisation of education in this country. Yes that is the man who also gave us our first ever university.

“And those who tell you that Yahya Jammeh used our tax money to build a university, should be told to go and ask our first President Sir Dawda Jawara, what did he use our tax money for.

“Jammeh is gone, his legacy stays. We have a new President, let us give him our unflinching support because nation building is a continuous process. It is a relay. Jawara gave the baton to Jammeh, Jammeh to Barrow. Now let us move together in unity as a team. Team Gambia:

One Gambia

One People

One Nation”

He later advised the graduates to be persistent in pursuit of their educational goals and to never stop learning.

“Education is your multipurpose visa in this increasingly complex global village we live in today. And therefore our progress as individuals, communities and nations would only be commensurate with our level of education and training.

“Reading and learning are my most important tools and assets to this day and beyondinshaa Allah. So my advice to you on the topic of “Life after School” is ‘Go Back to Schooll!!! Keep reading, keep learning.’

Sabally concluded his speech by reiterating a message he gave to graduating students in another school barely a week ago:

“Stay away from politics and do not allow anyone to use you to create chaos or instability in your country in the pursuit of their selfish interests. Engagement in your civic duties is important but at this stage in your life, my advice is to stay away from party politics, perform your civic duties and responsibilities. Get your voters cards when you qualify for that (by age), go to the polls when the time comes and keep the peace!” He concluded.

Former Presidential  Affairs Minister as well as Secretary General and Head of the Civil Service, Momodou Sabally, was the Guest Speaker at the graduation ceremony of Yunus English School in Busumbala on Saturday June 29, 2019.

Addressing more than 230 graduates on the topic “Education as a Tool for Personal Development and National Progress”, Sabally decried the level acrimony in our current political landscape. He therefore advised the youths to stay out of politics and focus on their education for personal development and to prepare themselves for active positive roles in our nation building process.

He admonished the youths to eschew any groups or movements trying to create instability in the country and encouraged them to respect the laws of the land as enshrined in the constitution of the republic. “Everyone has only one vote so there is no need to fight about politics. When the time comes for elections in 2021, just go to the polls and peacefully cast your vote!”

Dilating on the theme of his speech Sabally advised the graduates thus:

“With reference to the verses of the Quran that I opened this speech with, their meanings are quite clear on the surface but just like the deep, vast ocean that the Holy Quran is, these verses have multiple layers of meaning.

“But for the purposes of this speech, I draw from these first two verses of Surah Jumuah, the message that Prophet Muhammad’s mission is to TEACH us.

“And so if the one in whose hands is the keys to our redemption has the duty to TEACH us  and the first verse that was revealed to him was “Iqra”, then is their anything more important in our lives than to learn?

“Like any good thing, education comes at a cost. From school fees to uniforms and foregone income, we have to pay the price. But the results are more than worth the trouble!

“In the words of the Greek Philosopher Aristotle, “The roots of education are bitter, but the fruit is sweet.”

“One of my favourite role models, American Founding Father Benjamin Franklin puts it this way “If a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take it away from him. An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”

Sabally then buttressed his message to the graduates by narrating his own story on how education empowered him to become a useful global citizen, serving not only his country but people from all over the world.

He paid tribute to the founder and proprietor of the School Mr. Yunus Sillah and congratulated the graduating students and their parents.

Former Secretary General and international speaker Momodou Sabally has called for a return to the basic tenets of our cultural and religious ethos in inculcating discipline in young people.

He made this remarks at the graduation ceremony of the West African Senior Secondary School (WASS), on Friday June 28, 2019, as Chief Guest of Honour and Keynote Speaker.

Speaking on the theme “Combatting the High Increase of Indiscipline Among Teenagers in School” Sabally asserted:

“The topic is indeed of relevance without any shadow of a doubt.

Yet the question must be asked: ‘What went wrong? Where were we; what used to obtain in the past? And how did we find ourselves in this mess.’

“My first diagnostic premise is that we went for western education whole scale without making sure our cultural value system was fully integrated into the stuff we were feeding into the minds of our young people.

“The abandonment of initiation rites both for male and female has played a major role in the deterioration of the attitude of our young ones.  Add to that the proliferation of the global media input into the minds of our youths, and then the now widespread use of social media with its obvious and unmistakable influence on the young fertile minds of our youths and you will clearly see the path we took to arrive at our current situation.

“We must correct these errata or face the consequences. What we  are seeing is just the tip of the iceberg. We need to solve this problem, NOW!”

“How can a high court judge stoop so low as to interfere in a simple disciplinary matter at school level? Where are we heading as a country?

“And one more thing: Where are the fathers of the teenagers? Where are we? We cannot abdicate our responsibilities and leave all the burden of raising our children to our wives. This is totally unconscionable.”

He then called for close collaboration between all stakeholders in a bid to solve the problem of indiscipline.

“The problem of indiscipline can only be solved when parents, school authorities and government officials come together to work in partnership.

“We must look back at our past and try to correct ourselves by bringing back to the fore everything that is good and relevant and teach our young ones our authentic culture and religious ethos.

This is the way forward!”

Sabally then shared his experience and how education helped transform his life for the better. He advised the graduates to espouse the culture of lifelong learning and to play positive active roles in their communities and the country.