Since the birth of our nation, Gambia was once held up as a beacon of hope that serves as second home for the most of the surrounding west Africa countries before its slow evolution to dictatorship — that began to loosen everything which held us as a nation. However, the toxic waves of abuses of our civil liberties and the massive storms from the ramifications of the misadventures Yaya Jammeh banging hard on our shores lines, lead to the erosion which finally ate all the pillars of our nationhood. In addition, it was especially depressing to learn that burrowing owls of our country are balancing their desires with our nation’s wealth among themselves, even to the point of threatening to bankrupt our country. The unprecedented length of our current stay of this regime in our nation, have only exacerbated these problems much more — as regime continues to further divide the magnitude of the challenges our country faces up in many ways and watering down the impacts of their actions. Today, these are important lessons Gambians must deal with.
if the Gambia is allowed faltered a bit more on the same wrong direction with its current incompetent leadership, we will not regain that mantle of smiling coast for a long time nor will be able boost the sluggish economy — to bring greater prosperity to our nation. In addition, the rule of law has been damaged by the militarization of country as a police state — which opened the door to massive circumvention of our legal system by mercenary judges. No one is guaranteed immunity from the tragedies of Yaya Jammeh. Predictably, those who listened with Teutonic precision — of the regime’s vice president speech usual cliché at UN, reassures you of two things: These people haven’t really withdrawn from their sniping policies of — blaming everyone else and showing unusual public display of bitter opposition to everyone who emphatically reject the burden they put Gambians through. Equally predictable, they will turn blind eye to their own dismal record of governance and offer stinging indictment of the west as their president retreat to the rear begging for developmental aid.
Nonetheless, the blood of the dead Gambians — whose lives were altered by the regime, is a stain that cannot be rubbed out of our memories easily. There are more than a hundreds of Gambians who should be alive but are not, and many thousands have been lost to other nations as a results of the grim determination of some people’s selfish interest — giving life support to this regime. Yaya Jammeh is continuously allowed to reshape the nation with his mood swings to match his vision, but one of us —amongst the weak Gambians, must pay for it with our lives. The same people draw escape routes for their fellow evil doers to the streets of the west, mostly in Europe, where they can live openly, free of worry about arrest. Such extreme malfeasance invites an inevitable conclusion in the heart of many Gambians whom are victims of these people. Imagine if Osman Sonko was on the terror watch list of the west? By this time, he will have been droned out to pieces or talking like a nightingale instead of drinking the “Peak milks of Holland” with — a burp cloth wrapped around his neck at the kitchen table. But, the truth is — other nations appears to be indifferent in categorizing the crimes of such people — like Osman Sonko as the same pain levels — but to a much lesser degree, as bad evil people are inflicting in their communities.
Now, Osman Sonko — the architect of brutal techniques of regime — easily running away is a clear acknowledgment of out of control the lethal consequences he authored for Gambians and further exposes the threat Gambians face at home and elsewhere. Few blue moons ago, the man was thumping his chest out in the towns of Gambian with a chip on his shoulder, behaving as if he was bedrock of the regime and trying to sugarcoat a label on the disaster he helped create in Gambia. The sad thing is that; his victims weren’t given the chance of life to tell their stories. He stood tall above them in a hurry to put the lasting scars of their silence in the heart of their families. As he seats alone shivering in his warm tears — thinking about everything he left behind, please reflect on the scars on your palms — that bore the scars of many Gambian heroes. You have reached the shores of Sweden but you still have a far journey left to go. The journey of seeking forgives from the Gambian people. If you choose to follow the foot prints of the goodwill Bai Lowe took with courage — to apologies to the Gambian people, your heart will get the counseling and the shepherd it needs to overcome the extraordinary toll of your burden of guilty conscience. Until then, you are welcome brother! but we will be much happier — when you leave.
By habib ( A Concerned Gambian)
