7 days after President Barrow’s Vice President uttered her condescending remarks against Gambian youths, the young people of this country continue to vent their umbrage against Isatou Touray. Certainly the woman who made a living trying to upend our cultural institutions (spiritedly trying to throw away the baby with the bath water) is not well imbued with the requisite finesse to address a cultured people.
Isatou Touray’s best offer of employment for Gambian youths is to become labourers. And certainly there is dignity in labour but a person who would not let her children opt for manual labour has no moral authority to thrust that type of work on the young people who voted her government into office amidst lofty promises of a new and better Gambia.
A Vice President whose boss does not consider our school system worthy enough for his son’s education should find better words to say than insist that our youths must become labourers; this, as the modern world swims in ocean of opportunities presented by the knowledge economy and constantly being harnessed by visionary leaders for the benefit of their youths.
The last time VP Touray made real headlines in this country was when former President Yahya Jammeh went after her for alleged dubious activities relating to grants sent to the Gambian people by YALOCAMBA SOLIDARIDAD of Spain, through her NGO. She was charged with theft for the alleged “embezzlement of €30,000 of GAMCOTRAP funding.” To be fair with her she maintained her innocence and finally got acquitted by the court with her partner in that case.
But how did she manage those funds and many other millions that came through her office? Perhaps if those funds and many other millions that came through her NGO were optimally utilised, then we would have had a lesser burden of unemployment in this country today. But this woman and her clique still continue with their ‘raba raba’ games even as they sit in public office.
When the dust finally settles on the obnoxious fish meals factories saga after Barrow and his team of Kleptocrats leave office, the name Dr Isatou Touray will surely feature prominently in this unprecedented pillage of our fisheries resources that led to the incarceration of innocent Gambian youths, who’s only crime was to peacefully protest against the degradation of their local environment in Gunjur
As one young man stated in an interview with the Fatu Network regarding the VP’s condescending remarks about our youths, this government has ground our economy to a halt; to the extent that even the daily hustle of the average youth called ‘raba raba’ is no longer available. So why can’t our VP just live and let live rather than rain undeserved anger and vitriol on our youths
What the young man (interviewed by Fatu Network) does not know is that the VP and many of her Cabinet colleagues are still deeply involved in the ‘raba raba’ business; as the Wolof saying would put it, ‘golloh du baayi ayg’ (a monkey will never stop climbing). With Cabinet Ministers competing with ghetto youths, who would you expect to win? Again, the Wolofs have a perfect answer for us ‘su jinneh bugay daharr; ku ayg daanu’ (if the spirits are interested in the ripe tamarind fruit on top of the tree, then whoever climbs to get those fruits would surely fall down).
So VP Touray, who is one of the lead strikers in Team Barrow’s frontal attack on our meagre resources, should not add injuries to insult by accusing our youths of laziness when her government has made no efforts to either train, or present decent jobs for, our youths.
This administration has used and abused our youths; certainly they have dumped our youths who no longer have access to Barrow’s bus. Let he VP enjoy the fruits of the sweat of our youths with her new friends like Mambury Njie. She should not extend her foot from that Barrow-bus to stamp it on the dignity of our youths.
Enough is enough; our youths have suffered, they continue to suffer; but we will raise for them the flags of hope and self-esteem. And we shall never allow the likes of Isatou Touray to rain on their parade.
The destiny of our young people is in the hands of the Almighty Allah, even as we continue to encourage them to “strive and work and pray” as taught in our national anthem. Truly the words of Jamaican artist Buju Banton shall come true for our masses:
They keep fighting me I’m not giving up
May the realms of Zion fill my spiritual cup…
Destiny, mama look from when you calling
Destiny, mama look from when you calling
I wanna rule my destiny…
My destination is homeward bound
Though forces try to hold I down
Breaking chains has become the norm
I know I must get through no matter what a gwaan.
Momodou Sabally
Prolific author and International Speaker, Momodou Sabally is a passionate leadership coach and youth empowerment enthusiast.
