Hamjatta,
You have said it all. Mr. Jasseh Conateh has suprised me by his
veracious attach on Sidi. It shows that Mr Jasseh-Conateh lacks the
basic knowledge and understanding of the role and functions of
the African development bank. To enlighten yourself of what the ABD is
all about visit their web site at www. afdb.org and the myriad of
questions you raised will be answered. It is very easy for people like
you (monday morning arm chair quarterbacks) to pontificate and
take the moral high ground whilst honest professionals like Sidi are
working their socks off to make a difference in the economic and
political development of the continent. Have we not been saying the
solutions to African problems have to come from within and not from
North Carolina.
Because of his humble nature, Sidi provided you with an honest answer
to your rhetorical questions. He desisted from informing you that he is
an EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR at the ADB representing at least 6 countries. He
is therefore constrained by rules to make political comments of a
public mature to an informal forum like the L.The ADB has a modus
operandi to channel their views of develpments in the continent. Do you
know what they, the ADB are doing with regards to governance in the
continent. My friend you are showing lack of understanding and
disrespect. Sidi is old enough to be a father to many people on the
list. You have your views and strongly support the opposition and from
your posting you always tend to tell people to be in your camp. that
does not mean that we all have to agree with you. Our view and opinions
do not always have to converge. Mr Jasseh-Conateh you owe this
respectable gentleman and apology for your relentless attacks.
Sometimes some of you guys do not fail to amaze me.
Basil
On Tue, 20 Jun 2000 06:37:13 EDT Hamjatta
Kanteh <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Dear Mr Jassey-Conteh,
> I write publicly to show and register my disapproval of your relentless
> attack on Mr Sidi Sanneh's principled political quietism vis-a-vis the
> current political imbroglio in the Gambia and elsewhere in Africa and as a
> result questioning his commitment to the Gambia and Africa in general.
> Initially when you raised the issue it occurred to me that your concern
> since on the face of it was rooted in the ignorance of not actually
> understanding Mr Sanneh's peculiar position, was genuine albeit misplaced.
> However, after your exchanges, the gentleman has gone out of his way to
> explain his situation to you. Amongst others, he had explained that he is no
> political eunuch; he has his own political, economic and social worldviews,
> he shares the same concerns over the Gambia and Africa like all of us well
> meaning others do, he explained to you in the simplest language possible that
> he is duty bound out of the decorum and protocols of his office not to
> express views that are directly related to member countries that are clients
> of his organisation at any rate not in an informal forum like this List. He
> did this at a risk of unveiling what his true colours are as to the political
> conundrum in the Gambia. And he highlighted to you that there are others like
> him in such peculiar situations who decided to play it safe and stay mute
> rather risk even making indirect comments on the situation back home on the
> List. Yet unlike his colleagues, he is taking risks to make comments on many
> issues online.
> Politely he told you to lay off but you wouldn't get it. Frankly this is
> a good opportunity for me raise a related matter; your irritating and
> simplistic ways of forcing people to think alike and adopt the same
> strategies when it comes to the struggle back home. We are different in our
> own ways. Circumstances have placed constraints on us all which will never
> enable us to act the way we always yearn to. What is so difficult to
> understand about that? You and I and possibly others have free reins to act
> and speak like we wish but this in itself doesn't give us the moral high
> ground to think little of others who haven't shouted loud enough. This
> tantamount to moral authoritarianism which I vehemently abhor. We have no
> moral authority to castigate or dictate to others who are constrained by
> circumstances beyond their immediate control and as such are not speaking
> publicly everytime on events as you and I did or are still doing.
> This need to strike a balance between the two conflicting goals of
> staying true to your conscience and honouring protocols you are duty bound to
> uphold in respective professions be it in the public service or international
> appointments, is a stark reminder how conflicting the private and public
> agenda/spheres can be and underlines the tragedy inherent in pursuit or
> overvaluing of one over the other. It is of course, very easy not to respect
> public servants and other personnel of international bodies who have to live
> this every day of their lives; trying to do the right thing by balancing very
> conflicting values. When you are living in the States and working in a
> Fortune 500 company with no political limbs or baggage, you will not respect
> these conflicting strands that has co-existed between the public and private
> sphere because your are not living it. It is very unfair however, to
> attribute to such unpatriotism and insensitivity to our continent's plights
> As I noted earlier to someone online here, political quietism is as much
> a virtue as political activism. Just because you are at the forefront doesn't
> make you any holier than those impeded by their peculiar circumstances to act
> only as behind the scenes operatives. There are well over 600 members online
> yet only a minor guesstimated 2% contribute to online discussions. So those
> this make the 98% spineless or selfish people who do not share our concerns
> about the Gambia and Africa in general? Many of these people have various
> reasons why they have not stuck their necks out; some not very noble reason
> but others very noble and deserving our understanding.
> Also you made countless jeremiads against the AfDB calling it amongst
> others abettors in the ransacking of Africa and politically moribund outfits.
> By inveighing against the AfDB with such cliched nonsense prejudices
> tantamount to idiocy of the type Jammeh entertains us with when he starts
> lambasting the West. Have you ever bothered reading AfDB literature; it's
> current status, the strides it is taking each year in the face of mammoth
> difficulties posed by our seemingly intractable and never ending vicious
> cycles of political violence or check out it's chequered history? See it is
> always easy to be in the West to be disrespectful to others on the ground who
> are doing the little they can to give Africa some success stories we can
> proudly cling on to and say there is still life in us Africans. Slagging off
> Mr Sanneh in your comfy little world of North Caroline is the easy bit.
> However, one is inclined to pose you these simple questions. What practical
> alternatives have you been working on since you went to the States? Have you
> ever considered going back home like the Mr Sannehs of this world and do what
> they are trying to do? What have you done for mother Africa practically since
> graduating? Perhaps you will be kind enough to answer these questions.
> I will not be an onlooker as over zealous low naive political operatives
> like your self, eager to exploit the failures of the current regime, and
> traduce a figure like Mr Sanneh. It is one thing for you to be consumed in
> your over zealousness, it however amounts to else if you wish to drag others
> into the muck. Please in your zeal to aggrandise your aims of political life,
> just remember that some of us have other ideals and ways of fighting the
> battle to free Africa. This is worth remembering.
> Finally, your assertion that you have "absolute right" in questioning Mr
> Sanneh's adopted political quietism is cobblers and shows your ignorance or
> your simplistic understanding of the notion of "rights". Mr Jassey-Conteh,
> there is never a thing like an "absolute right" at any rate, not in this
> materially inclined and rationalist world. To lay claims to it, is tantamount
> to pinch a line of reasoning from no one other than Jemus Jammeh, you so
> fervent wish to see the back of. Are you really sure you are not only in this
> struggle to see Jammeh gone and you become the new political class of a
> post-Jammeh Gambia?
> I have said enough and hope that we understand each other. And in
> conclusion leave you with Wittgenstein's dictum that: whereof one cannot
> speak, thereof one must keep his silence. I hope you remember this before you
> have another go at the Mr Sanneh's of this world.
> In anticipation of your usual kind co-operation, i remain,
> Respectfully,
> Hamjatta Kanteh
>
> hkanteh
>
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