Halifa,
    You have made a perverse misinterpretation of my proposal on what a
credible alternative would have been had we voted "no." You wrote: "on the
subject of the constitution, a clear line of demarcation has been made. To
Hamjatta and Saul, the 1997 should have been rejected and The Gambia should
have entered the Second Republic without a constitution and be governed by
decrees until the international community and internal unite to push those in
power to come up with the ideal constitution." This is a perverse reading of
our position. I have contended with the help of the analogy of the 4 year
timetable case, that had we voted "no", we would simply return to the drawing
board and come up with a draft that makes more sense than that we were being
blackmailed/threatened with. Has it not struck as absurd that with or without
a constitution we will be forced to have elections? Why did we have to hold
elections when the wrinkles in the issue of the document that will guide us
in the second republic has yet to be ironed out? Why did the case arise such
that with or without a new elections will be held and the winner will be a
democratic leader ruling with decrees? Does any of this make sense to you.
Wasn't this a classic case of putting the cart before the horse? This
absurdity was designed wholly for us to accept against our wills a document
which will promulgate the new APRC as sole winners. You and other resident
intellectuals came into the fore reinvigorating the AFPRC propaganda that
without that draft voted in we will have elections anyway and we would
continue to be governed by decrees or the 1970 constitution. Pragmatism
dictates that there is a credible third choice; that of going back to the
drawing boards to work on the draft, postpone elections and make it a
prerequisite that without a draft that totally waters down the Indemnity
issue into just protection against litigiousness from frivolous/trivial cases
for the former members of the AFPRC and their acolytes, term limitations on
the presidency, much more muscle and independence for the Independent
Electoral Commission, clarity on our electoral college, stripping the
Presidency of hire and fire weapons of senior civil service members, expunge
the Media Commission provision, more muscle and independence for the Auditor
General's (not semi autonomous agenda the current constitution provided) the
Ombudsman and the rest of the shallow provisions that need more muscle, space
and vigour to complement a genuine liberal democracy, there shouldn't be any
elections. Experience has clearly demonstrated that my credible third option
alternative is workable/practical as was manifested in the issue of the time
table, where the AFPRC were forced to go back to negotiating table when both
internal and external opposition to the four year timetable was shown. I have
noticed that you have not bothered to refute this empiricism/analogy.
    Clearly the transition was derailed the moment Jammeh and his boys went
on a pick and choose spree of the recommendations of the NCC. As a result we
had a farrago of disjointed transitional programme where the cart is placed
before the horse. Had the NCC recommendations been followed to the letter, we
would not have been in a position that scales down our room for manoeuvre and
compromise into a "take it or leave it" scene that the elections before
constitution has clearly given to us.
    I'm glad you will be giving us those provisions on the Indemnity Clause
and the required analysis to refute my assertions that they have made
impotent the Coroners Act which would be handy to get to the truth about your
compatriot Koro's death. I'm sure that the lawyers online are watching and
counting on your legal expertise to unearth what has escaped their expertise
and gaze.
    Good day to you.
Hamjatta Kanteh

hkanteh

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L
Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html

----------------------------------------------------------------------------