Ebrima Ceesay,

I am not sure who your source is in The Gambia, but I can corroborate some
of the things he has said about the so-called Sika rally.  This source of
yours appears to be well informed of the political situation in Nuimi.

I come from Sika, and I am a brother to Landing Jallow Sonko.  He (Landing
Jallow sonko) will never sell his soul for material gains.  There are still
people in The Gambia who are principled, have self respect and integrity.
These people will never mortgage their country for their own personal gains.

I was in the Gambia on vacation when the said rally took place in Sika.  The
day of the rally found me in my village, Sika.  As mentioned by your source,
the Sonko family in Sika is heavily involved in Nuimi politics.  However,
for all who know the key players in this district, there is also very big
division among the family.  Landing Jallow Sonko and his supporters were in
the PPP party and, the vast majority these and even more now support the
UDP.  Landing Omar Sonko (Father to Bolong Sonko and others) was a strong
supporter of the NCP party.

After the 1994 July 22nd takeover, when Bolong was given the post of
Secretary of State for External Affairs, Landing Omar Sonko and his
supporters became strong supporters of the current regime.  However, after
Bolong fell out with Yaya and joined Ousainou Darboe to form the UDP, they
aligned themselves with the UDP.  As is known to all, Bolong was one of the
high ranking members of the UDP until the time he decided to back Yaya
again.  As a result, his father and very few of his supporters from Nuimi
are now said to be supporting Yaya's party.  Why Bolong decided to change
his support to Yaya is open to speculation.  I am not going to venture to
say categorically what his motives are.  However, the common believe in Sika
and Nuimi in general is that he wants to get a high post in the government.

I think it is important to understand a little bit about the political setup
in Nuimi in order to appreciate the atmosphere in which the so-called Sika
rally was held.

The rally was poorly attended.  The majority of people who attended from
Sika were a portion of Bolong's family and very few others from the village.
The rest were small children who do not have any vote.  Most of the
residents of Sika on that day went to their farms and never attended the
rally.

A number of people also came from some of the villages in the Upper Nuimi
District area.  These were mainly village alkalos, who alleged that they
were told by the acting chief to attend the meeting if they want to remain
in their posts.

The vast majority of Sika do not support the APRC party and, it is indeed
misinformation to allege that because Landing Omar Sonko is now supporting
APRC, therefore all the people in Sika and Nuimi are solidly behind the
APRC.  The people of Nuimi like people in other parts of The Gambia are very
disappointed and angry about the inefficiency of this regime and all the
things it has done in the name of the Gambian people.

If the APRC is confident of victory at the polls, then they should not be
playing delaying tactics about when elections are to be held.

Bakary J Sonko



-----Original Message-----
From: Ebrima Ceesay [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Friday, August 04, 2000 5:47 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Saja Taal stop prostituting yourself


Gambia-L:

Another e-mail from a source in the Gambia. Again, I am sending it unedited
and in a rush.

Ebrima

_______________________________________________________________________


>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Saja Taal stop prostituting yourself
>Date: Thu, 03 Aug 2000
>
>Ebrima,
>Acting in desperation, the administrative secreatry of the APRC Saja Taal,
>uttered a number of falsehoods during his interview with the Daily
>Observer. I have already commented on the likehood of an indefinite
>postponement of the November Municipal Elections because of the
>unpopularity of the APRC. They will certainly loose the elections were they
>to be held as scheduled. Ebrima, you must remember that these elections are
>over four years over-due.
>On the falsehood that Saja Taal has uttered:
>1. "This party (meaning the APRC) is one of the most transparent parties
>this country will ever have." This is a discernable lie. The APRC is the
>the most corrupt, incompetent, dishonourable bunch of bandits that ever
>assembled under the banner of a political party in the Gambia. What is
>important is that the Gambian people are fully aware of the nature and
>composition of the APRC which is peopled with sychophants, "intellectual"
>prostitutes, murderers and political nonentities.
>2." Some political parties will disappear completely because they do not
>have meaningful structures and programmes to offer to people." Saja has
>aptly described the APRC. UDP, NRP and PDOIS all have party structures
>which is the envy of the ruling party despite the latters advantages. APRC
>has no structure. What it has is Yahya Jammeh, he represents the Party's
>Executive and Administrative structures. He decides what he wants, when he
>wants it. Saja knows it because I know his private views on this and other
>APRC matters.
>3.During the APRC's recent tour of the provinces which covered all
>divisions except URD(Why they did not venture into URD?),"there were
>massive turnouts of party militants, and enthusiasm shown. Saja again
>engaged in wishful thinking. Their so-called tour was an abbreviated one
>because of (a)embarrassingly low turn out at each stop (both Ousainou and
>Hamat attracted far bigger crowds) (b)Open hostility towards Yankuba
>Touray, his entourage and the APRC militants in Niumi, the Baddibous and
>the entire LRD. We have videos of some of their rallies which I will make
>available to you. In fact, these videos were taken clandestinely because
>they do not want people to see the "growds" their rallies attract.
>4. "APRC's recent rally at Sika, Niumi, sae the Sonko clan "embrace the
>APRC party for the first time in history, headed by Landing Sonko, regarded
>as the father of the UDP in Niumi". This statement by Saja clearly reveals
>his total ignorance of Gambian politics and it also reveals his total lack
>of knowledge of the subject matter blend with deception. The so-called
>Sonko clan, for those with knowledge of Niumi politics will tell you that
>there has always been a split in their political support between the PPP
>and the NCP. The deceptive part of Saja's claim is his reference to Landing
>Sonko giving the impression that he is referring to Landing Jallow Sonko.
>The former Minister under Jawara will never join the APRC. In fact, he has
>dropped out of politics completely. Saja why not put the facts before the
>people instead of trying to deceive and give the wrong impression.?
>5."Bakau youths contacted me today (can you imagine, Bakau youth contacting
>Saja?) informing me that the aspirations of the youths of Bakau are
>different from the aspirations of the elders of Bakau..." Saja, please
>mention one Bakau youth that has contacted you. For the rest of your story,
>I say to you go tell it to Dembo "By Force". He is out there waiting for
>you and the rest of the dysfunctional APRC.
>Saja, my advice to you is to stop prostituting yourself. If you cannot,
>then please do not insult the intelligence of the people.  We are smarter
>than you and the rest of the APRC combined.
>

________________________________________________________________________
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