This is not a comedy routine. The Gambia has now officially joined the elite
club of nations with an airforce  with an inventory of one used plane. What
kind of a plane is it? How old is it? Who flies it? What did it cost? The
answers to these questions am afraid are classified state secrets.
Nonetheless the army chief of staff who prior to taking delivery of this
single used plane has never been near an airshow much less understand
anything about an aircraft wants you Mr and Mrs Gambia to be thrilled that
you now are the proud  owner of a clunker with 'long distance strike
capability' . He wants you to be reassured that your tiny country with a
standing armed forces of less than 10,000 is now capable of projecting power
beyond it's own borders. Ofcourse touting the acquisition of a used fighter
jet as a qualitative military addition for a weak, poorly trained and poorly
led army is ludicrous. Like the outdated tanks and triple A that Yahya
parades for Gambians to see it is designed to scare people into believing
that they must contend with brutal tyranny because the alternatives they face
is horrific bloodshed with these menacing looking arms. It is  a cynical ploy
he employs to tap into our deep aversion to violence and general fear of
bloodshed. Neither the tanks nor the antiaircraft guns he routinely uses in
his residences and motorcade have any intrinsic security  value to him either
at home or enroute. They will never be able to deter a determined assault
because they aren't designed as instruments of personal security.
Antiaircraft guns are meant for defending fixed targets from aerial sorties
either from aircraft or gunships and they are only effective if they used in
conjunction with an integrated radar system that can locate  and track
incoming traffic. Neither statehouse nor his Kanilai residence are fortified
encampments in a strictly military sense. They are simply residences with
insufficient security perimeters to forestall anything . You will not find a
single military man on top of his game who will dispute that. Yahya Jammeh's
whole strategy is to exploit Gambians propensity to avoid violence at all
cost by cunningly make them view him as a really dangerous man they can't
afford to confront. He believes this is  the best insurance he can buy. It is
also the reason he has thoroughly purged the armed forces and police and
turned it into a tribal instrument of repression and terror creating what Joe
Sambou described as a dangerous prelude to what could be really bad for our
country.
      The truth is as a small country with no resources and geographically
somewhat unique, we will never ,ever be in a position to field a standing
army that can adequately defend our territory much less project any kind of
power. We just can't. It is not a reflection on the valor of our people, but
rather a consequence of situations. Our security architecture and posture
must by definition always be focused and limited to our realities. First we
must field a small army that is well trained and led by educated and
effective leaders who would shape and run a robust military outfit that
invests in skill development so that the institution itself can be part of
the nation's development agenda. It will take time to mold and run such an
armed force because we must first cultivate and nurture outside relations
with countries we will need for all three components necessary for such an
ambitious undertaking. The three components we will need on an ongoing basis
are training, equipment and funding. To persuade our needed partners, The
Gambia would have to put together a comprehensive plan that clearly spells
out an achievable agenda within the parameters of our broader national
priorities. Once we successfully configure a small, professional and
productive armed forces, we must tie it in with an equally ambitious
initiative in cultivating good relationships the world over. We must work
hard for peace and good neighborliness especially within our subregion both
as a clear recognition that we of all people can't afford instability and
also as manifestation of our creed as a good and peaceful people. We will
discover that our interests as Gambians lie in this approach because with it
we would be well on our way to focusing on the very important tasks of
preparing our citizens to meet the rigors of life in a stable country at
peace with itself and with the rest of the world.
     For now like everthingelse in our country, our security posture can only
be described as catoonish.We have a shell of an army rife with morale
problems because of extraordinarily poor leadership and tribal
discrimination. To think that this ragtag outfit can prevail in combat much
less project power is an utterly silly proposition. This lone aircraft is
another dubious charade whose source, cost and the personnel flying it would
remain a mystery. On a lighter note I would like to ask list members what
they would do their own one aircraft airforce. For me I would go into the
airline business running the "Sycophant Express" with direct flights from
Yundum airport to Guantanamo Bay Cuba. I would have negotiated to get my
deserving passengers fitting accommodations in the standard Taliban cages
that has become popular with Cuban involuntary tourists who aided and abetted
terror on innocent civilian populations. After six thousand flights I am
confident Gambia would be squeaky clean. As Yusupha  Jow would sometimes say
in jest Chei! I will pay for my own jet fuel.
Karamba

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