Momodou, thanks for your suggestions, good and reasonable suggestions, if I
might add.  These and many more such questions we need to discuss in the
next 40 months.  Luckily, we already have a document "MRDG Proposal" that
covered some of the areas that you and others mentioned.  We can expand on
that document to reflect our more current realities.  I personally know that
the folks in the UK reached out to Gambians of all walks of life in drafting
that proposal and I have no doubt that that spirit of cooperation will
flourish again.  This effort requires a lot of time and resources and I am
happy to know that our people are ready for the task ahead.  I look forward
to the many healthy exchanges that lay ahead of us.  Thanks again for your
interest and pledge.

Chi Jaama

Joe Sambou






>From: Momodou s Sidibeh <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: SAVE THE GAMBIA FUND/ASSOC.
>Date: Mon, 21 Apr 2003 17:04:59 +0200
>
>Brothers Abdoulie Saine, Joe Sambou, and others
>
>I must congratulate you for taking this important initiative in advancing
>the foramtion of this Save The Gambia Fund/Association. Not only is it in
>line with what many of us belief - the need to come together on the basis
>of mutual interests and concerns - it also highlights the very important
>role played by dialog amongst Gambian and friends of the Gambia on mailing
>lists. Freelancers like myself, jumping all over the place for an
>opportunity to support whatever project promises to do good to the Gambian
>polity, should find this initiative to be urgently important.
>
>From reading the Guidelines, however, it seems to me that there are a
>number of questions/suggestions that should be asked or advanced. However,
>while I continue studying the document, allow me to just post this one
>question at this time:
>
>It seems quite obvious that the democratic question relating to "taxation
>without representation" begs the subsequents members for a committment(s)
>beyond the  explicit goal of  raising "... financial resources devoted
>exclusively to the support of a coalition opposition political party to
>effectively contest and possibly win
>the 2006 presidential election".
>It seems only natural that if one is to make a financial contribution, then
>one should also be able to exercise a right to speak on how that coalition
>opposition political party should at least look like? It goes without
>saying (from the Preamble) that the goal is to bring down the Jammeh-led
>APRC regime by peaceful democratic means. When the present regime is to be
>replaced, it is important to at least know what to replace it with.
>
>Should members of the fund have a right to demand that this oppsoition
>coalition, in the event that it wins the elections and forms a government,
>carry out certain concrete reforms immediately it assumes office?
>Few concrete demands:
>
>1. The coalition must agree to ammend the Constitution placing term
>limitations on the Presidency: a maximum of two five-year terms. [As a way
>of clipping clip the expansinve wings of potential tin-pot dictators]!
>
>2. The coalition agrees to reverse current legislation and wrest from the
>hands of the president the appointment of chiefs and alkalolu and instead
>place it in those of the local populations.
>
>3. The coalition agrees to immediately scrap the despised and notorious
>Media Bill.
>
>4. The coalition moves to disband the NIA and instead strengthen the hands
>of the CID. (Gambia does not need and should not want a political police).
>
>5. The coalition to immediately release all political prisoners/detainees
>who remain incacerated inspite of gross absence of evidence for felonies
>they have been charged with.
>
>6. The coalition to re-open the coroner's report on the April 2000
>massacre; reinvestigates the circumstances surrounding the death of Koro
>Ceesay and others victims of suspected extra-juducial killings; publicise
>the reports and findings on these matters and that of allegations of
>corruption of first republic politicians; encourage extensive and intensive
>public debates on these findings and take appropriate action consummate
>with the spirit of national reconcialtion.
>
>It seems to me that these are demands that every democratic oriented
>political party wishing to join a coalition in bringing down the APRC ought
>to find very reasonable. Perhaps others may come with additional
>suggestions and/or counter-suggestions.
>At this point these are my humble questions and suggestion. And once again,
>thank you all for the effort to bring us together on the basis of some
>concrete action.
>
>Momodou S Sidibeh
>
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