Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issues

Issue No. 9/2005, 3-6 February, 2005

Editorial

WHO UNDERMINED THE TRADE SEASON?

THE DANGER OF NARROW NATIONALISM AND PERSONALISATION OF POWER!!

A nation is a collective property. It is governed through collective intelligence. The President, however, has told the nation that he has no adviser; that when he is alone in the night he seeks divine guidance to preside over the affairs of the nation. He even went as far as to say that the opposition did not want the farmers’ crops to be purchased. On the contrary, some opposition members challenged the Secretary of State for Agriculture to explain why they were so adamant in stopping even the small traders from purchasing groundnuts and had gone as far as to give monopoly to a single company to purchase groundnuts. The Secretary of State took the usual narrow nationalist posture of the APRC regime to criticize some so-called Indians who even owed the Central Bank 30 million as well as other banks just to purchase groundnuts with local capital. He gave the impression that Gamco has accounts in many banks and that it had full capacity to purchase the entire groundnut crop without
 any credit buying. He received applause at the National Assembly. FOROYAA, however, counseled over and over again on the dangers of monopoly capitalism. It called for the diversification of marketing outlet so that through competition the most efficient company would win the day. A self-righteous government, however, never listens. It never wants people to know the realistic advice its opponents are making. This is why it does not open up the public media to divergent views. Despite the promises of the Secretary of State for Agriculture the groundnut trade is in shambles. Many farmers could not celebrate their Tobaski feast with relative comfort. They are becoming more and more indebted. By the time their crops are purchased they would simply proceed to pay their loans.

FOROYAA is hundred percent sure that the alleged sacrificial lion did not render the APRC regime incapable of promoting the purchase of groundnuts nor would members of the opposition who would have to give more to feed their extended families wish for a poor harvest or bad trading season. The problem is poor planning and poor management of the groundnut sector. President Jammeh is heading toward his 12th year in office. If he leads a government which would spend over 300 million dalasi of Social Security money to purchase and refurbish a hotel but cannot create a basis for purchasing the main cash crop of the country they should be rightly accused of deliberate negligence of agriculture and deliberate attempt to throw dust in the eyes of the people. They are claiming that the opposition sacrifices lions and bulls to increase the hardships of the people so that they can fish political power out of the economic trouble waters. The government should own up to its demonstrated incapacity
 to solve the marketing problems of our agricultural producers and make honest attempts to engage in diverse consultation to seek for a solution.

Furthermore, the regime should open its eyes to the realities of today’s governance environment. Narrow nationalism is not the answer. The President cannot expect to be held in high esteem outside if he continues to hold the opposition, the press and other stakeholders in contempt and give the impression that any criticism against his regime is motivated by contempt for truth, progress and development. The APRC regime should wake up from its slumber. The world is moving. If it does not wake up it will be left behind.



EX-LT KOMBO NARRATES HIS ORDEAL

By Tombong Jadama

Ex-Lieutenant Lamin Kombo who was incarcerated at the Mile Two Central Prisons for a period of 123 days following his ordeal in the United States. He has given a vivid account of the murder attempt on his life which occurred on Friday morning January 27 between the hours of 2:10 am and 2:20 am at his residence in Kanifing Estate.

The Ex-Lieutenant, who was discharged from the Gambia Armed Forces last April, said he was lying in his bed when the attackers jumped into his compound and started shooting at him at closed-range but missed him. Narrating his ordeal, Kombo said he managed to avoid the gunshots by jumping out of the bed and then crawled from his bedroom to the toilet in order to identify the attackers. The ex-military officer who however could not identify the attackers as they were in masks, said he heard them saying; "This bastard is dead".

Ex-Lt Kombo said his attackers fired five shots. According to him, the attackers left when they believed that he was dead. He said he was very much concerned about the fate of his two younger brothers who were in the house at the time of the attack.

Continuing his explanation, Kombo said he went to his brothers’ room after the departure of the attackers and found that they were not hurt. He said the duo had hid themselves under their bed during the attack. He noted that his next- door neighbours visited him after the departure of the attackers.

Mr. Kombo said he later went to the Kanifing Estate Police Station to report the matter. According to him, he met only one police officer on duty who suggested to him to spend the night at the police station as it was already late.

The distraught ex-lieutenant said he handed over three of the empty bullet cases to the detectives who came to the crime scene later in the morning. Kombo said this latest attempt on his life is preceded by two other attempts, which occurred on the 17 and 24 December 2004 at his compound. He said he had reported those attacks also to the police. He however said no shots were fired on those two previous attacks, but said the attackers came with two girls during the first incident on December 17. The girls, he said, called out his name, but he refused to get out of his house. On the second incident (December 24) Kombo said when he heard noise outside his house, he came out with his colleagues to find out what was happening only to realize that the alleged attackers had fled.

The ex-military officer, who is outraged by the incident, said that the attackers were neither thieves nor bandits, but people interested in taking his life. He wondered why people would want to kill him since he neither troubled nor owed anyone. He said the bullets used in the operation could not belong to thieves, but stopped short of specifying to whom they belong. Lamin Kombo said he had not talked to the press or anyone following his discharge from the Army and what he termed as his "unlawful detention" at Mile Two Central Prisons.

Some neighbours who were bewildered by the incident, said they did not come out during the mayhem. When Foroyaa contacted the Public Relations Officer of the Police Force he declined to comment on the matter, saying that he was in Dakar at the time of the incident.



IMAM AL HAIBA GRANTED BAIL

By Sarjo M. Camara

The High Court presided over by Justice Abdoukarim Savage on Monday granted bail to the detained Imam of Banjul International Airport, Alhaiba Hydara who was incarcerated by the authorities. His wife, Fatou Hydara filed an application at the High Court urging the court to make an order to the Director General of Prisons for the release of the Imam.

Sources close to his family said that they made every effort to get Mr. Hydara released but to no avail. Similar attempts were reportedly made by the Supreme Islamic Council. It is claimed that they went up to Janjangbureh Prison but were unable to see their colleague. According to family sources, the wife was told by the authorities to vacate the airport residence. Subsequently, family members took legal action to get him released.

The court ordered that Alhajie Alhaiba Hydara be released from detention and also ordered that a Gambian surety depose to a bond of D50, 000 to ensure his appearance in court for any possible charge to be preferred against him. The application for bail was moved by counsel for the applicant, Mr. Borry Touray whilst Mrs. Hellen Okoi Itam, counsel for the state did not oppose the application.

Judicial sources have informed this paper that the prison authorities were served with the court’s order.

KMC LOSING OVER D55, 000 WEEKLY

By Yaya Dampha

Since the order banning councils to mount check points along the highway some time in December 2004 the Kanifing Municipal Council (KMC) alone claims to be losing over D55, 000 in revenue weekly. According to Mr. Abass Kinteh, the Financial Manager of KMC, some time last year, all councils were summoned to a meeting at the Paradise Suite Hotel. He said a letter was addressed to all councils in the country urging them to stop mounting checkpoints on the highways. He said the letter was signed by the Secretary General at the Office of the President; that since then the KMC collectors are relying on the few cars that are using the car parks; that some of their collectors also stand on the roadside without checkpoints.

When asked why they were ordered not to mount check points on the highways, the Financial Manager said the only reason advanced was that their collection interupts the traffic and people were complaining. He said as at now his council together with Banjul City Council (BCC) are thinking of developing plans to see how they can do collections without interrupting the traffic. He said some of their plans are to:

1. select an area along the highways where drivers can enter in order to pay their rates or;

2. ask all commercial vehicles to pay rates for the whole year of about D36, 000 at once and be free to use the roads for that year.

But he could not say how the two councils are going to share this amount.

He said since the letter ordering them to stop mounting check points comes from the President’s Office they see it useless to write to the Police; that now they will develop a method of collection without disturbing the traffic.

The Chief Executive Officer also confirmed the drastic fall in the amount that his council used to collect. He also called on the concerned authorities to review their move because losing D55, 000 every week is going to have an effect on the development work of the council.

THE CASE OF THE KITTY TWELVE

"MAGISTRATE’S LACK OF FUEL DELAY THE CASE"

By Yaya Dampha

The case of the Alkalo and eleven villagers from Kitty who were charged with criminal trespass and willful damage to the property of one Amadou Demba of Siffoe village resumed on Monday 31 January 2005 at the Brikama Magistrate Court. Two out of the twelve villagers already pleaded guilty to the charges brought against them and were fined. During the last sitting, the defence lawyer objected to the charges saying something fundamental was lacking in counts 1 and 2 of the charge sheet. He argued that count 1 talks about the accused damaging the fence of one Amadou Demba’s garden; that the fence in question is not described and no value was given.

When the case was mentioned on 31 January 2005 the prosecutor failed to produce the photo of the garden as promised during the last sitting to show the value and extent of the damage claimed. Defence lawyer Jobarteh then said it is of immense importance for the court to move to the garden and see for themselves what had been claimed. Defence lawyer Jobarteh said it is only through that that they could be able to value the fence and also the garden.

The police prosecutor did not object to what the defence lawyer applied for. He also called on the court to visit the site.

Giving his ruling on the matter, presiding magistrate, Bubacarr Jawo, said that the court had no objection on the request made by the defence lawyer. He said that since the photos are unavailable it is important to visit the garden and see the type of material used in fencing. Magistrate Jawo went on to say that he has no fuel to travel to Kitty or Siffoe. He called on the defence lawyer to join him in selecting a day and time to which the case could be adjourned to enable them make the visit. After some time they both agreed for the case to be adjourned to the 23rd of February 2005.

Meanwhile the accused persons are all released on previous bail conditions.

Tribute To My Father

By Baba Hydara

This is my tribute to the most respectful human being I have ever known, Deyda Hydara, my beloved father and my role model.

A person who was not only a family man but also a man highly respected. I am honoured to say that the amount of love my father devoted to his family and the public is almost impossible to find and will never be forgotten.

Deyda Hydara was born on 9 June 1945 in the city of Banjul in The Gambia. Since his early years, he had always been ambitious and willing to achieve the maximum out of his life and use it to help people by informing them of what is truly happening in their society.

He studied languages in school and became most proficient in French and English. After graduation he continued in his quest to becoming a successful journalist. In order to achieve his aim, he undertook several courses in journalism both in French and English, inside the country and abroad. He was exceptionally brave in his job and was never hiding the truth for political reasons. He never surrendered to force and was always a voice for the people, facing problems and seeking help. He was ready to make the greatest sacrifice for the cause of the poor, showing them the way and encouraging them to make the most of the freedom to express themselves and make them feel as effective individuals within their own society.

What I have learned from my father of being a journalist is:

"A good journalist should be devoted to his job. That means he will do everything to report the story as it is; truthfully, impartially and honestly."

Since he passed away I have been reading some articles from some journalists, which I find very hypocritical and dishonest. I believe those articles are for the purpose of saving their own jobs. These people do not deserve to call my father a colleague and certainly they do not have to address themselves as journalists.

The press is a sine qua non to a country. That means a country cannot step forward without people being informed and aware of the events happening around them on a daily basis.

As it seems in The Gambia, the government is doing everything possible to weaken the press from performing their job freely. My father was putting his maximum effort fighting the newly passed bill whose enforcement will be detrimental to freedom of expression.

We are descendants from a highly religious family called Hydara Sharif (meaning brave). As a result I did not expect my father to surrender to any threats from whomever. When I heard the news, I was so devastated and up to now I have not recovered from the trauma, nor has any member of my entire family (my mom, my two sisters and brothers and Amy- the smallest member).

May the people responsible for this big plot realize what they are about to face in this world and the Day of Judgment. They killed an innocent man whose only crime was being honest and truthful. They used guns as their weapon against a person who uses a pen as his. I want all those people who have blood on their hands about my father’s murder to know that "EVERYONE HAS HIS DAY" and God is watching.

At the National Assembly

FOROYAA maintains that with knowledgeable National Assembly Members, coupled with a responsive and accountable executive, the people would truly become sovereign. The people need to know how their representatives are performing.

This column is reserved for National Assembly Proceedings and Interviews with National Assembly Members.

NAMs ON THE ADJOURNMENT DEBATE

SIDIA’S CONTRIBUTION

In his contribution to the adjournment debate, Hon. Sidia Jatta, National Assembly member for Wuli West, said that the Secretary of State for Agriculture indicated that his department of state has intended to import farming implements like sine-hoes and their accessories; that he has objection but would want to inform the SoS that there are competent and resourceful Gambians who can create all the sine-hoes and their accessories in The Gambia comparable with any one a technical person can make anywhere in the world. Sidia said this is why he emphasized on reliability and sustainability – the enterprise of development; that reliability and sustainability in the enterprise of development called for making use of resources that are available here and then goes for the things that we cannot get here; that it is just a question of creating an enabling environment and incentives for these Gambians to create these implements. He said that if the SoS for Agriculture is interested in meeting
 with them, he will be available to assist.

On The Marketing of Groundnuts Sidia Jatta said that the Secretary of State for Agriculture has indicated that when the GPMB was in existence, farmers did not have any problems in the marketing of their groundnuts. With this, Sidia said, the Secretary of State has pointed out a solution to the problem but shied away from addressing it. "If it is true that when GPMB was in existence there was no problem in the marketing of groundnuts, then isn’t there a necessity to establish something like it or better and see how best we could make it survive," Sidia suggested. He said that by 1985, this republic was so indebted, (at a tune of D2 billion ) that the President at the time said that the debt could not be paid until dooms day. "D2 billion in those days!" Sidia exclaimed. He argued that from that period to date (2004) the debt burden of the country catapulted to over D22 billion. The member for Wuli West said that it was because of the huge debt that the World Bank and the IMF forced the
 Gambia government to undertake a divestiture on some of its public corporations e.g. the Dockyard, Seagull, NTC, the Sawmill and Nyambai and so forth so as to be able to service their loans. Sidia further said that while those divestiture or selling off was going on, the loan was D2 billion and that now they are talking about D22 billion for loans that have matured for payment. He continued, "There are more loans to come because there are loans which are not yet mature." Sidia said, "Independence in the real sense of the word, is to be able to assume the responsibility of taking care of our basic needs, without which we cannot survive as a nation, but we are not assuming such a responsibility." The Wuli West NAM advised that we should tighten our belts in such a way as to act in assuming that responsibility accordingly. He warned that development of the type they are talking about in the National Assembly cannot be brought about by relying primarily on exogenous factors; that over
 dependence on external support is the fundamental problem affecting developing countries and not only The Gambia but generally the continent. Sidia Jatta said, "We must in fact assume the responsibility of doing things on our own without which we cannot survive as a nation"; that we cannot entirely rely on exogenous factors for the development of the nation and that is why he felt sick when the Secretary of State for Finance and Economic Affairs indicated that "The government remains determined in the fight against poverty and will direct appropriate policies, programmes and resources to achieve the goal of poverty reduction by 2015 but government alone cannot successfully achieve it without substantial donor assistance to the country". Sidia said that it is impossible to rely on donor assistance to alleviate poverty, nor can you rely on loans to develop a republic. Sidia advised that the fundamental thing to do to alleviate poverty or develop the republic is to build the productive
 base of the economy. He however added that production alone cannot develop the Agricultural sector of the economy unless it is linked to some form of value added production; that that is the only way we can make the Agricultural sector booming. Sidia questioned why we produce groundnuts and in turn import cooking oil which is not groundnut oil; that now we do not have the groundnut oil at all which before we used to produce and consume.

"In the same vein", Sidia said, "we produce groundnuts and then import soap, margarine, butter and cardboard for making ceilings yet all these things can be produced from groundnuts". Sidia then questioned why The Gambia cannot make efforts and produce these consumer products ourselves and in fact of the best quality.

The NAM for Wuli West said that our economy has been reduced to mere producers of raw materials which are exported cheaply and then import them back as value added products at very high prices; that that was what killed the colonial economy and the first republic’s economy and will certainly not allow the second republic’s economy to survive unless the trend is changed!

Sidia concluded by saying: "We cannot change the trend by relying primarily on exogenous factors".

INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OPPOSES PORT PRIVATISATION

By Surakata Danso

The Secretary General of the Gambia Dock and Maritime Workers Union, Mr. Landing Sanyang has just returned from Nairobi, Kenya where he participated in an international conference on the privatization of port infrastructure organized by the International Transport Federation from the 18th – 20th of January 2005. Mr. Sanyang stated in a press briefing that the conference which is organized for the African continent drew delegates from 13 countries such as The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Guinea Conakry, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Eritrea, Mauritius, South Africa, Madagascar and Morocco. The countries that were also invited but could not attend were DR Congo, Benin, Burkina Faso, Togo and Cameroon.

Mr. Sanyang stressed that after intense deliberation and discussions the delegates unanimously agreed that privatization of port infrastructure is not the solution to efficiency of the port system. The effects of these included redundancies. The conference cited Singapore as an example of a government-owned port which is not privatized and is working well. He further stressed that the conference discovered that shippers and agencies often talk of the expensive nature of government owned ports.

The consequence of privatization according to the conference, is cheap labour which is easy to hire and fire.

Mr. Sanyang again stressed that based on the above, the conference agreed to wage a campaign and a network against privatization of port industries. It has also been agreed that the IMF and the World Bank which have been making recommendations and laying conditions have been proven wrong by their own programme of Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP). Mr. Sanyang stressed further on that a World Bank former economist was quoted as saying that after 13 years of SAP in the developing countries it was discovered that SAP is not helping but hurting; that the economist even elaborated that it is nonsensical to tell a human being to be sick for 13 years only to be well in a day.

The Secretary General went on to inform the press that the second agenda addressed by the conference was POC. He indicated that POC is a situation where shippers and other stakeholders control the activities of the port without the participation of the trade unions and their members. This, Mr. Sanyang said, does not exist anywhere in Africa but that delegates were advised to be on the alert and to inform the ITF office of any such attempt to implement it.

The Secretary finally indicated that the third agenda is Flag of Convenience (FOC) which is the concept of ships registering in countries like Liberia, etc for possible employment of seafarers at low wages. Instead of the minimum wage $1, 400, they pay seafarers $700. Mr. Sanyang said such ships are from Philippines, Indonesia and other places; that the conference also discussed the issue of HIV/AIDS which is prevalent in the entire globe and does not exclude dockers.

The Secretary General, in concluding, stressed the need to sensitise dock workers on the issue. The ITC was represented by Mr. Frank Lies and Kess Mavis, and the African Regional Office by its Secretary General, U. D. Ogwu. The Kenyan Assistant Minister of Transport represented the Kenyan government.








---------------------------------
 ALL-NEW Yahoo! Messenger - all new features - even more fun!

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

To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤