Mr Saidy,
As an attempt to provoke discussion, I admire  your write-up in sofar as it
reflects numerous issues each one of which is suitable topic for a mid-term
paper. However, one is tempted to look at all of them at the same time since
you indicated that this is just the beginning. Thanks for reminding us that
you have all along been supportive of the AFPRC, which assertion itself
speaks volumes.
FIRSTLY, you indicated that at the time of the July 22nd 1994 overthrow of
the Jawara regime, That was the only sure means of getting rid of The PPP
government. Indeed you are not the only Gambian who has erroneously held on
to this belief notwithstanding the brutal and dehumanizing performance of
The AFPRC dictatorship. This represents a naive and unprogressive political
stand point. Any ardent revolutionary activist will remind you that any
undesirable political scenario by itself, directs you to the requisite
solution to its inherent problems. If, as in the case of the July 22nd 1994
takeover, one had to resort to unconstitutional, illegal and treasonable
action as a solution, " the end should justify the means". You have
concluded that there has been more progress than degeneration during the
AFPRC regime sofar, but at the same time you reflected that the negative
things registered have been marked indeed. Your own line of arguement
therefore reveals that whatever progress registered in the present
government's lifetime, at least could have been undermined by few
undesirable developments. By all accounts there has been less freedom of all
sorts in the current regime than the one it overthrew. For purposes of
arguement, please be reminded herein that generally, people " prefer poverty
in freedom to riches under a dictatorship". The process of legitimizing the
illegal and illegitimate action of a a group of soldiers on July 22nd 1994
therefore, has abismally failed, because the old system they overthrew, had
more freedoms than the new political dispensation that obtains today in The
Gambia.
Secondly, The crux of your write-up seems to hover around the " Silence Of
the elite".  One has to understand the historical background to the
development of the elite in The Gambia, and try to see whether there has
been any revolutionary moves since 1965 to reorientate them particularly in
the context of "National Dialogue" geared towards " National Development".
Please be reminded that the first modicum of a curriculum available in The
Gambia at the time of the introduction of "Western Education" was according
to records, geared towards the three "Rs", which are Reading, Writing and
Arithmetic/Religion. The Education policy of the colonialist was designed to
"create" persons who would help in the explotation of the colony. The
earlier elites came out of this system. and most of them joined the colonial
civil service which was a machineryr for exploitation. Civil servants were
therefore kept out of national politics. They had to be loyal to their
employer's politics which ran contrary to Nationalist Politics. The
bottomline is since independence nothing has been done to define the
relationship between the civil servants and their new employers who happen
to be the Tax Payers of The Republic of The Gambia. Instead as the new class
of National Politicians tookover in Banjul, they inherited the civil service
in its entirety and since then it has contnued to serve them almost in the
same manner that it had been of service to the colonial administration. This
is what obtains up to this very moment, which is to the detrment of The
Gambian Masses. Politicians of both regimes have at best turned a blind eye
to it, for reasons of political opportunism. This represents one of the
major contradictions and inconsistencies in our present statecraft. There is
need to first redress this contradiction, so that civil servants who by far
represent the majority of elites in The Gambia are not only given the
appropriate orientation vis-a via their service to the nation, but are also
provided with the necessary legal backdrop and entitlements to take part in
political discourse, without fear of potential negative consequencies.
THIRDLY, you have alluded to both " Vision 2020" and "Operation No
Compromise" as if they represent positive aspects of the AFPRC regime.
Perhaps you are ignorant of the content of " Vision 2020" and the ethical
issues begged by " Operation No Compromise".
" Vision 2020" theoretically falls within the ambits of the Neoliberal
Theory for Development. It assumes the existence of a viabrant multi-party
democracy characterized by the prevalence of an exuberant and free private
media, to name but just a few elements. The AFPRC regime's politics is
characterized by a cavalcade of actions which are fundamentally
anti-multiparty and anti-free private media. Thus advertently or perhaps
inadvertently, The AFPRC's own pratice of politics, undermines a fundamental
Theoretical assumption of "Vision 2020".
Furthermore, the substance of the Vision at best is a mere bluff at creating
a middle class. If any meaningful success is to be registered at the
creation of a middle class, The AFPRC leadership should encourage the
generation of alternative political opinion within its own ranks, the
opposition parties and the larger civil society. But the harassment of
private media personnel and opposition party figures runs contrary to the
attainment of this vital goal.At worse, it represents a " conspiracy against
the poor and sffering masses" of The Gambia. It contains nothing meaningful
about Rural and Agricultural development and instead puts emphasis on
promoting elements in the economy, which could only expidite its
"globalization", at the detriment of a National Economy that carters for the
needs of Gambians across the board.
"Operation No Compromise" represents an " ethical disfunction" within the
system. There are set rules and guidelines for the operations of companies
and business operatives. Notwithstanding the important role the Presidecy
plays in the overall performance of the statecraft, there is no need for the
bully-like attitudes president Jammeh generally exhibits towards the
business community in the guise of "Operation No Compromise". They merely
represent actions which could again advertently or inadvertently lead to the
withdrawal of key business operatives from key industries. Furthermore,
since the constitution allows the president to be involved in only
Agriculture related businesses, in the operations of the Youth Development
Enterprise(YDE), the public gets a best case scenario exemplication of the
criminality at the core of The AFPRC regime.
Finally, you attest to what the brutal murder of our brother and compatriot
Mr Deyda Hydara represents. This took place under the watch of Yaya Jammeh
at the helm of the AFPRC regime. Indeed, so did the summary execution of men
and officers of The Gambia Natioal Army in novenber 1994; the barbaric and
brutal murder of our brother Ousman koro Ceesay in 1995; the heinous
massacre of peacefully demonstrating Gambian students on April 10th/11th
2000 and the criminal attempt on the life of our compatriot lawyer Ousman
Sillah.
Thus, The AFPRC regime has contributed immensely towards "The Culture of
silence" that obtains in The Gambia today. We have not only witnessed the
perpetration of actions that are injurious to the eradication of this "
Culture of Silence" under the watch of The AFPRC regime, but we have
witnessed the legislation of AFPRC sponsored draconian and bad laws that are
calculated to reinforce this undesirable culture.
Omar Joof.

>From: TOMBONG SAIDY <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: THE CULTURE OF SILENCE
>Date: Wed, 29 Dec 2004 09:09:13 +0000
>

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