STATEMENT BY THE NADD FLAG BEARER ON THE KOMBO EAST BY ELECTIONS 

VICTORY FOR THE PEOPLE AND A DEFEAT FOR OPPOSITION AND RULING PARTY

The Kombo East By election is now history. History indeed is the teacher of
the wise.  Our duty now is to draw the relevant lessons from the experience.

First and foremost, the results of the election are instructive. The APRC
has 3665 votes. The combined opposition has 3923 votes. This means that the
opposition is ahead in the counting of the total votes cast in all the
by-elections. This is the first point to note. Why should it be noted?

The answer is simple.  When we met to review the basis for establishing an
alliance we all took note of the fact that the executive worked for an
amendment of the constitution to remove the provision providing for a second
round of voting so that the APRC could benefit from the division of the
opposition.  In short, where there is second round of voting all the
opposition candidates may struggle to ensure that they prevent the candidate
of the ruling party from getting 50% of the votes to pin the person to a
second round.  However, where there is only one round the combined votes of
the opposition may be more than that of the ruling party but the total vote
of each may be less than that of the ruling party. In that case the ruling
party will win because of the division of the opposition.  It is this
realisation, which compelled the executives of the various opposition
parties to form NADD so that President Jammeh will not win an election only
because of the division of the opposition.  The results of the Kombo East
by-election have again confirmed the lessons we had drawn before forming
NADD.  All opposition parties should take note. Let us move to the next
point.

Secondly, there is need to compare the performance of these three groups in
this by election with their past performance. The first election took place
in 1997. Only two parties contested the Kombo East seat. The APRC candidate
had 5009 votes while the UDP candidate ended up with 3636 votes. NADD did
not exist to have a candidate. In the 2002 Parliamentary election the UDP
boycotted the polls. The APRC went unopposed. The first participation of
NADD in an election in Kombo East was in the May 14th by election. Hence
there is no basis of measuring whether it is gaining or losing popularity in
Kombo East. The APRC however had 5009 votes in 1997 compared to 3665 in
2006. The UDP had 3636 votes in 1997 compared to 2814 in 2006. Needless to
say, all these parties utilized maximum effort and resources to win the
election. Each needs to consult their supporters and electorate to find out
the reason for the outcome. This is the second point.

Thirdly, it is customary for a candidate to win the voters from his or her
village of birth. Both the UDP and NADD candidates are from Pirang village.
Interestingly enough the APRC candidate had more votes than the opposition
combined in three of the four polling stations. The APRC also won in the
fourth polling station in Pirang with ease. How is this to be explained?
This is a major concern.

The NADD Executive met to review all the developments during the election.

First and foremost, to win an election is inconceivable without a candidate.
We recalled that prominent personalities from Kombo East approached the NADD
Executive to convey that Momodou Lamin Touray is their choice. They went to
the UDP to convey the same position. They requested that the opposition
should put up only one candidate. The NADD Executive Committee did not
impose any conditionality on the representatives or the prospective
candidate to stand as a NADD candidate. After some consultation Mr. Touray
reported that he was going to stand on a NADD platform. The reason he gave
was very simple. He felt that he would be in better position to explain the
objectives of NADD and win support from the APRC side than if he were to
stand on another platform. Moreover, he indicated that he had the support of
the people of Kombo East. Suffice it to say that the candidature of Momodou
Lamin Touray was declared before the candidature of any other contestant,
the APRC candidate included. What went wrong? Were the representatives who
brought Momodou Lamin Touray really influential in Kombo East? Were they
acting on their individual capacity? Did they abandon him after the
selection? NADD is owed an explanation.

As flag bearer of NADD I have received complaints from Pirang indicating
that Mr. Momodou Lamin Touray lives on the side of Pirang which had been
loyal to his deceased brother and the APRC; that even though some people
came to NADD to speak on behalf of the people of Pirang, those on the side
of the opposition had never been consulted. Consequently, they claim that
they abstained from voting and the votes never went to NADD or the UDP. This
explains why Momodou Lamin Touray did not get the type of support NADD
envisaged from his village. The NADD activists were advised not to create
euphoria for the sake of respect for Modou Lamin's brother. Consequently
they did not penetrate Pirang as they did in other villages to know the
state of mind of the people. This is one fundamental lesson learnt by NADD.

On the other hand, while the opposition side of the village felt left out
the candidate assumed that the relatives on his side of the village will
vote for him on the basis of family relation.  Infact, in honour of his
brother who was the MP before his death, he even made remarks as if he
deserves to inherit his mantle. This appeal to family support however did
not materialize. Instead the APRC candidate received most of the votes from
that area of Pirang.

In short, the members of a tribe or family could be poor. They could want
privileges. They could be separated by conflicts of interests and so on.
These factors can hinder their loyalty based on family ties.

This again confirms all the more that democracy is not about tribes and
family relationships. It is about people making choices of representation.
The best form of choice to rely on is not family or tribal prejudices but
informed choice.

Furthermore, it goes without saying that to win an election is inconceivable
without a successful campaign. People in a constituency must indicate
appreciation and support before a candidate can have hope of victory. A
review of NADD's campaign in Kombo East revealed a high degree of popular
participation and accommodation by the electorate in Kombo East. It could be
stated without any fear of exaggeration that NADD was more visible than any
other party during the campaign. The campaign team could mingle with all
language groupings and win support from all age groups and gender. When the
campaign started NADD did not have any committees or committee leaders in
any village in Kombo East. However, after the first week of campaign the
activists had created campaign circles in all the villages and were able to
hold very successful community meetings everywhere to promote the NADD
agenda. A carnival like atmosphere developed in many villages with young
people joining in the singing to get the NADD message.  They sang about the
lack of purchase of groundnuts, the 22 billion dalasis debt which puts a
debt burden of 22, 000 dalasis on the head of even a newly born baby; the
unemployment among the young which compel them to cross deserts and oceans
only to die as a result of capsized boats in their efforts to flee from
poverty and degradation at home in search of greener pastures abroad. The
song lamented over the chapped feet and callous hands of the women who toil
form sun up to sun down only to have no money to purchase fish, rice, oil
and other nutrients. It is therefore no surprise that while NADD did not
have a host in Madina Sotokoi when it first arrived there to hold a meeting,
in a week of active campaign it had more votes in that polling station than
the APRC and UDP combined. Needless to say, because of NADD's zero tolerance
for any form of sectionalism it came out second when the votes cast at the
Jiboro Kuta polling station were counted. The station served as a focal
point for the following villages:  Omorto, Duwasu, Jenung Kunda, Gidda,
Fufoo and Jiboro Koto.  It is therefore no surprise that at Jiboro Kuta
polling station NADD had more votes than the UDP and had 70 votes less than
that of the APRC which held the seat before the by election. This
exceptional performance is due to NADD's message, campaign style, discipline
and promotion of the equality and unity of our people irrespective of
language, tribe or other differences. Hence the Executive Committee could
safely conclude that NADD's greatest strength was the method and content of
its campaign. It made people to take ownership of the campaign. They felt
that they were working for their own liberation rather than merely helping a
person to become an elite.  Hence within two weeks of campaign NADD earned
more friends members, supporters and sympathizers in Kombo East. This should
be sustained and developed.

The next point to note is that an election cannot be won without vigilance,
especially during the resting period prior to voting. The NADD activists
patrolled the ground and reported all suspicious activities for
investigation and action. NADD's court action to bar people whose names do
not appear on the list of voters from voting worked well to free the process
from infiltrations. However, one problem that our activists could not yet
tackle with success is the buying of votes. Despite their efforts, it has
been reported to us, as our activists went back to thank the villagers, that
many women and youths sold their cards. Apparently the APRC and UDP had
their chairpersons on the ground for years. They had machineries to retain
the cards of their supporters. NADD had no such machinery. It relied
entirely on the promises and good will of the electorate. The buying of
votes affected NADD more than any of the other parties. This is one reason
why the euphoria, which surrounded NADD, was not translated into the type of
votes envisaged by many who followed the NADD campaign.

Lastly, election cannot be won without adequate resources. NADD did not have
the type of resources that the APRC had. They relied on Secretaries of State
in their official vehicles, the National Assembly Members, the Commissioner
and Area Council, the Chiefs and the village heads to conduct their
campaign. They covered the logo of State Institutions and their number
plates and so on just to give advantage to the APRC candidate. NADD had to
confront such behaviour, which is contrary to the election laws of the
country and the Memorandum of Understanding that was signed.

The NADD Executive has identified the involvement of public resources and
servants in the campaign trail of APRC candidates as one of the electoral
ills that need to be focused on and addressed with immediacy. The APRC
Government must either accept State funding of political parties and the
participation of public servants in giving open support to any party of
their choice or adhere to the rules of not allowing any public resources to
be used in favour of an APRC candidate. In the same vein, Commissioners and
Chiefs should not come to their assistance.

The next point to note is that what opponents say to each other during
election campaign can enhance or hinder one's chances of victory. During the
campaign, NADD concentrated on showing what the APRC members of the National
Assembly have been doing to give power to the Executive and reduce their
ability to check abuse of authority and mismanagement of public resources.
They indicated the economic, social and other ills of the country. They gave
ample reasons why people should begin to protest through the ballot, against
their suffering by casting their votes against the APRC.

A review of the APRC campaign methods indicates that they concentrated more
on convening meetings to beg for forgiveness from influential personalities
in Kombo East to create more unity in their camp. Another strategy they
adopted in Faraba Banta where the APRC candidate comes from is to rely on
the adverse remarks made against his personality by some UDP militants to
interpret it as an insult to the villagers as a whole. It is therefore no
surprise that in the village of Faraba Banta the APRC candidate had over
1100 votes while the combined opposition vote was less than one hundred
votes.

This confirms that once the opposition in diverted from the issues that
affect the lives of even APRC supporters it introduces new sentiments that
can be relied on to build up a support base for the APRC. This is a
fundamental point to note. Infact, such parochial issues are the root cause
of post election conflict between parties, which is manifested by insults,
burning of flags and fights. NADD must continue to have zero tolerance for
any campaign style that can earn it the hatred of the common people it is
trying to liberate.

We also took note of the fact that the NADD support base which was evident
in Kafuta and which enabled it to have more votes than the APRC in one of
the polling stations did not reflect in the other polling stations in
Kafuta. It is important to observe that the best tactic to be adopted by the
opposition forces where they put up candidates is to ask the voters to vote
for the other if they fail to support one of them. However, once they
castigate each other the likeliness is that voter apathy will be the
ultimate consequences. The UDP leader should investigate reports that some
of their activists sent money to Kafuta from the US to tell them not to vote
for NADD after he was informed of NADD's popularity in the village. In the
same vein, it is reported that photographs from the signing of the MOU
presided over by President Obasanjo where the NADD flag bearer and President
Jammeh embraced each other, was circulated by the UDP militants to carry the
message that a vote for NADD is a vote for Jammeh. Furthermore, some are
reported to have continued to spread that the NADD flag bearer promoted the
present constitution. It is important for those who engaged in such
propaganda to note that that they were promoting voter apathy among the
opposition camp. What such people failed to realise is that I have prepared
cassettes in Mandinka and Wollof, which have been circulating in the country
for the past two months that show the fundamental differences between NADD
and the APRC. Needless to say, the Memorandum of Understanding signed at the
end of President Obasanjo's visit is considered as a major victory for the
opposition. Hence instead of undermining NADD's authority the UDP activists
were excluding it from the major achievement, which they helped to bring
about as members of NADD. Those who utilized such campaign failed to realise
that our arrest was a blessing to The Gambia. I did not realise what a major
event this was until I went to the 5th session of the Pan Africa Parliament.
South African Radio and TV turned their search light on me. The Members of
Parliament also focused on the issue as if it happened yesterday.

Questions were raised in the European Parliament. U.S Congress women were
involved.

Intellectuals took up the issue. It was amazing to me how much support was
building up that we were not even aware of. Hence it did not help the UDP
campaign to try to attack the personality of the NADD flag bearer on a
matter, which came about because of a struggle to get President Jammeh to
stop making derogatory remarks against the opposition or reap the
consequence in equal measure. The most ingenious attempt to discredit the
NADD flag bearer is the claim that he made people to accept the constitution
of the second republic when even the UDP leader has been going to court to
rely on the same constitutional provisions to defend the right for those
detained to have access to lawyers or to be freed within 72 hours. In short,
the attempt by some people in the UDP Camp to turn NADD into a rival has
created voter apathy among some of their supporters who did not agree with
the derogatory remarks.

It is therefore necessary for the opposition camp to realise that the more
they try to damage each other through disinformation tactics the more they
create voter apathy, the more their chances to bring about change dissipate.

Finally, it is important to note that even though Kombo East was an APRC
seat before, in the by election the majority of the people who cast their
votes rejected the APRC. The second point to note is that NADD had the
opportunity to be consolidated on the ground with one thousand votes and
well established structures in all the villages. All these developments were
achieved in the absence of the flag bearer within a period of two weeks.
This confirms that NADD is not a party of an individual personality but a
united front that is collectively owned by the people and that is designed
to create a political system that will be people owned and people driven.

There is no room for despair. The people are taking charge of their destiny.
The fact that the APRC candidate had the full support of the PPP Member of
Parliament prior to the 1994 coup but still had lesser votes than the
combined opposition confirms that the people of Kombo East are listening to
the voices of change. With determined effort to empower them they will be
well equipped in determining who is in a better position to serve them with
sincerity and self abnegation in the October 2006 elections.

To conclude, it will be unpardonable if I were to put chapter and verse
together without dealing with the issue that is uppermost in the minds of
many people, that is, the challenges of building a united opposition. The
ironical situation that the opposition finds itself of being victors and
vanquished at the same time has made many people to question whether any
opposition party can go it alone to defeat the APRC in an election.

Of course, all parties should take note of the fact that the minds and
loyalties of the people in Kombo East in particular and the country in
general are not static. Their loyalties can change by secondary minutes,
hours and years. This is why the APRC does not enjoy the supremacy it used
to wield in the past in Kombo East. The fact that the UDP and NADD
candidates have few votes in typical Mandinka speaking villages like Pirang
and Faraba Banta gave a dead blow to any notion of relying on a tribal base
to build political support in the Gambia. It is becoming increasingly clear
that the people are more interested in issues that affect their lives than
sentiments. With time one can empower them to make informed choices.

However, time is not on our side to continue to engage in political
experiments. A united opposition is clearly the way forward. It is a united
opposition, which enabled us to stop people whose names do not appear in the
register of voters from voting. It is a united opposition which motivated
the AU, the Commonwealth, US State Department, the EU, members of congress,
and president Obasanjo to take a firm stand when a threat was posed to
democracy and the stability of the country after the arrest of NADD
executive members.

It is the combined opposition that rekindled hope in the hearts of the
people in anticipation of easing their hardship once change is effected. It
is this rekindled hope that no one has right to quench.

As flag bearer of NADD, I am duty bound to be among those who are to hold
the torch of hope at the end of the tunnel for the people to see. I
therefore wish to take this opportunity to assure the people that I have not
applied to be a presidential candidate. I simply stood ready to perform any
duty assigned to me by an opposition alliance that aims to bring about
change. This is why I accepted to be a coordinator to pioneer the building
of a United opposition.

In this regard, it was debated whether to adopt a one party led alliance or
a united front under which all parties remain equal. We envisaged what
happened in Kombo East that the history of each individual party in relation
to the members of the ruling party in particular and members of other
opposition parties may restrict its ability to draw support from such
parties. We therefore agreed that the best tactic was to create an umbrella
political entity that can attract support from members of all parties.
Herein lies the creation of NADD.

It was further considered that the best way to arrive at unity is to give
veto power to each party so that no party will have the tyranny of the
majority imposed on it. In this regard NADD operated on the basis of the
principle of unanimity in making decision. It became a unique political
entity where the will of each party was equal to the other.

Just as the APRC enjoys no privileges in our inter-party committee because
of being a ruling party, no party enjoyed a higher status in NADD. We in
NADD agreed to work as equals to change the country.

Since we were equal in our status of political exclusion and marginalisation
under APRC rule we created a mechanism to be equal in our efforts to
liberate the country and then provide for a free and fair multiparty contest
after a five year transition period which is designed to rectify many of the
ills of the country, facilitate constitutional, legal, legislative,
executive, judicial, administrative, political, economic, social and
cultural reforms to ensure that the country becomes a model AU state, that
is, tried and tested according to the yardstick of the African peer review
mechanism.

I recognised how NADD's objectives are explained to and accepted by the
electorate with ease. This is precisely why I accepted to be a tool for the
realization of these noble objectives. I do not see myself as indispensable.
Like the Cabrals of yesterday, I am simply determined to perform the duties
that I am called upon to perform with sobriety and self abnegation without
fear or favour in accordance with the dictates of out times and
circumstances. I will not hesitate to surrender such a duty to any able hand
that is more determined to carry it. This is no time to compete for
position. It is time to see office of president as a position of service and
not a position privilege. In this way all of us will wish anybody to be
there who will be a willing tool of the sovereign people of the Gambia. If
this is the view of all in opposition then unity based on the enlightened
interest of the people is inevitable.

I hope Gambians will begin to make concrete proposals of the role they think
I should play and the programmes they expect an alternative government to
put in place to put an end to hunger for power and self perpetuating rule.
Nigeria is giving us an example. The proposal made by NADD would have been
another example. Could Gambians come up with a better proposal for us to
consider. This is the urgent task to be addressed. I wish to take this
opportunity to assure all those who have been writing in The Gambia-L
Freedom Newspaper, Gambia Post and all other networks that I will never be
found guilty of being an obstacle to progress.

I will crave for people's indulgence to speak about myself. I went to the
USA to attend the July 4th symposium in 2003 after gaining a seat and
becoming minority leader under a PDOIS ticket. the other opposition parties
did not only boycott but some of their members campaigned for me to fail.

I was therefore not in the mood to form an alliance with such people when I
came to the US. I had my own constituency programmes relating to civic
education and community development. I prepared schedules of international
speaking engagements as well as set targets to write pamphlets and books. It
was not advantageous for me to accept to be coordinator. However, when duty
calls I am not the type of person to turn my back and follow the easy way.
In fact, since I accepted the role of coordinator, I must admit that my time
energy resources and output became divided between constituency activities
and national duty. It has therefore not been a privilege to me to be called
a coordinator or presidential candidate. If the people ask me not to perform
such duties they will not be depriving me of a privilege but would be easing
a burden that I am glad to shoulder only because of my love of country and
people. In short, I will never be a party to a struggle for power or
privilege. In any of such struggles I will be among the first to turn my
back. On the other hand, when duty calls I will be among the last to give up
because of the trials and tribulations; the peril and the cost. The future
of Gambia is in our hands. Each must play one's role.* *Time will tell and
history will take down the evidence to pass its judgement. The future will
deliver the verdict. History has always absolved and will always absolve
those who stand for truth and justice.

Forward with the empowerment of the people!

The future belongs to the enlightened and organised.

Be enlightened! Be organised!

Leaders are mere pace setters.

It is the people who are the makers of history.

When they are resolved no force on earth can stop them.



Halifa Sallah

NADD's Flag bearer

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

To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]
¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤