Date:       Fri, 21 Jan 2000

From:       ebou colly <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: Another Dubious Coup Plot in The Gambia

Another Dubious Coup Plot in The Gambia:

But Who were these Plotters- Lt. Alimamo Manneh and Lt Landing Sanneh?

To start with, let me make an essential reflection. Was it Yaya Jammeh trying
to play the sense of the dramatic two weeks ago when he quoted a well known
Wollof saying to the elders of Banjul that "wishes were like personal houses
and those who built them usually ended sleeping in them"? Well, I wonder whether
Yaya is familiar with this other classic Wollof proverb: " Those who train
their own wrestlers usually become the first victims of their students."

In precise terms therefore, I am saying that if it was really true that
Landing Sanneh and Almamo Manneh actually turned their arms of terror against their
Boss Yaya, then the second proverb perfectly fits the so-called coup plot
announced in The Gambia on the 14th January 2000. By all indications, it was no
secret that Almamo Manneh and Landing Sanneh were Yaya's most notorious thugs,
bullies or killer machines after the tranquilization of Sana Sabally, the
death of Sadibou Haidara and the recent marginalization of Edward Singhateh.

Over the years Yaya made those two monsters who they were and encouraged them
in every campaign of terror, torture and intimidation they had inflicted upon
the peace-loving Gambian people.The vicious activities of these State Guard
henchmen constituted the greatest nightmare of all Gambian, civilians and
soldiers alike. Yet, nobody could do anything about them, because Yaya protected
them with dogmatic intolerance.

When Yaya appointed Landing Sanneh as head of his personal State Guard Unit,
it was apparent that he made his choice of Landing purely on tribal lines
i.e.Sanneh was simply a "Jola" like him. Furthermore, Landing was the idiotic type
of person he could easily manipulate to carry out all his evil orders. But
certainly there were more competent and saner officers to handle that
responsibility better. However, Yaya by habit, and like most other despots, enjoyed
being surrounded by empty-headed people like him whom he could easily lure into
carrying out his dirty work.

Just take a look at the terrible things perpetrated by Landing as Commander
of the State Guard - and in all these cases the Kaninlai tyrant always
commended him. In 1996,for example Yaya Jammeh shamelessly encouraged Landing Sanneh
to pull a pistol on Edward Singhateh when the latter was the Vice Chairman of
AFPRC government, the second most powerful administrator in the Gambia at the
time. Edward Singhateh was merely paying a courtesy call to Mrs. Tuti Faal
Jammeh (Yaya's former wife) when Sanneh under Yaya's directive threatened to shoot
the Vice Chairman. When Yaya got the report, he commended Sanneh for a
wonderful job well done. In that same year 1996,Landing Sanneh the State Guard
Commander unleashed his men under the leadership Almamo Manneh to conduct the most
brutal beating of members of the United Democratic Party (U.D.P.) supporters
at Denton Bridge. To the Army itself Landing was a living terror with absolute
encouragement and total support of Yaya. Former Army Commander and now Chief
-of-Staff, Baboucarr Jatta was in 1997 openly challenged by Landing Sanneh in a
manner that had totally undermined his authority as head of the Army. In that
case also Yaya clearly stood by his ill-disciplined lieutenant against a
whole Colonel. It was the ultimate message from Yaya Jammeh to the entire army
that Landing was untouchable among Jammeh's boys of terror.

However Almamo was a greater terror. Since the coup in 1994 the former
sergeant was permanently identified with Yaya in every sort of terrorist action
imaginable. In 1996 it was Almamo who shot and almost killed an innocent taxi d
river in the streets of Banjul at broad daylight Yaya commended him for it
because Almamo acted on his directive to shoot any driver on the move when his
convoy was passing. Almamo like Sanneh were the very few soldiers in the whole army
with the absolute authority to carry any kind of weapons at all times. Almamo
could arrest any civilian or soldier and torture them with animal brutality
just to please Yaya. The popular P.P.P. politician and former Minister Omar
(O.J.) Jallow had on several occasions fallen victim to Almamo's brutality on the
orders of Yaya Jammeh. He kept the keys to the State House armory; he was
that ugly -looking soldier always in camouflage uniform with dark glasses moving
beside Yaya.

Interestingly however with all the terror and madness associated with Almamo
the non- commissioned officer, Yaya in 1999 promoted him to the rank of a
lieutenant when the idiot could barely read or write. It was a clear manifestation
of rewarding the most terrible and incompetent soldier in the whole Gambia
Armed Forces. Then all of a sudden we are informed that Almamo and Landing were
trying to topple their Boss Yaya but the former was butchered and the latter
put on chains. Thank god what a great riddance that was for the Gambian people.
The only person who lost dearly is Yaya Jammeh,but knowing him fully well he
would try all his tricks to turn it into a childish victory story for himself.
He would fabricate big lies again about super-coup activities he had foiled
only to once again expose his puerile mind.

Apparently a lot of people may wonder what really brought Yaya and Almamo
together in a whole army of over 1000 men; that's a simple answer ; they are more
or less the same caliber in several ideas especially in the field of
primitive 'Jujus'. Yaya and Almamo had always shared the funny dream that the abundant
of charms and 'Jujus' supplied to them by their marabouts were actual bullet
proof stuffs. Well, I only hope the demise of Almamo was a proper wake up call
for the superstitious Jammeh to now know that those things don't work at all.
As for the rest of the Gambian soldiers the fall of the mighty Lt. Landing
Sanneh and Lt. Almamo Manneh was typical example of what could happen to those
who have less faith in god and decided to choose the satanic path of evil
doers. The Jammeh government had been built through treachery and deceit and Yaya
has perfected his skill of destroying his greatest loyalists particularly the
fanatical ones; ask Edward Singhateh if you want to know more about that. As a
matter of fact it would have been an insult to the Gambia Army for Almamo and
Landing to successfully lead them in a coup. Even Kukoi with his own madness
would have been a better choice.

Besides Gambians are now fed up with lies of one coup conspiracy after
another. Samsudeen Sarr and Mamat Cham, Sana Sabally, Sadibou Haidara and even the
current vocal secretary of state for the Interior Ousman Badjie were all at one
time accused of dubious coup conspiracies and incarcerated at Mile Two
Central Prisons for months and years. But were some these people not eventually
released and appointed to the highest and most sensitive security positions in
Jammeh's government? How could Samsudeen Sarr and Ousman Badgie accused coup
plotters become Commander of the Gambia Army and Secretary of State for the
Interior respectively? Furthermore didn't they try every thing in vain to deceive
the whole world about what really happened to the late Koro Ceesay? So for God's
sake let the narrow-minded intellectual sycophants of Jammeh's government
give us a break about their dubious coup conspiracy theory. They have really made
the APRC government synonymous with Lies, Lies and Lies.

By the way I am definitely left wondering why another notorious bafoon among
Jammeh's thugs survived the downfall of his partners. Musa Jammeh was the
third person in the three-man bullies controlled by Yaya. Perhaps Musa was spared
simply because he was a "Jola" and a closer relative and puppet to Jammeh. Yet
Musa is shamelessly more dangerous than the other two. Before the coup in 1994
 Musa was among Ex-President Jawara's closest body guards. And it is evident
that since then in order to clear that past image, he had turned into one of
the worst tools of Yaya. Anyway he should be keenly watched as another
Jammeh-created snake that could at any moment spit his venom to his boss.

I cannot however conclude my observation without mentioning one of the most
critical and disturbing aspect Jammeh's coup consequences. How come every time
Yaya Jammeh's government snaps with a fake coup it is only the Mandingos,
Wollofs Fullas who are killed in the process and buried in the most indecent
manner. Check this list since 1994:
Name of Soldier Executed Ethnic Group

Burial Site 1.Lt.Basiru Barrow Mandingo Behind Yundum Barracks toilets. 2.
Lt.Gibril Saye Wollof Ditto 3.Lt .Abdoulie Bah Fullah Ditto 4.Lt. Abdoulie Faal
(D O T)Wollof Ditto 5.SSgt.Fafa Nyang Wollof Ditto 6.Sgt.Basiru Camara
Mandingo Ditto 7.Sgt.E.M.Ceesay Wollof Ditto 8.Lt.Almamo Manneh Mandingo Not yet
known 9.Cpl.Dumbuya Mandingo Not yet known

In the final analysis, it is clear tha members of Jammeh's ethnic group are
always unaffected. Landing Sanneh was for instance Almamo Manneh's Boss in
every respect, then how come the former, a Jola, survived the so-called coup
attempt and the latter, a Mandingo, died in the shoot-out? Why not just call it the
execution of more Mandingos? But Jammeh should know that the day of reckoning
is drawing near and he should also start marking his own spot behind the
toilets at Yundum Barracks. What goes around comes around body!

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