Momodou:
Thanks for the response.  It is well written and to the point, especially
where it concerns Kebba Jobe (laugh).

In fact, I could not help but chuckle the other day after reading his post
entitled <A HREF="http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?A2=ind0110&L=gambia-l&D=0&P=104528">Re: The way it was and the way it will be</A>  in response to one Mr.
Mustapha Barrow.  I laughed so hard because of the untruths contained in it,
I developed stitches.  I think that piece of email from Gassama should be
revisited to get a better insight to the type of convenient amnesia this man
suffers from.  How can he claim that this election was centered on issues, or
that all parties were given equal opportunities to express themselves?  Even
Monsieur Le Directeur - the most biased media head in the history of our
country -- does not claim to have given all political parties equal airtime.

But - fun and jokes aside - Tombong and Kebba Jobe AKA Daddy Nying should
understand that I am in this for the long run and they should be prepared for
a campaign against them and what they represent..


Reproduced below is the piece of email I was referring to:


Mr. Barrow,With all due respect your comparison of the 2001 election and that
of the1986 elections is at best over simplistic. The two are as different as
nightand day and trying to compare them is like comparing apples and
oranges.First of all this year's election was fought more on issues than
onsentiment. For the first time in our history the "national" media
wasaccessible to ALL political parties during the campaign period. All
partieswere given equal air time to address the nation and their
campaignsthroughout the country were covered and broadcasted.Secondly, this
year's election was conducted by an Independent ElectoralCommission and not
by any ministry.Thirdly, in this year's election the incumbent only managed
52.8% of totalvotes cast, giving the opposition its highest electoral success
in ourhistory.Forthly, in this election the incumbent polled less in 17 of
the 48constituensies this time round compared to 1996 (the previous
election).Fifthly, in this year's election the incumbent was actually beaten
in 19 ofthe 48 constituensies by the combined opposition vote.Sixthly, this
year's election was fought with a sizable presence of anindependent media and
the Internet. The internet allowed many people to gainaccess to and
desiminate information within and across our borders whetherthe government
liked it or not. We also have a very vibrant independentprint media with a
very determined private audio media that read newspapersin our local
languages and organised discussion forums with phone-inprogrammes. The
political parties had websites were people could reviewtheir manifestoes and
engaged them at their own convenience. Thepresidential website also allowed
people to address their grieviences on itin annonymity.These, Mr. Barrow, are
some of the major differences between the 1986 and2001 elections. The
challenge now is to consolidate and improve on thesegains.Have a good day,
Gassa.

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