As GNA chief speaks of disciplined soldiers Gambian opposition praise the
army Says its neutrality could allay public mistrust

A high-profile member of the opposition has praised the army for what he
called its remarkably professional conduct as a neutral force as the run-up
to the October 18 polls winds to a close.

Lamin Waa Juwara who has built a reputation as a career critic of the APRC
administration said he has only praises for members of the army whom he
believes have been transformed into matured citizens in view of their aloof
stance on Gambian politics. He said after five years since the return to
democracy, the army has kept what he called a studied distance from
politics, giving much credit to the election process.

Mr. Juwara pointed out that this situation is all the more remarkable
against the backdrop of seething political animosity between supporters of
the ruling party and members of the main opposition coalition over the last
few weeks. He said it was refreshing that the army has refrained from
“dabbling” in politics as a conscious attempt to improve the image of the
institution which has suffered over the years following past confrontations
between soldiers and members of the opposition.

He said the changing trend in the army could allay common fears and assuage
public bitterness caused by the spate of political violence that had
characterized much of the period leading to the 1996 elections when there
were reports of soldiers openly supporting the ruling APRC and deploying
heavy-handedness on the civilian population. Soldiers had brandished or
hoisted APRC flags and jogged around the urban area, celebrating the party’s
victory. However, Mr. Juwara believes that the current comportment of
members of the army is suggesting a clean break with the past. But Juwara
who is the propaganda secretary of the United Democratic Party said “The
Gambia National Army was not created out of nothing but was used by Yahya
Jammeh for his coup.” He accused the president of betraying the army by
using it to topple a democratically elected administration and setting the
stage to amass wealth. He said the betrayal was complete after President
Jammeh allegedly refused to go back to barracks, abandoning his colleagues
there with their uniforms.

Waa Juwara also cited what he called the exemplary nature of members of the
Malian army notably Amadou Toumani Toure who relinquished power after
overthrowing Moussa Toure who had ruled that country for many years. He
holds that if members of the Gambian army could be aloof from politics,
Gambians would build confidence around its members.

In his reaction the Army Chief of Staff Colonel Baboucarr Jatta attributed
the situation to an improved police competence in handling incidents, which
has made the intervention of the army unnecessary. He said for the first
time in many years the police was being led by an Inspector General who
could take decisive actions and give little cause for members of the army to
get involved with civilians.

The army chief also pointed out that because of police complacency and
inefficiency in the past, the army has been required to take to the streets
to restore order in the events of disturbances, which the police could not
quell. Colonel Jatta also opined that the role of the army has been
misunderstood over the years as people thought its members were more in the
service of individuals than the state. He maintained that the army would
maintain its apolitical role as an institution for nation-wide security. He
said has reminded his men of the criticality of the election period and
advised them to perform their duties accordingly as “loyalists to the
state.” The Colonel was also at pains to assure Gambians that the army would
remain in barracks on October 18 when Gambians go to the polls to choose
between five presidential candidates. He said that Gambians in turn should
be law-abiding and peaceful to avoid situations leading to a break down of
law and order. The colonel also pointed out that a common understanding
between the army and all political parties had been reached to allow for a
peaceful election process to as he put it augment democracy and the rule of
law. He believes that it was important to “exploit dialogue” with a view to
achieving a durable compromise from conflicting interests than to encourage
the politics of confrontation.

Responding to questions about the nationality of some members of the army,
Colonel Jatta said “as soldiers we are better screened than any other
Gambian in view of the sensitivity of our role as Gambians.” He said it was
highly unlikely that non-Gambians would slip the net to become Gambian
soldiers.

On the fate of Corporal Mbemba Manneh who was recently caught casting a fake
cheque at the First International Bank, the army chief disclosed that the
fugitive soldier was being kept at the Military Police awaiting the
possibility of a court marital. He said the Corporal’s behaviour was
indefensible under the circumstances and needed to be punished. “Soldiers
should be role-models in society,” he said.





_________________________________________________________________
Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp

<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>

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

<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>