Who said it is a dance on rose petals to be a woman in a predominantly male
forum? Gambia-L as we are very familiar with is an opposition majority if we
are to go by views presented on this List. Yet being an outspoken
anti-Jammeh(APRC) alone was not enough guarantee to shield her from male
anger and venom in the same opposition when the going got tough. On the eve
of election day, amidst a lot of chest-beating and fire-spitting she was
labelled 'The Opposition of The Opposition'. When all she was doing, was to
state her beliefs; exercise her democratic rights!!! But make no mistake!
She stood her ground; stayed put(never frayed)! When Jammeh extended an
olive branch to all and sundry, this was her response:
List members, Sister Jabou Joh!
Subject: Re: AN OLIVE BRANCH FROM JAMMEH
G-L,
Does Jammeh really mean this in the real sense of the word, or is this just
another propaganda ploy to woo the international community because the
coffers of our national treasury are empty, having been senselessly
squandered by this administration, and they now need to convince the
international community that they have turned a new leaf in order to entice
donors and investors?
Concerning G-L, is this olive branch a way to disarm us? Rest assured that
G-L is an effective instrument in letting both Gambians and the rest of the
World know about the goings on in our country, and most of them in the past
five years have catalogued the innumerable human rights abuses that have
transpired and which will not inspire any freedom loving people in other
countries to view the present administration as the guardians of even the
most basic of human rights for the people, even if the Gambian people
themselves are easily fooled.
In other words, G-L is not a medium that can be controlled despite the many
appearances of a number of agents of the Jammeh government, and for a
government that has left no leaf unturned in their attempts to silence the
press and put fear in the people, this is indeed a big dillemma.
However, it appears that the intentions of those of us who came forward to
fight for the freedom from oppression for our people have now been made the
pariahs, at least by some Gambians. A few days ago, i read a posting by a
young man who alleged that
"it was G-L who sent petitions and did all of the things we did without the
consent of the people, and that we were not representing the Gambian
people".
That statement has been reverberating in my head since i read it, and it
leaves me with a sadness that is unmeasurable.
While G-L is definitely not wholly representative of the Gambian people, I
at least was confident that each and everyone of us is capable of discerning
right from wrong, justice from injustice, freedom of speech and fear induced
by threats from the ability to question and put our leaders to task without
reprecussions of any kind. The very reason that inspired some of us who were
formerly non-political to get up and add our voices to those voices calling
for justice and freedom for our people and country with no ulterior motive
intended.
I am equally convinced that the Jammeh Government also knows the difference
between right and wrong, justice and injustice as these traits are inherent
in every human being as the holy Qur'an has told us.
It is just that they fear being deposed by the very means by which they came
to power, and their fear of this at every turn is what has motivated them in
the past as now,to issue decrees that usurp the rights of the people, jail
people without charging them or according them due process of the law,
parade aound with big guns to instill fear in the people and put a check on
journalists to make sure that they have full control of everything and
everyone, and indeed it seems to have worked.
I thought all of us could also discern what motivated some of us to speak
out against injustices we all know about, and which we as a people have
never been subjected to, especially the youth, and the enlightened amongst
us, but i think i was wrong.
Despite all of the things that have transpired under the Jammeh government
in the past few years, and despite the fact that most Gambians are poorer
than ever, with the majority of them having no hope of any improvement in
their condition regardless of who they voted for, the people have voted this
goverment back into power.
A few days ago, Ginny Quick wrote to ask the question of why Gambians
re-elected Jammeh if all of the things we said on the L were true.
The answer to this question is something to explore, and frankly, the
answers are not comforting either in our ability as a people to understand
the democratic process and what it can do so us as a whole and not just as a
tool for individual interest, as well as our tendency to not wish each other
well, and to expend all of our energies villifying those who fight to
improve our lot and doing everything we can to bring them down, seeing them
only as people who are after something for themselves, and therefore to be
stopped at all cost, even if it means that our condition as an exploited
people never changes. This is truely amazing, and something that is beyond
human comprehension to say the least.
I think that it is abundantly clear, that the allegations levelled at the
APRC givernment are not figments of our imagination. On the contrary, the
evidence is there for all Gambians as well as the rest of the World to see.
1. We did not invent the shooting of the school children in broad daylignt,
and the ensuing investigation/commission of enquiry and the setting aside of
their findings with no closure and no justice for those who lost loved
ones.There are just no excuses good enough to justify the shootings.
2. We did not invent the condition of those young men who were left
paraplegics, still vegetating in hospitals where they are not getting the
proper treatment for the injuries they suffered on April 11th, 2000 as
victims of the shootings. How does a heart become so callous that one can
observe such a thing and not feel plain human compassion for these young
people, even if they were total strangers?
3.We did not invent the torching of Radio 1FM or the dismantling of Citizens
FM, and tying them up in the courts for years while their equipment gathered
rust with excuses such as the lack of permits and such, when the real
reasons were that these journalists dared to provide a meduim where the
people can freely express themselves. Likewise, we did not invent the
deportation of Journalists and the estrangement of some just fordaring to
write the truth.
4. We did not invent the fact that Koro Ceesay and others were murdered in
cold blood, and this government has not conducted any investigation into
their deaths, or even allowed his family to see the autopsy report. How does
one present oneself as a government who is representative of justice when
such things can ensue? Perhaps the Gambians see no problem with such
actions, but we sincerely hope that the rest of the World does, otherwise
there is no hope for humanity.
5. We did not invent the fact that farmers, the poorest in our midst, have
toiled dilligently planting and harvesting crops whose sale provides the
only means of sustenance for their families, but which have gone unsold for
the past couple of years, leaving them destitute and starving practically.
6. We did not invent the fact that Jammeh has become a multi millionaire
practically overnight when he did not have any money when he came to power
just a few years ago, and this in a country where the average family
struggles even to put food on the table on a day to day basis. The treasury
is empty and yet, those at the helm of power are living like kings while the
general populace is barely making ends meet. The treasury has become the
personal bank account of this government and it is now empty.
7. We did not invent all of the documented speeches by this president in
which he has repeatedly threatened the well being of Gambians and
admonishing them like children, and threatening them with death. The last of
these speeches were delivered on the eve of these past elections where he
was openly threatening people just because they openly displayed their
support of an opposition party.
8. Likewise, we did not invent all of the annual reports on human rights
from such agencies like the United State department of State, and Amnesty
International which have chronicled some of these very points mentioned
above over the past five years.
No, we did not invent any of these things. They all transpired in the
presence of Gambians, and yet, this government has won the elections.
Perhaps this is a lesson for those of us who thought we could actually
understand the Gambian mind, and that infact, all of us are in search of
justice, peace and prosperity, accountability in our leaders and
transparency from those who we charge with taking care of our national
affairs. Perhaps the World has gone upside down, and right is wrong and
wrong has become right, and it is us the dreamers in search of justice and
with goodwill in our hearts for our fellow man that are mad afterall.
Perhaps it is impossible that we African will ever come to a place where we
act in the collective interest of our people , realizing that when we do
that, we are making strides that will benefit all of us in the long run as
opposed to just in the interest of our own for the short term, and as a
temporary fix.
It is apparent that we are indeed very well suited for manuipulation and
those who study and know the art well are the ones who controll our every
move, and we will continue to be at their mercy even when it does not make
any sense whatsoever, and it appears that those with hard hearts and a
tendency to sacrifice their compatriots for their own gain are steadily on
the increase, even though this same tendency is a death sentence for them as
well as the entire society in the long run. However, material gain and the
false sense of being at the top is enough justification for this
shortsightedness.
Perhaps those who have long given up on this dream of true freedom for us
are leaps and bounds ahead of us hopeless dreamers.
The Jammeh government's offering of an olive branch and outreach to the
opposition parties as well as all Gambians will be taken seriously if they
start with the following.
1. Release Momodou Dumo Saho so he can go home to his loved ones or charge
him with an offense and accord him a speedy trial as allowed under the laws
of our constitution. This is what a law abiding giovernment does. Anything
else may be bought by Gambians, but not the international community.
2. Conduct an investigation into the deaths of Koro Ceesaay and others whose
deaths have gone uninvestigated, and no explanation has been given to the
people.
3. Revisit the incident of April 11th, 2000, and bring to trail those
responsible for this atrocity.
4. Do away with the represssion of journalists ability to report all the
news and give voice to the people to air their views without fear of
prosecution in one form or other.
5. Stop the rampant firing of civil servants and coercing them to join the
ruling party.
6. Extend development to all areas of The Gambia, and not give priority only
to those areas where the ruling party has a support base. Jammeh himself
made it clear he will continue to engage in this sort of unfairness by
statements made during his campaign. I believe he issued a direct threat to
the people of Brikama just because of their party allegiances
7. Use our hard earned tax money to provide the basic services needed by all
Gambians without treating it as a gift from Jammeh to be disbursed according
to his whims and party affiliations. Witness the debacle of these generators
that were long overdue, but which were used as election time pawns to
convince the people that this government is the one who has their interest
at heart. Only In Africa can one get away with such a thing. The
constructiuon of hospitals and other structures when there is hardly any
medication in the llaready existing ones is another senseless gesture
intended to fool those easily fooled into thinkingthat new structures spell
progress.
8. Return the procurement of goods and services to the different government
departments instead of bringing the purchasing of all of these services
under the control of the president and his circle and being treated as a
business enterprise to enrich themselves.
9. Let the president stop using the treasury as his personal fund, and
return it's control to those charged with it's care to ensure accountability
and misuse of the people's meager reasources.
10. Let Jammeh stop threatening the people with heavy weaponry and "burying
them 6 feet deep" in every speech, and let him stop running the country like
a police state so that Gambians can feel confident to come home and engage
in ventures that will create jobs and opportunities for the people, as well
offer their expertise for the betterment of our country.
11.Put term limits into place so that Jammeh will not embark on a 30 year
reign like we had with the PPP government of Jawara and which he said he
came into power to rectify.
If the APRC govenment does all of this sincerely and without restrictions
and conditions, and until it becomes abundantly clear to the people without
question that this is being done, then we, along with the rest of the World
that is watching, will believe that they have indeed turned a new leaf.
Without addressing the unresolved issues mentioned above that are facing
this government, especially in the areas of the unresolved human rights and
deaths issues, as well as the continued jailing of people like Dumo Saho,
this government will not be believed by those who are not easily fooled,
namely the international community whose imput and partnership Jammeh has
learned that he cannot do without, albeit the hard way.
Words are easy, but it is the verifiable actions and nothing less that will
vindicate this government, and we will just wait to see.
Jabou Joh.
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