Saul, thanks for your post and you raised a lot of valid points that Gambians needs to ponder upon.  I see this discourse as very healthy, contrary to other opinions.  It is through discussion that we can be more Gambian.  Folks, let us not drawn Saul out.  We heard from Sam, now we have to hear from Saul.  Yes, we are all one and the same, but we also have tons of contradictions that we are sitting on.  Let us discuss them with honesty and that is what is going to solidify our union for the future.  I hate to be snuck upon.  I'd rather discuss our dirty linen and we all become better Gambians in the end, than we sugar coat it and tomorrow if the cap is blown off, the same peace folks of yesterday hunt each other like we saw in Rwanda, Kenya, etc., not to forget our own Kukoi mayhem.  Saul, by all means share your thoughts with us on the subject.  We just saw the hypocritical so-called elders of Gambia and the lies they vomited at Yaya's naming of his baby.  Those are the same folks that were around Jawara when Jawara named his babies, and the same raccoons that will fester should another follow Yaya.  One of two things will result after the dust settles.  Our oneness will be proven and we continue to march on, or, our suspicions of each other or our tribal tendencies will be exposed and we have an opportunity to transcend it and be more Gambian.  So, it is a win win situation for Gambia.  What we must not be seen to do is to continue to sit on these contradictions and lull each other to sleep and act upon our mindset to the benefit of the tyrants.  Hey, if my uncle is mentioned in the process, tough luck for me, but his record must speak for him and how he lived his day.  We all have uncles and aunts, fathers and mothers.  However, when it comes to the national question, it will be futile to attempt to not want to discuss things because it is not palatable.  To liberate ourselves from the tyranny of Yaya Jammeh, we must have to first liberate ourselves from the mindset that brought us Yaya Jammeh and is helping him to further strangle us.  Let's continue the education process to liberate our minds.





Chi Jaama





Joe

> Date: Sat, 26 Jan 2008 11:08:07 +0000
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: On Sam Sarr, Ethnic Nationalism, and the Quest for a Gambian Nation By Saul Saidy Khan
> To: [log in to unmask]
>
> On Sam Sarr, Ethnic Nationalism, and the Quest for a Gambian Nation
>
> By Saul Saidy-Khan
> Pa Nderry,
>
> Please allow me space to add to the debate started by Sam Sarr. I truth, I was going to send this to Sankareh, but I notice he's becoming personally involved, so I'd be grateful if you could put this out for me. Time allowing, I'll finish up my conclusion in Part Two.
> Thanks in advance.
> .........................................................
> Ironically, on reading Samsudeen Sarr's "analyses", I have the same feelings he had about Suntu Touray's initial response. I'm totally confounded, and I'm not sure where to begin. The utter disregard for established historical facts shown by Sam is really shocking. Not to talk about obvious ethnic bias, given the man wants to be taken as an impartial commentator slamming tribalism.
>
> First, unlike Sam, it matters not to me whether his first respondent's real name is Suntu Touray or Haddy Juum. We have read many online postings in the past under names like "Ebou Colley," "Egu S.", "Kujabi" etc, on different websites, yet many of us know these are mere pseudonyms that Sam might know something about. So what's the fascination with the name "Suntu" –even if it is another assumed name? As we willingly played the fool, and took "Ebou Colley" at face value, so is the approach many readers adopt towards online bylines. The name is less relevant than what is said! And going by the dictates of natural justice, how can someone notorious for hiding behind assumed names, condemn someone else for doing so? Anyhow, I'm inclined to believe that Sam latched unto this irrelevance in an attempt to skirt the substance of what Touray wrote, while unnecessarily denigrating the fellow. After re-reading the man's posting, I cannot for the life in me figure out why Sam thinks
> this man is any sort of bad representative of people who would identify with the Mandinka.
>
> If I understood anything from what Touray wrote, it was to raise the flag for Sam to say that "there is another side to the story that you're is trying to make us believe." For which reason, I agree with Suntu whole-heartedly! Suntu Touray, at no point said or suggested that "nothing could be done about tribalism." Rather, the man was cautioning against the MONO-view that Sam has taken on the subject. From what Sam has written, you'll have to concede and conclude: Poor, Poor Wolof people! Look how Mandinka people have been treating them! IF what Sam wrote is true, and complete.
>
> However, the version of Gambia's political history that Sam Sarr is peddling is neither accurate nor original. It is a five-decade old Branding of Mandinka people as irredeemably tribalist by orientation, and therefore less than patriotic relative to others. We are constantly bombarded with the notion that all Mandinka politicians do is to use ethnicity, NOT ideas, to get into office. What is left unsaid is the implication that politicians from other ethnic groups in The Gambia use OTHER THAN ETHNICITY to get elected. And the story line continues that while in office, all these Mandinka politicos do is look after only their kind. Never mind, the reality of three decades of Mandinka-led governments in The Gambia makes a canard of these allegations! But these are what we hear.
>
> I say the false branding of Mandinka people is not original because world history is replete with examples. In present day America, the Far Right, through relentless demagoguery of Liberals over time, has turned the term "Liberal" into a dirty word. They have been so effective that even well-known Liberal politicians recoil when asked if they are Liberal. Many even try to qualify what type of Liberal they are! (Read John Kerry in the 2004 Prez Campaign.) Ironically, almost all the people that we revere or celebrate around the world (prophets Mohamed and Jesus Christ, Buddha, Nelson Mandela, Mohandas Gandhi, Mother Teresa, ML King, Nkrumah, Sankara, etc) were all unabashed Liberals! American Liberals had wrongly assumed that ordinary people would be able to see through the falsity that the Rush Limbaughs and Sean Hannitys are peddling about them. They were wrong! The Liberals' mistake is to let the Far Right define them, such that people don't know who Liberals actually
> are, and what they stand for; they only know what the Limbaughs feed them about Liberals. It was only when Liberals woke up to this fact and started fighting back with Air America and similar media that they've been able to repair some of the damage that the Far Right demagogues have inflicted on their image. As is the case with American Liberals, so has it been with Mandinka people in The Gambia. So be warned! Human beings believe what they often hear –unchallenged. Sad, but true.
>
> It is precisely because of this fact that letting the version of Gambian history being peddled by the Sam Sarrs stand unchallenged would be to help Hogwash History germinate. Wolof Nationalists like Sam Sarr (bear with me and this will become clear,) have through the decades used a combination of One-liners, Half-truths, and at times outright concoctions (often in coded-language) to brand, label, and stigmatized Mandinka people in every conceivable way as The Gambia's problem. You hear them say things like: "It (Tribalism) is not going to work any more…;" "We know what happened before...;" "You know them (the Mandinka)"; "They (the Mandinka) are power-hungry. Me I don't care about power…" So on, so on. But are these true, or the whole truth?
>
> Allow me to give Sam credit for breaking with their tradition to state clearly what he truly feels about Mandinka people. Often, outside of their Choirs, Wolof Nationalists employ Coded Language to spread their anti-Mandinka sermon. The Coding is deliberate: to avoid being held responsible for what they say. If you challenge them, they play the victim, and claim they meant something else by what they said. Sam, at least has saved us that toothache. But true to tradition, he couldn't help himself when it comes to another Wolof Nationalist hallmark – Transference. Note how Sam tries to portray Suntu Touray as the tribalist when in fact, unlike him, the man did NOT SAY ANYTHING derogatory about Wolof people! In Sam's Wolof Nationalist mentality, all the negative things he just happens to recall about a people call Mandinka, has nothing to do with his inner feelings, it was to condemn generic tribalism like is happening in Kenya. But Suntu Touray's response? Ooooh No, that
> is motivated by Tribal bigotry! Classic Wolof Nationalist trickery. Somehow, we are to believe the stories Sam Sarr made up about Mandinka people as sincere, but we are to condemn Suntu Touray who cautioned him to be cognizant of an alternative view. It is noteworthy that as usual, some people have fallen for this trick.
>
> But in order not to jump the gun, lets take a multi-faceted look at this Notorious "Mandinka anti-Wolof campaign" that Sam is using as a ruse to unload his pent-up prejudice against the Mandinka. Let's start by putting things in perspective:
>
>
> Sam is talking about an election campaign that happened forty-eight (48) years ago!
> As most still do, almost ALL Gambians voted along sectional lines in that election. (The over-whelming majority of Wolof people voted for the THREE Wolof candidates that ran; and the over-whelming majority of Mandinka people voted for the one Mandinka candidate who ran.)
> The Gambia has had dozens of elections since.
> Close to 80% of Gambians today were not even alive at the time.
>
>
> Having made these clear, let's look at Sam's allegations, and please allow me to quote Sam himself extensively. He said: "However, it was not until the PPP in their quest for independence from the British started spreading the inaccurate political message that the Wolof had stolen their country, Gambia, and kept them under suppression for centuries that I began to realize the filth behind tribalism. As far as some of them were concerned, colonialism with all its degradation had nothing to do with the "Toubabs" in charge for over three hundred years but everything to do with Wolof hegemony."
>
> This is very interesting. In essence, Sam is giving us the impression that he saw and experienced these things first-hand during that period! This notorious campaign happened between 1959 and 1960. The first thing that struck me is simple: How old is Sam Sarr that he understood things around him in 1959-1960, and more specifically, the meaning of what Mandinka (PPP) were saying about Wolof people on the campaign trail? I ask this question because Sam has told us that he didn't begin to realize the "filth behind tribalism" until the PPP came along and started blaming Wolof people for Mandinka misfortune, while giving a pass to the Toubab. Going by his words, Sam had to have been not only alive at the time, he had to have been matured enough to understand what the Mandinka PPP politicians were saying, which was the only way he could have "realized" that the polity –which was hitherto pristine, was suddenly being defiled with "filth!" I remember seeing Sam Sarr in military
> uniform many times in the '80s. If Sam Sarr was alive at all in 1959-1960, he must have been very young by my reckoning. In that case, Sam was the genius infant who not only understood what adults were saying, but who also understood the implication of their words as well. Quite remarkable!
>
> If Sam Sarr is fighting his parents' and grandparents' battles, which I believe to be the case (because I know Sam Sarr was NEVER part of the audience when the PPP first campaigned against Banjul Wolof parties,) why not be honest about this basic starting point? As children, we all have an innate instinct to fight for our parents. My own father passed on a year ago, and there are many things I'd do for him. But fight a dead fifty years old issue for him? What's the point?
>
> Like Sam, I believe in putting everything on the table to discuss what ails our society with honesty. Only then can we forge ahead to higher heights as a collective – in my view. But when we start such discussions couched in misrepresentation (to be very generous here,) and obvious prejudice, what possible good could ever come out of such initiatives?
>
> Sam began by couching his language in an aesthetic Pan African façade, but his language is classic Wolof Nationalistic: it's rabidly anti-Mandinka, and latently dishonest to the core! They say however much lipstick you slap on a pig, it's still a pig! Sam discounted the relevance of ethnicity very well (for good measure,) but repeatedly, he went to extraordinary lengths to paint a single group –the Mandinka, in an ugly light. I actually have the creepy feeling that Sam Sarr is a disciple of the renowned Psychologist Maslow and his Theory on Conditioning because each time Sam mentioned a particular Mandinka, or Mandinka people in his original piece, it was with reference to something negative.
>
> To begin with, of all the "minor" problems that Sam could recall from his childhood on the streets of Serekunda, it is the seldom (his own description) confrontation between Mandinka girls and their Wolof counterparts over Female Circumcision. It hasn't escaped notice that Sam feels it necessary to remind us that he is referring to the much loaded, and controversial TOUBAB-ASCRIBED term "genital mutilation of females." For the record, this is a practice that was picked up from Middle Easterners in medieval times (during the reign of the first real Islamic ruler of the Mali Empire in the case of Manden people, Mansa Kankan Musa.) The practice remains common among Africans that had significant contact with Arabs – the Manden, the Fulani, the Somali, the Amharic, as well as Swahili speakers in East Africa. A true Pan Africanist would call the practice what its African practitioners call it: Female Circumcision. (I'm not debating the medical merits or demerits of the
> practice. That's simply beside the point.) However, for someone who started off slamming Africans' blanket acceptance of everything Toubab, Sam's Goal Post-shifting leaves some of us scratching our heads about his true agenda. But then again, Sam's real agenda was never far off the surface.
>
> His story went downhill from the aforementioned point. He dwelled on a Mandinka onslaught against a Wolof Hegemony, but the mere concept of a "Wolof hegemony" in The Gambia in 1960 is a figment of the imagination of Wolof ethnic chauvinists. Period! It simply did not exist! Why then would anyone campaign against a non-existent entity? In 1960, the dominant group among Africans in Gambia was the so-called Akus. And no, not all of these are descendants of repatriated slaves. One of the first West African people to voluntarily take to the Toubabs are the Yoruba of Southern Nigeria. Not only did they flock to Western schools early, they even had college graduates in the 1890s! To this day, people from Abeokuta and Ibadan remain some of the most educated Africans anywhere. Some of those educated Yoruba people followed Europeans around West Africa including to The Gambia. Look for names like Tunde, Bola, Femi, etc (Ola-Tunde, Ade-Bola, Oba-Femi) among the so-called Akus of the
> Gambia, and you can connect the dots. (Don't be fooled by The Western Last Names. It's by "choice." The Fantes did the same in Ghana.) These were the people who had what you might term a "hegemony" in The Gambia in 1960. They had such a hold on the social scene that many Wolof people including that most famous of all Gambian Wolof – Pierre Njie, joined them. Yet, we continue to hear of these stories that the main theme of the PPP Mandinka "political scam artists" was to overthrow "Wolof hegemony." Which one?
>
> Also, Contrary to the false impression we often get, Pierre Njie was in fact, another Jawara: provincial roots; educated in Banjul; abandoned his religion in order to assimilate into what was seen as the cream of Colonial Gambia, until it became expedient to revert to those same roots. Like the Spanish say: Ayos Mismo. They're all the same! Sam asked the question: "How was Jawara who came to Banjul as a child, got raised and educated there, converted to Christianity and married an Aku Christian woman got chosen as the PPP leader when the main target of the party was to burst the Banjul clique?" We shall get to what pushed the PPP founders to settle for Jawara, but for now, let's note the similarity between Pierre Njie and Jawara. Pierre was a Saloum Saloum. Unlike his brothers (Sheriff, etc) he converted to Christianity, and married an Aku woman, etc. Some of Pierre Njie's children like daughter Mary Langley (former Establishment Secretary,) live their lives as Aku, not
> Wolof. Just like Jawara's first four children do. So why did the Banjul Wolof choose Pierre Njie of all the people they could? So why is Sam Sarr interpreting the experience of the two men differently? Why not raise the same question about Pierre Njie as he did about Jawara? Sam is supposed to be an ethno-blind commentator. Or am I assuming wrong?
>
> On that 1959-1960 campaign, was there anything unique about the way the PPP Mandinka campaigned? In other words, were they the only people who injected ethnicity or sectionalism into their politics at the time? The answer to this question is an emphatic No! Sam has been kind enough to let us in on the fact that his own parents were supporters of Jahumpa and his Muslim Congress, and not Pierre Njie "because he's Christian." If we are to be honest with each other, Sam's own people voted with "their hearts, and not their heads" as he labeled Suntu Touray's reaction. In other words, they were guided by emotion instead of reason. Pierre Njie's religion had absolutely nothing to do with his ability or lack thereof to run our country. So why was that a factor at all in the choice that Sam's people made? If Sam has any problems with his parents' political choice, he hasn't said so. But evidently, he is less understanding about the majority Mandinka who voted the same way! LIKE
> EVERYBODY ELSE, they voted with "their hearts, and not their heads." They DID NOT BUCK ANY TREND. So why single them out for criticism?
>
> On I.M. Garba Jahumpa especially, Gambian history would record that he was the one who formally injected sectionalism, or ethnicity into Gambian politics! This is a serious charge, so allow me to elaborate.
>
> You see, between 1943 and 1959 (before PPP joined the political scene,) roughly 95% of all Aku speaking people in Banjul were Christian, and the same proportion of Wolof speakers were Muslim. The so-called Aku were by far the more educated locals. Now if you want to dislodge an Aku from elective office, you have a choice of going after him as an "Aku candidate," (with clear ethnic undertones,) or as a Christian (with subtle ethnic undertones, even if an overt religious one. "Aku" was synonymous with Christian.) Jahumpa settled for the more subtle option, a characteristic that has now become a tradition among Ethnic Nationalists in The Gambia. They never say anything direct; they only talk in codes! Anyhow, regardless of Jahumpa's tactics, the effect of what he did was the same. By deftly injecting this Sectionalist wedge between Banjul people, Jahumpa was able to achieve what he sought, which was to get himself elected into office at the expense of more qualified Aku
> speakers. In fact, that divisive tactic of hiding behind religion to sideline the more educated Aku speakers was so effective that the man that PDOIS folks keep telling us is the Father of Gambian Politics – Edward Francis Small, was crushed at the polls! This was well before the PPP was even formed.
>
> PDOIS people never tire of reminding us of the patriotism and issue-driven politics of late Mr. Small. So why was this patriotic, and decent man defeated? More importantly, was the agenda of the candidate who defeated EF Small more progressive? Not according to PDOIS, or Jabis Langley, or one Mr. Dacosta, all of who have written extensively about early Gambian politics. The main difference between PDOIS and the other writers is that the latter two emphasize that "before the advent of the provincial-born, Banjul-educated Dawda Jawara, no Banjul politician (including EF Small,) championed the cause of the disenfranchised rural majority." They both advise that we see EF Small in that context. Where their opinions of Mr. Small converge is that relative to all the other politicians, he was the one candidate who saw himself as a Gambian first. It is for that reason that they all agree that he deserves to be seen as the Father of Gambian politics.
>
> But from the foregoing, it is obvious that sectionalism, tribalism, or ethnicity (choose whatever name you want,) was part and parcel of The Gambia's political scene before Protectorate (PPP Mandinka) people even came along! Yet, we continue to read about, and hear of allegations and insinuations from the Sam Sarrs about how the PPP people used "filthy" tribalism to dislodge the Wolof (from power they never had) as if the PPP folks had intruded on the scene and introduced something new. Fact: Banjul people were already DIVIDED ALONG SECTIONAL LINES BEFORE the PPP was formed. If the PPP people did anything at all, it was to do to the Banjul Wolof what they did to the Akus - thanks to their relative numerical strength. Nothing more! The Aku moved on when reality hit. But Wolof Nationalists seem to be stuck in a time warp. This is 2008 for goodness sake!
>
> Why are Wolof Nationalists still bitching about a forty-eight years old election? It does give a whole new meaning to the term "sore losers" -doesn't it? When will this sulking end? What are they after? An election happened half a century ago. Why not get over it? Isn't it about time that we concentrate on more pressing things – like, say Gambian politics in 2008? Our politics still remains primordial and dominated by complete frauds and idiots of all shades. There is absolutely nothing exceptional about Mandinka politicos. If through some magic, you remove ALL the "Mandinka political scam artists" from The Gambia's political scene today, you'll still have a mess in your hands because the rest of what you'll be left with are no better. So why are we being dragged back to 1960 when our house is on fire in 2008? Do the Sam Sarrs follow what goes on at The Gambia's parliament? Why not pursue an agenda that will segue our politics to the next level?
>
> Lest I forget, let me hasten to note here that a distinction needs to be made between PPP politicians and PPP founders. PPP politicians like Jawara were in fact Carpet Baggers. They are "Monkey Work, Baboon Chop" characters like the GNA Military Boys call such people. Jawara did not sweat at all to get the top position. In fact, he was even unwilling to sacrifice the loss of his salary, for which reason, the Founders PAID him a salary to lead them. In essence, he was handed a finished product on a gold platter. Was he the wrong man to lead these people? Of course, he was – in my view.
>
> On the other hand, the PPP Founders were a motley crew of Country, mainly Mandinka-speaking illiterate old men who were driven by the desire to have their voices heard in the affairs of the country in 1959. At all cost! Their story is akin to a David v. Goliath scenario. The odds were prohibitively against them. Now, what was eating away at these old men? The answer to this question is what Wolof Nationalists NEVER acknowledge, nor want to hear anyone else say! But let's set aside the affliction call Political Correctness and cite some of the complaints Country people (some STILL ALIVE) had against Banjul Wolof especially.
>
> Sam quotes Prez Eisenhower's son about his father's opinion of what he saw in Banjul in 1943. Sam should do more research because Ike went further than what Sam noted. Ike's summation of Banjul and The Gambia in 1943 was one word: "a Hellhole!" That harsh reality notwithstanding, the residents of this Island which was "ceded" (using Colonial terminology,) to the British in the early 19thc by a MANDINKA Seyfo, were rabidly xenophobic, and tribalist to the core. Prof. Adu Boahen describes the Ashanti King Obiri Yeaboah as a "martial ardor… who enjoyed blood sports." In the same vein, many Banjul Wolof in that period had a very twisted sense of humor: they enjoyed Humiliation Sports. Despite their own unflattering lives, they openly poured scorn on people from the hinterland. Some people still alive remember walking down streets in Banjul in the late 1940s and throughout the 1950s, and getting jeered, heckled, and taunted with words like "Santong Ko!"; "Nko!"; "Go back to
> the farm!"; etc.
>
> Santong KO, especially only means "someone from the countryside," in Mandinka. But it was said as if it is on a par with "thief", "murderer," "rapist," or something dirty like that. In essence, country people were routinely demeaned and denigrated. But worse than that treatment, one needs not go far to find old men who remember some country person dying in Banjul at that time, and being unable to find help among the local Muslim population to give the deceased a decent farewell. This, despite the fact that the majority Wolof speakers in Banjul were Muslim as well! Sanjally Bojang talked about this in his chat with Foroyaa before he died. As he remembered it, so does my late grandfather, and two other old men I know still alive. Add to this the open discrimination they underwent in finding employment, and you get a picture of what drove various Mandinka groups under the leadership of people like Sanjally Bojang, and Pa Keita to shove aside their differences to form a
> coalition in order to matter in the post-Colonial period. They were simply terrified by the prospects of mainly Wolof-speaking Banjulians taking over from the Toubabs – given their (the Founders) experience at the hands of those people.
>
> Now people who have been harassed, bullied, or treated these ugly ways for a protracted period could be forgiven for being irrational in looking for anyone who fits the bill (settling for a transplant like Jawara because of his Barajally roots.) Who among us could, in good conscience fault them for their fears? Are these mainly Mandinka-speaking people justified in assuming the worst of the Banjul Wolof? What would Sam Sarr and his types have done in their shoes? More importantly, how does Sam's complaints about Mandinkas compare to what his people did to Country people OVER several DECADES? When some of us mention what was done to Country people in Banjul, we are condemned as bitter and hateful. But the Sam Sarrs never relent in their fabricated tales about what "Mandinka people did to Wolofs in 1960." And this is used as justification for why they're kissing up to Yaya Jammeh today. In their mind, they're "Paying Back what Mandinka people did to them." Never mind, the
> truth about what actually happened, or the "others" in our country. How can we ever become a nation with an outlook on things? It's 2008, yet some are still fighting their parents' 1960 battle!
>
> To underscore the plight of country people in those days, it is helpful to recall that when a senior British Colonial Official came visiting – in 1958 I believe it was, ABSOLUTELY NONE of the Wolof political leaders of Banjul bothered to seek the representation of country people to get their input. The official came and went without hearing anything from the majority of Gambian people. Country people felt dejected and voiceless. This is a point that both Langley and Dacosta note in their writings. Unlike some people, the two men show integrity. In any case, why should anyone be surprised that these same group of old mainly-Mandinka men rejected the overtures made by some Banjul politicians to lead them a year later (in 1959,) when it became clear to the Banjulians that they stood no chance against the majority rural dwellers? The old Country men did what any rational person would have done: ignore the Banjul politicians' attempt as insincere and self-serving. Who can
> blame them?
>
> So when Suntu Touray raises the flag of caution, some of us recall these stories, among many others. I won't even go into what some of the Banjul Wolof merchants in particular were doing to farmers – Mandinka, Fula, Jola, even Fana Fana, in those days. You see Sam, we didn't start off right. A lot of dirty things happened, and CONTINUE to happen, in that country. And I know with absolute certainty that Colony Wolofs are NOT the victims in most cases! Nine out of ten times, they were the ones doing the victimizing. I don't believe that the sins of the fathers should be visited on the children, which is why I don't understand why the Sam Sarrs keep bringing up this 1959-1960 campaign, most of the major participants in which are all DEAD! Ironically, the man that Sam's own parents supported flipped around, folded his party, and joined the same filthy Mandinka political scam artists after he lost to them at the polls! What does that say about Jahumpa?
>
> What I find very irritating about Sam's Wolof Nationalist types is the haughty attitude that they somehow have a monopoly on the truth about Gambian history. You see, just because others don't whine and raise hell doesn't mean there is only one culprit in Gambia's socio-political scene. There never has been. Banjul Wolofs themselves were routinely bullied by Akus before others got to the scene. Even in school, they caught hell from some Aku-speaking teachers. However, that attitude proved to be infectious, because the Banjul Wolofs turned around and treated other Gambians that followed them in worse ways! So in truth, the majority of the Mandinka, Fulani, Jola, Manjago, etc were more often than not at the receiving end of Colony Wolof bullying, not the other way around. Yet, it is the Wolof Nationalist who are always crying victim! Victim of whom?
>
> This is the gist of what Mr. Touray was trying to alert Sam about. Instead, he just trashed the man. Touray even cited an example that ANY HONEST expatriate Gambian can attest to about the scene at the Christening ceremony he presided over in London recently. What Touray said is NOT an isolated case at all, neither is it restricted to Christenings. You see that same scenario at meetings, at Parks, etc. Yet Sam dismissed this as a fig leaf propagated by anti-Wolof Mandinka people to convince others that "Wolofs are unwilling to speak Mandinka." Is Sam Sarr one of those Wolof who does not want to speak Mandinka intentionally? Only Sam can say. But are there any Wolof like that? Absolutely! Not only do some of us know Wolof like that, we are even friends with some of them!
>
> There is something very insulting, and patronizing about Sam's posture that suggests that he knows how every Wolof behaves. Sam Sarr knows himself, and how he thinks and behaves. Unless if Sam is Dr. TJ Eckleburg (as in The Great Gatsby,) how in the world would he know how every other Wolof behave? Or more pertinently, how would he know what Suntu Touray's experience is? Sam Sarr encountered Dr. Modou Manneh briefly and diagnosed him as tribalist because he THINKS the man was unhappy with him speaking in a non-Mandinka language to him. Fair enough. Why is it impossible for Suntu Touray, or any other person to have had a similar experience with a Wolof person? This kind of twisted logic is what ticks some of us off about Wolof Nationalists: Wolof people who cannot speak other Gambian languages or dialects just happen to have NO NEED to learn these (going by Sam's explanation which itself betrays a Colonial Mentality,) but Gambians who cannot speak Wolof are somehow
> tribalist because Wolof is the Lingua Franca (we are constantly reminded.) But says who?
>
> This Wolof Nationalistic tendency of assigning themselves the role of Rule Maker, or Definers in Gambian society remains one of the stumbling blocks in the quest to create a Gambian nation. Things are not what they are unless they say so; someone is tribalist because they say so (without bothering to proffer any convincing evidence); something doesn't exist unless they say it does; whatever they're involved in is "national", but anything they don't control is "tribalist;" etc. this is not only symptomatic of their inflated sense of their importance in Gambian society, it betrays a very ignorant, and arrogant mindset. Where does this temerity come from?
>
> If Sam Sarr has an issue with Mandinka people, which I think he does, he should be honest enough to lay it out squarely without hiding behind some dead issue like this 1959-1960 campaign. I say this because Sam went to elaborate lengths to portray a non-existent Mandinka tribal cabal during the PPP era. In my view, Lamin Saho bungled the Radio Gambia News Reading sequence issue. What's the point in conducting a Census if the results are not used for formulating Public Policy? The largest Gambian ethnic group is Mandinka, followed by Fulani, though you wouldn't know that from Sam's discussion, or many things Gambian. That, because the Fulani, by nature have made themselves the Lapdogs of either Mandinka or Wolof people. I know something about this because my own family are Fulani who migrated from Futa about two hundred years ago. They settled among Mandinka people, who they taught, and converted into Islam. They called these Mandinka people "Talubeh" and the Manden called
> them "Saidy" – thus the prefix to my family name. Anyhow, when Foday Kabah came along on his conquests around 1890, my people quickly abandoned most things Fulani to appease him. We never fully went back to our roots since. And my Fulani friends from Guinea tell me things that make me wonder whether kow-towing is in our genes.
>
> In my view, Gambian News should be announced according to size of ethnic population – Fulani before Wolof any time! Lamin Saho did a half-hearted job, and provided fodder for frustrated Wolof Nationalists who were at the time looking for anything they could latch on, to show how "anti-Wolof" Mandinka people are. This should have been a routine Radio Schedule change. Why in the world is that a cause for a National crisis? Was it tribally-insensitive? Apparently. But is there more to it than that? You tell me. (This was the 1980s, and after Banjul Sankapra ML Saho resigned his appointment as Health Minister in 1982 (he supposedly campaigned on the belief that he would be promoted to Veep,) there was no Banjul Wolof in the cabinet. Thus, Wolof Nationalists were seething with rage for much of the 1980s.)) Otherwise, Dr. Lamin Saho never ran for national office; he ran against his blood cousin Sheriff Dibba in heavily Mandinka Lower Badibu. (The two men share the same
> maternal grandfather from what I understand.) Saho was defeated the first time he ran in 1977, before eventually winning twice in a row. How tribalism has helped him in his political career, I cannot fathom. And for Jawara not stepping in, that's the man's Signature Attitude. Let's take a look at a parallel case.
>
> In 1984, the GNA was inaugurated. I don't know if Sam was at the Reception they held in Faraja. But a very senior cabinet member who was, told me a story that is very revealing of Jawara's personality. Lloyd Evans, former IG of Police and Establishment Secretary, pulled this gentleman and Jawara aside, and laid it out (in Wolof): "You see these boys? They are Shy-shy! We cannot trust them for a minute. You HAVE TO get involved in their appointments and promotions. Make sure only people you trust handle certain sensitive positions..." The gentleman quotes Mr. Evans as saying bluntly. But what did Jawara do? He let Ndow Njie run the show. Sam was a senior officer in the army. He can tell us who the officers of the army were before another blunt fellow came by (Gen. Dada from Nigeria,) who told Jawara point blank –in not so many words, that he is ignoring the Army Officer Composition to his own peril. According to who? Someone who was in the thick of things! Anyone who knew
> the GNA's Officer Structure can tell you that had Jawara placed someone like Turo Jawneh (his relative,) at the head of the army, he'd probably die in office, or leave at his own volition.
>
> But my point is, even in this critical area, keeping a tap on which could have prevented the tragedy that ultimately consumed his regime, Jawara pulled back and let the Line Managers use their discretion. Sam Sarr knows the process of how Army Officers got their promotions under Jawara, and how they do so now under Yaya Jammeh. So why then is Sam trying to blame Jawara for not interfering in what was really a very silly matter like a Radio News Schedule? The answer is simple: Sam Sarr wants us to read tribal bias in Jawara's failure to reverse Dr. Saho's decision when in fact, Jawara behaved the same way when Ndow Njie was stuffing the higher echelon of the GNA with a mainly Wolof-Aku cast, which fact was one of the main ingredients of the 1994 coup! The junior officers and soldiers of the GNA didn't have any respect for the soldierly qualities of their superiors -thanks to nepotism. History shall record that the 1994 coup was as much an internal revolt by junior
> officers and soldiers AGAINST THEIR SENIOR Officers, as it was against the politicians that led the country! But watch Sam blame the success of the coup on Nigerians. Nigeria's own first coup was carried out by relatively junior officers based in Kaduna in 1966. Within days, ALL the leaders of the coup were in jail, replaced by their seniors - Gen. Ironsi, Ojukwu, and others. But it was the responsibility of foreigners to stop the Gambia's 1994 coup. What claptrap! The question is: why were GNA soldiers unwilling to listen to Captains, Majors, and Lt. Colonels instead of following the Sub-Lt.s they fell behind?
>
> Sam's desperation to paint a Mandinka anti-Wolof cabal, betrays his deep-seated anti-Mandinka prejudice. Perhaps, we can't blame Sam because he must have been fed such sentiments from early in his life. My evidence? Sam is getting really worked up about a fifty years old election campaign he NEVER took part in himself! Where is his passion coming from if he wasn't fed such prejudice early in his life? And Sam has promised to defile another young mind – his son's! How does feeding his son half-truths help the boy understand Gambian history? Demonstrably, Sam's own version of our history is one-tracked and bereft of any context. Yet, this is the one he is vowing to teach his little boy! Shouldn't truth matter in how we teach our children? No wonder lying has become acceptable to so many of us.
>
> On Dr. Manneh, again, it's more fumes than substance. Sam indicated that someone had told him that the man is irascible, yet he sallied forth with the allegation that Manneh's dirty looks at him were due to him speaking "… in a language different from Mandinka" to Manneh. How did Sam Sarr deduce that conclusion from Manneh's looks? A more probable explanation –given what people told Sam, might be that the man is a pain in the behind. A rude fellow. Why discount that in favor of tribal prejudice? Did Sam notice Manneh being all smiles to those speaking Mandinka to him at the same time? But then again, Sam is on a mission, and no incident is trivial enough for his purpose.
>
> Dr. Manneh used to contest a Jokadu district, not a Badibu one. His district is one of the most eclectic ones in rural Gambia. Sam should research the ethnic makeup of Manneh's constituency. If I recall right, Dr. Manneh actually won that seat as an Independent candidate after he was kicked out of the PPP. Somehow, some people in that district –non Mandinka, must have liked what he was doing for them.
>
> On Dr. Manneh and Dr. Saho's qualifications, and the insinuation that unlike one Haidara Ceesay, an impostor who was booted out of the Gambia College Staff, (while Drs. Saho and Manneh were given a pass because they're Mandinka people,) I can only talk about I know for a fact. In 1987, I was getting ready to leave the Sixth Form. I was with an uncle at the Quadrangle when we bumped into a friend of his named Kebba Dampha (NOT online KD,) a Mandinka fellow. This man is from Saihou Sabally's area (who as Finance Minister at the time championed his cause from what I understand.) That Kebba Dampha has lived in London for a very long time. At the time, he claimed to have earned a Masters Degree in something. Mr. Dampha was appointed "The Administrator Designate" at the Central Bank of The Gambia. Kebba Dampha was fired faster than you can count "one - two" when his verification came back negative! He had the backing of Saihou Sabally, yet he was fired! Does Sam Sarr mean to
> tell us that the Mandinka cabal didn't realize this Kebba Dampha is Mandinka when they fired him? I've heard people raise doubts about Manneh and Saho's qualifications. But the insinuation that they got away with fraud because they're Mandinka is orphaned by the facts in similar cases. Unlike others, they chose to run for political office instead of the Civil Service. My feeling is the Civil Service was better equipped at ferreting out impostors than the PPP Party machinery was. Many of their MPs didn't have much education, so it is easy for an impostor (IF that's what Manneh and Saho are,) to blend in without much trouble.
>
> Sam's take on Sheriff Dibba, and why he quit the PPP and formed his "tribal" party is also unsupported by the facts. Lets quote Sam directly: "Dibba a Mandinka who was among the founders of the PPP when the party was called the People's Protectorate Party had later broken away when it became the People's Progressive Party and formed his own tribal party, the NCP, on the premise that Jawara was not Mandinka enough and had betrayed his people to the Wolof. There was no truth in it but the gullible fell for it as usual."
>
> First, the PPP never competed an election under Protectorate People's Party. Jawara prevailed on the founders in Basse to change the party name to People's Progressive Party before the 1960 elections. Sheriff Dibba remained a member of the PPP top tier (held posts of VP, various cabinet posts, as well as Ambassador to EU) until mid-1975 when HE WAS FIRED by Jawara! Dibba DID NOT resign voluntarily. And the NCP was not formed until late 1975. As such, Sam's version of events is another concoction being spread by his Wolof Nationalist types to stigmatize Mandinka people. The allegation that Dibba "…formed his own tribal party, the NCP, on the premise that Jawara was not Mandinka enough and had betrayed his people to the Wolof" is a complete fable! Classic revisionism!
>
> Having read his postings several times, I keep wondering why Sam Sarr is going to such extent to portray what never was? It defies commonsense. Mandinka folks had a rock-solid grip on Gambian governments for thirty years. They could have discriminated against Wolof people any way they wanted. There was absolutely nothing the Wolof could have done about it! But did they?
>
> It's because of the paucity of time that, some of us have not delved into the composition of the various PPP governments from 1962 to 1994. But clearly, there is need for this - a look at every position from Divisional Commissioner to Secretary General: who held the positions; for how long; what their ethnicity is, etc. Perhaps that will finally do for us what commonsense has failed to do: stop the unending fifty years-old Whisper Campaign of calumny that some Ethnic Nationalists have been waging to distort what essentially is Gambian history. As OJ once told me, Colony Wolof ought to "tone down their criticism of the PPP because of what we did for them." He was talking about a people who constitute less than 10% of the Gambia's population, yet constituted the majority of ALL IMPORTANT positions in the various PPP governments. Yet, some continue to cry victim. Victims of Mandinka tribalists. Sometimes, one can't help but feel sick at what one hears, or reads. A little
> gratitude would be in order. If truth be told, Mandinka people helped Colony Wolof tremendously. What the Sam Sarrs call a "Wolof hegemony" was allowed to flourish during the PPP era, NOT BEFORE. Before the PPP era, Aku speakers were fully in charge. It was in fact the "tribalist" PPP Mandinka folks who put Colony Wolof on top! This was one area where Jawara should be extolled.
>
> If I had the time, I'd move from the empirical to the semi-professional by taking a two-prong Cost-Benefit approach to the issue of what The Gambia as a country lost as a result of Colony Wolof defeat in 1960, and what Wolofs as a group lost from same election. Since this is unquantifiable, we can simply rely on publicly verifiable data. But since I lack the time, I'd just summarize it thus: had the Banjul Wolof won in 1960, they'd have put their own "qualified people" in most important positions in government; had they won, they'd have created institutions like The Gambia Commercial & Development Bank, Gambia National Trading Corp, Gambia Utilities Corp, Gambia Public Works Department, Gambia Ports Authority, Central Bank of the Gambia; Gambia Cooperative Union, etc, etc. Guess what? The horrible Mandinka tribalist people call PPP did exactly what Pierre Njie, or JC Fye, or Garba Jahumpa would have done! ALL the new institutions were headed by mainly Wolof-speaking
> Banjul people! Every single one of them! So where is the Tribalism beef? Methinks, this is a great deal for any people who lost an election. You got everything else you would have had you won. Isn't that consolation enough? Is there any concession Mandinka people can make to Wolof Nationalists that would assuage their resentment? What's this hatred about? Must you have people wrapped around your fingers to feel relevant? I have no doubt in my mind that this Mandinka hatred has to do with the fact that, they're the only people in The Gambia who consistently stand up to Wolof Nationalists.
>
> It is noteworthy that almost every single one of the new institutions I cited was run into the ground. Nobody paid any real price for these crimes. I'm sure in Jawara's thinking, pursuing them would have amounted to a "Mandinka anti-Wolof hegemony" crusade. Whatever his thinking, he backed off that route. Our country suffered tremendously because of what those Banjul people did. But my bad, this is an Off-Limit topic. The Sam Sarr's have no complaints about Jawara letting Banjul Wolof crooks bleed us dry, but they're mighty miffed that Dr. Lamin Saho changed a silly Radio News Lineup. I was wondering what to make of Sam's recommendation of Isatou Njie as Yaya Jammeh's replacement until I read this latest outrage. That woman who passed along Yaya Jammeh's Order To Shoot little kids is somehow good enough to rule the Gambia, but Dr. Saho and Manneh are "filthy scam artists." If this is not a classic case of using ethnicity as an instrument of bully, and coercion, I don't
> know what is: "they hate us, and are criticizing us because we're Wolof", "they won't vote for us we're Wolof", etc, etc. No Baba, "they" criticize certain Wolofs because of their incompetence (which they try to hide behind their ethnicity); "they" hate certain Wolofs because of their Beneatha attitude (like in A Raisin In The Sun; ) and "they" don't vote for certain Wolofs candidates because they're worse than the alternatives! How about a little growing up?
>
> So enough of this Western Artist-style neurotic, self-analytical, and narcissistic behavior: "Mandinka people turned against Jawara because they hate Wolof;" "Sheriff Dibba broke away because he hates Wolof;" "they don't speak Wolof because they hate Wolof people;" etc. There is something incredibly prepubescent about this mindset. It makes George Bush look like a genius. Who said Mandinka lives revolve around Wolof hatred? What is to gain from that? The one thing that we can all agree on about the last forty years is that the two groups of people who cannot stay away from each other in The Gambia are Mandinka men and Wolof women. Some hatred it must be.
>
> And finally, on this persistent allegation that Mandinka politicians were telling the "Mandinka masses" anti-Wolof puff on their campaigns, please let's stop being Drum Majors for ignorance! Unlike any other Gambian party, the PPP is a Bottom-Up party. It was FORMED BY THE MASSES who went shopping for leaders! I discussed what pushed them to form their party. Does it therefore make any sense that, these "masses" needed to be told why not to vote for Wolof candidates who didn't care about them before they formed their own party? Banjul Wolof had an ugly reputation that caught up with them in 1960 – period! But instead of admitting that, we hear of this insulting, and patronizing allegation from bold Story Tellers that the "Mandinka masses were told by 'scam artists' that …" – as if that mattered at all in the scheme of things. If the Mandinka candidates didn't utter a single word at all, they'd have been voted in because of the alternative.
>
> Did the Wolof candidates use similar language against the PPP? Let's assume that they didn't. Yet Banjul Wolof people voted overwhelmingly for them! Why should the behavior of other voters be interpreted any differently: Wolof voters voted for their own WITHOUT being told WHO NOT to vote for, but somehow Mandinka voters only voted for theirs because THEY WERE fed "tribal filth" by the PPP. The mendacity of some people! The "Mandinka masses" that some people heap scorn on, defied their own then-powerful Mandinka Chiefs (who ALL supported Wolof Pierre Njie, something we don't hear from the Sam Sarrs,) to vote for the PPP! But guess who else voted on ethnic lines? Colony Wolof people! So what's the problem? Why are some singling out one segment for condemnation in what was a classic Sectional election?
>
> Another ridiculous story that is frequently peddled is the story that PPP politicians told their supporters that they'll "take Wolof and Aku peoples' storey buildings" away to give them. This is part of the reason why it is common to see Wolof Nationalists walking around haughtily with an air of superiority because of such asinine ideas in their heads. I was in Banjul in February 2007. Forget 1960. Excepting government buildings, there are still far less than 200 storey buildings in the whole of Banjul! In February 2007, the majority of the people who live in the Banjul I saw live in PLASTERED KIRINTING houses! So where are the storey buildings that the hundreds of thousands of PPP supporters were supposed to have been promised in 1960? It's one thing to hear some nitwit senselessly repeat this kind of fable at some Attaya Vous, it's quite another to read such garbage from so-called educated people. And this story is told as if it is a caricature of the PPP leadership
> when in fact, all it does is reveal the incredible obtuseness of the people who continue to spread such improbable tales. How can the PPP leaders take from Banjul Wolof and Aku what they don't have? Did a particular PPP politician say something like that? Maybe. But was that a the major theme it's made out to be? No!
>
> document.getElementById("MsgContainer").innerHTML='\x3cspan class\x3dEC_viewnewsarticle\x3e\x3cspan style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3eSaul Khan\x27s brilliant response to Sam Sarr\x27s article in the Gambia Echo. I\u00a0 admire Saul a lot but I don\x27t necessarily agree with all he says.\x3c\x2fspan\x3e\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x0a\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x3cspan style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3eIt makes for a very entertaining read albeit a bit of a long one.\x3c\x2fspan\x3e\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x0a\x3cspan style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3eEnjoy.\x3c\x2fspan\x3e\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x3cspan
> style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3eThanks\x3c\x2fspan\x3e\x3cbr style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3e\x0a\x3cspan style\x3d\x22font-family\x3acourier new,monospace\x22\x3eYusupha\x3c\x2fspan\x3e\x3cbr\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3e\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22trebuchet ms,sans-serif\x22\x3e\x3cstrong\x3e\x3cfont face\x3dRockwell size\x3d6\x3e\x3cp\x3e\x3cbr\x3e\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x3cp\x3eOn Sam Sarr, Ethnic Nationalism, and the Quest for a Gambian Nation \x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x0a\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22trebuchet ms,sans-serif\x22 size\x3d4\x3eBy Saul Saidy-Khan \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x0a\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22trebuchet ms,sans-serif\x22 size\x3d4\x3ePa Nderry,\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont size\x3d4\x3e\u00a0\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22trebuchet
> ms,sans-serif\x22 size\x3d4\x3ePlease allow me\x0aspace to add to the debate started by Sam Sarr. I truth, I was going to\x0asend this to Sankareh, but I notice he\x27s becoming personally involved,\x0aso I\x27d be grateful if you could put this out for me. Time allowing,\x0aI\x27ll finish up my conclusion in Part Two.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22trebuchet ms,sans-serif\x22 size\x3d4\x3eThanks in advance.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x3cdiv\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Trebuchet MS\x22 size\x3d4\x3e.........................................................\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fdiv\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3e\x3cfont size\x3d4\x3eIronically, on reading Samsudeen Sarr\x27s \x26quot\x3banalyses\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x26quot\x3b, I have the same feelings \x3cem\x3ehe\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0ahad about Suntu Touray\x27s initial response.
> I\x27m totally confounded, and\x0aI\x27m not sure where to begin. The utter disregard for established\x0ahistorical facts shown by Sam is really shocking. Not to talk about\x0aobvious ethnic bias, given the man wants to be taken as an impartial\x0acommentator slamming tribalism. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eFirst, unlike Sam, it matters\x0anot to me whether his first respondent\x27s real name is Suntu Touray or\x0aHaddy Juum. We have read many online postings in the past under names\x0alike \x26quot\x3bEbou Colley,\x26quot\x3b \x26quot\x3bEgu S.\x26quot\x3b, \x26quot\x3bKujabi\x26quot\x3b etc, on different websites, yet\x0amany of us know these are mere pseudonyms that Sam might know something\x0aabout. So what\x27s the fascination with the name \x26quot\x3bSuntu\x26quot\x3b \u2013even if it is\x0aanother assumed name\x3f As we willingly \x3cem\x3eplayed the fool\x3c\x2fem\x3e, and\x0atook
> \x26quot\x3bEbou Colley\x26quot\x3b at face value, so is the approach many readers adopt\x0atowards online bylines. The name is less relevant than what is said\x21\x0aAnd going by the dictates of natural justice, how can someone notorious\x0afor hiding behind assumed names, condemn someone else for doing so\x3f\x0aAnyhow, I\x27m inclined to believe that Sam latched unto this irrelevance\x0ain an attempt to skirt the substance of what Touray wrote, while\x0aunnecessarily denigrating the fellow. After re-reading the man\x27s\x0aposting, I cannot for the life in me figure out why Sam thinks this man\x0ais any sort of bad representative of people who would identify with the\x0aMandinka. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIf I understood anything from\x0awhat Touray wrote, it was to raise the flag for Sam to say that \x26quot\x3bthere\x0ais another side to the story that you\x27re is trying to make
> us believe.\x26quot\x3b\x0aFor which reason, I agree with Suntu whole-heartedly\x21 Suntu Touray, at\x0ano point said or suggested that \x26quot\x3bnothing could be done about\x0atribalism.\x26quot\x3b Rather, the man was cautioning against the MONO-view that\x0aSam has taken on the subject. From what Sam has written, you\x27ll have to\x0aconcede and conclude\x3a Poor, Poor Wolof people\x21 Look how Mandinka people\x0ahave been treating them\x21 IF what Sam wrote is true, and complete.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eHowever, the version of Gambia\x27s\x0apolitical history that Sam Sarr is peddling is neither accurate nor\x0aoriginal. It is a five-decade old Branding of Mandinka people as\x0airredeemably tribalist by orientation, and therefore less than\x0apatriotic relative to others. We are constantly bombarded with the\x0anotion that all Mandinka politicians do is to use ethnicity, NOT
> ideas,\x0ato get into office. What is left unsaid is the implication that\x0apoliticians from other ethnic groups in The Gambia use OTHER THAN\x0aETHNICITY to get elected. And the story line continues that while in\x0aoffice, all these Mandinka politicos do is look after only their kind.\x0aNever mind, the reality of three decades of Mandinka-led governments in\x0aThe Gambia makes a canard of these allegations\x21 But these are what we\x0ahear.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eI say the false branding of\x0aMandinka people is not original because world history is replete with\x0aexamples. In present day America, the Far Right, through relentless\x0ademagoguery of Liberals over time, has turned the term \x26quot\x3bLiberal\x26quot\x3b into a\x0adirty word. They have been so effective that even well-known Liberal\x0apoliticians recoil when asked if they are Liberal. Many even try to\x0aqualify
> what type of Liberal they are\x21 \x28Read John Kerry in the 2004\x0aPrez Campaign.\x29 Ironically, almost all the people that we revere or\x0acelebrate around the world \x28prophets Mohamed and Jesus Christ, Buddha,\x0aNelson Mandela, Mohandas Gandhi, Mother Teresa, ML King, Nkrumah,\x0aSankara, etc\x29 were all unabashed Liberals\x21 American Liberals had\x0awrongly assumed that ordinary people would be able to see through the\x0afalsity that the Rush Limbaughs and Sean Hannitys are peddling about\x0athem. They were wrong\x21 The Liberals\x27 mistake is to let the Far Right\x0adefine them, such that people don\x27t know who Liberals actually are, and\x0awhat they stand for\x3b they only know what the Limbaughs feed them about\x0aLiberals\x3cem\x3e.\u00a0 \x3c\x2fem\x3eIt was only when Liberals woke up to this fact and started fighting back with \x3cem\x3eAir America\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0aand similar media that they\x27ve been able to repair some of the damage\x0athat the Far
> Right demagogues have inflicted on their image. As is the\x0acase with American Liberals, so has it been with Mandinka people in The\x0aGambia. So be warned\x21 Human beings believe what they often hear\x0a\u2013unchallenged. Sad, but true.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIt is precisely because of this\x0afact that letting the version of Gambian history being peddled by the\x0aSam Sarrs stand unchallenged would be to help Hogwash History\x0agerminate. Wolof Nationalists like Sam Sarr \x28bear with me and this will\x0abecome clear,\x29 have through the decades used a combination of\x0aOne-liners, Half-truths, and at times outright concoctions \x28often in\x0acoded-language\x29 to brand, label, and stigmatized Mandinka people in\x0aevery conceivable way as The Gambia\x27s problem. You hear them say things\x0alike\x3a \x3cem\x3e\x26quot\x3bIt \x28Tribalism\x29 is not going to work any
> more\u2026\x3b\x26quot\x3b \x26quot\x3bWe know what happened before...\x3b\x26quot\x3b \x26quot\x3bYou know them \x28the Mandinka\x29\x26quot\x3b\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3eThey \x28the Mandinka\x29 are power-hungry. Me I don\x27t care about power\u2026\x26quot\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e So on, so on. But are these true, or the whole truth\x3f \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eAllow me to give Sam credit for\x0abreaking with their tradition to state clearly what he truly feels\x0aabout Mandinka people. Often, outside of their Choirs, Wolof\x0aNationalists employ Coded Language to spread their anti-Mandinka\x0asermon. The Coding is deliberate\x3a to avoid being held responsible for\x0awhat they say. If you challenge them, they \x3cstrong\x3eplay the victim\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e,\x0aand claim they meant something else by what they said. Sam, at least\x0ahas saved us that toothache. But true
> to tradition, he couldn\x27t help\x0ahimself when it comes to another Wolof Nationalist hallmark \u2013\x0aTransference. Note how Sam tries to portray Suntu Touray as \x3cem\x3ethe\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0atribalist when in fact, unlike him, the man did NOT SAY ANYTHING\x0aderogatory about Wolof people\x21\u00a0 In Sam\x27s Wolof Nationalist mentality,\x0aall the negative things he \x3cem\x3ejust happens to recall about a people call Mandinka\x3c\x2fem\x3e,\x0ahas nothing to do with his inner feelings, it was to condemn generic\x0atribalism like is happening in Kenya. But Suntu Touray\x27s response\x3f\x0aOoooh No, that is motivated by Tribal bigotry\x21 Classic Wolof\x0aNationalist trickery. Somehow, we are to believe the stories Sam Sarr \x3cstrong\x3emade up\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0aabout Mandinka people as sincere, but we are to condemn Suntu Touray\x0awho cautioned him to be cognizant of an alternative view. It is\x0anoteworthy that as usual, some people have fallen for this
> trick.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eBut in order not to jump the\x0agun, lets take a multi-faceted look at this Notorious \x26quot\x3bMandinka\x0aanti-Wolof campaign\x26quot\x3b that Sam is using as a ruse to unload his pent-up\x0aprejudice against the Mandinka. Let\x27s start by putting things in\x0aperspective\x3a\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3col type\x3d1\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSam is talking about an election campaign that happened forty-eight \x2848\x29 years ago\x21 \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fli\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eAs\x0amost still do, almost ALL Gambians voted along sectional lines in that\x0aelection. \x28The over-whelming majority of Wolof people voted for the\x0aTHREE Wolof candidates that ran\x3b and the over-whelming majority of\x0aMandinka people voted for the one
> Mandinka candidate who ran.\x29\x3c\x2ffont\x3e \x3c\x2fli\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eThe Gambia has had dozens of elections since.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e \x3c\x2fli\x3e\x3cli\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eClose to 80\x25 of Gambians today were not even alive at the time. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fli\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fol\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eHaving made these clear, let\x27s look at Sam\x27s allegations, and please allow me to quote Sam himself extensively. He said\x3a \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3eHowever,\x0ait was not until the PPP in their quest for independence from the\x0aBritish started spreading the inaccurate political message that the\x0aWolof had stolen their country, Gambia, and kept them under suppression\x0afor centuries that I began to realize the filth behind tribalism.\x3c\x2fem\x3e \x3cem\x3eAs far as some of them were
> concerned, colonialism with all its degradation had nothing to do with the \x26quot\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3cstrong\x3eToubabs\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3e\x26quot\x3b in charge for over three hundred years but everything to do with Wolof hegemony.\x26quot\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eThis is very interesting. In\x0aessence, Sam is giving us the impression that he saw and experienced\x0athese things first-hand during that period\x21 This notorious campaign\x0ahappened between 1959 and 1960. The first thing that struck me is\x0asimple\x3a How old is Sam Sarr that he understood things around him in\x0a1959-1960, and more specifically, the meaning of what Mandinka \x28PPP\x29\x0awere saying about Wolof people on the campaign trail\x3f I ask this\x0aquestion because Sam has told us that \x3cstrong\x3ehe didn\x27t begin to realize\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e the
> \x3cem\x3e\x26quot\x3bfilth behind tribalism\x26quot\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0auntil the PPP came along and started blaming Wolof people for Mandinka\x0amisfortune, while giving a pass to the Toubab. Going by his words, Sam\x0ahad to have been not only alive at the time, he had to have been\x0amatured enough to understand what the Mandinka PPP politicians were\x0asaying, which was the only way he could have \x26quot\x3brealized\x26quot\x3b that the polity\x0a\u2013which was hitherto pristine, was suddenly being defiled with \x26quot\x3bfilth\x21\x26quot\x3b\x0aI remember seeing Sam Sarr in military uniform many times in the \x2780s.\x0aIf Sam Sarr was alive at all in 1959-1960, he must have been very young\x0aby my reckoning. In that case, Sam was the genius infant who not only\x0aunderstood what adults were saying, but who also understood the\x0aimplication of their words as well. Quite remarkable\x21 \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont
> face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIf Sam Sarr is fighting his\x0aparents\x27 and grandparents\x27 battles, which I believe to be the case\x0a\x28because I know Sam Sarr was NEVER part of the audience when the PPP\x0afirst campaigned against Banjul Wolof parties,\x29 why not be honest about\x0athis basic starting point\x3f As children, we all have an innate instinct\x0ato fight for our parents. My own father passed on a year ago, and there\x0aare many things I\x27d do for him. But fight a dead fifty years old issue\x0afor him\x3f What\x27s the point\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eLike Sam, I believe in putting \x3cem\x3eeverything on the table\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0ato discuss what ails our society with honesty. Only then can we forge\x0aahead to higher heights as a collective \u2013 in my view. But when we start\x0asuch discussions couched in misrepresentation \x28to be very
> generous\x0ahere,\x29 and obvious prejudice, what possible good could ever come out of\x0asuch initiatives\x3f\u00a0\u00a0 \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSam began by couching his\x0alanguage in an aesthetic Pan African fa\u00e7ade, but his language is\x0aclassic Wolof Nationalistic\x3a it\x27s rabidly anti-Mandinka, and latently\x0adishonest to the core\x21 They say however much lipstick you slap on a\x0apig, it\x27s still a pig\x21 Sam discounted the relevance of ethnicity very\x0awell \x28for good measure,\x29 but repeatedly, he went to extraordinary\x0alengths to paint a single group \u2013the Mandinka, in an ugly light. I\x0aactually have the creepy feeling that Sam Sarr is a disciple of the\x0arenowned Psychologist Maslow and his \x3cstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3eTheory on Conditioning\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0abecause each time Sam mentioned a particular Mandinka, or Mandinka\x0apeople
> in his original piece, it was with reference to something\x0anegative. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eTo begin with, of all the \x26quot\x3bminor\x26quot\x3b problems that Sam could recall from his childhood on the streets of Serekunda, it is the \x3cstrong\x3eseldom\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0a\x28his own description\x29 confrontation between Mandinka girls and their\x0aWolof counterparts over Female Circumcision. It hasn\x27t escaped notice\x0athat Sam feels it necessary to remind us that he is referring to the\x0amuch loaded, and controversial TOUBAB-ASCRIBED term \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3egenital mutilation of females\x3c\x2fem\x3e.\x26quot\x3b\x0aFor the record, this is a practice that was picked up from Middle\x0aEasterners in medieval times \x28during the reign of the first real\x0aIslamic ruler of the Mali Empire in the case of Manden people, Mansa\x0aKankan Musa.\x29 The practice remains
> common among Africans that had\x0asignificant contact with Arabs \u2013 the Manden, the Fulani, the Somali,\x0athe Amharic, as well as Swahili speakers in East Africa. A true Pan\x0aAfricanist would call the practice what its African practitioners call\x0ait\x3a Female Circumcision. \x28I\x27m not debating the medical merits or\x0ademerits of the practice. That\x27s simply beside the point.\x29\u00a0 However,\x0afor someone who started off slamming Africans\x27 blanket acceptance of\x0aeverything Toubab, Sam\x27s Goal Post-shifting leaves some of us\x0ascratching our heads about his true agenda. But then again, Sam\x27s real\x0aagenda was never far off the surface. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eHis story went downhill from the\x0aaforementioned point. He dwelled on a Mandinka onslaught against a\x0aWolof Hegemony, but the mere concept of a \x26quot\x3bWolof hegemony\x26quot\x3b in
> The\x0aGambia in 1960 is a figment of the imagination of Wolof ethnic\x0achauvinists. Period\x21 It simply did not exist\x21 Why then would anyone\x0acampaign against a non-existent entity\x3f In 1960, the dominant group\x0aamong Africans in Gambia was the so-called Akus. And no, not all of\x0athese are descendants of repatriated slaves. One of the first West\x0aAfrican people to voluntarily take to the Toubabs are the Yoruba of\x0aSouthern Nigeria. Not only did they flock to Western schools early,\x0athey even had college graduates in the 1890s\x21 To this day, people from\x0aAbeokuta and Ibadan remain some of the most educated Africans anywhere.\x0aSome of those educated Yoruba people followed Europeans around West\x0aAfrica including to The Gambia. Look for names like Tunde, Bola, Femi,\x0aetc \x28Ola-Tunde, Ade-Bola, Oba-Femi\x29 among the so-called Akus of the\x0aGambia, and you can connect the dots. \x28Don\x27t be fooled by The Western\x0aLast Names. It\x27s by
> \x26quot\x3bchoice.\x26quot\x3b The Fantes did the same in Ghana.\x29 These\x0awere the people who had what you might term a \x26quot\x3bhegemony\x26quot\x3b in The Gambia\x0ain 1960. They had such a hold on the social scene that many Wolof\x0apeople including that most famous of all Gambian Wolof \u2013 Pierre Njie,\x0ajoined them. Yet, we continue to hear of these stories that the main\x0atheme of the PPP Mandinka \x26quot\x3bpolitical scam artists\x26quot\x3b was to overthrow\u00a0\x0a\x26quot\x3bWolof hegemony.\x26quot\x3b Which one\x3f\u00a0 \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eAlso, Contrary to the false\x0aimpression we often get, Pierre Njie was in fact, another Jawara\x3a\u00a0\x0aprovincial roots\x3b educated in Banjul\x3b abandoned his religion in order\x0ato assimilate into what was seen as the cream of Colonial Gambia, until\x0ait became expedient to revert to those same roots. Like
> the Spanish\x0asay\x3a \x3cem\x3eAyos Mismo\x3c\x2fem\x3e. They\x27re all the same\x21 Sam asked the question\x3a \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3eHow\x0awas Jawara who came to Banjul as a child, got raised and educated\x0athere, converted to Christianity and married an Aku Christian woman got\x0achosen as the PPP leader when the main target of the party was to burst\x0athe Banjul clique\x3f\x26quot\x3b \x3c\x2fem\x3eWe shall get to what pushed the PPP founders\x0ato settle for Jawara, but for now, let\x27s note the similarity between\x0aPierre Njie and Jawara. Pierre was a Saloum Saloum. Unlike his brothers\x0a\x28Sheriff, etc\x29\u00a0 he converted to Christianity, and married an Aku woman,\x0aetc. Some of Pierre Njie\x27s children like daughter Mary Langley \x28former\x0aEstablishment Secretary,\x29 live their lives as Aku, not Wolof. Just like\x0aJawara\x27s first four children do. So why did the Banjul Wolof choose\x0aPierre Njie of all the people they could\x3f So why is Sam
> Sarr\x0ainterpreting the experience of the two men differently\x3f Why not raise\x0athe same question about Pierre Njie as he did about Jawara\x3f Sam is\x0asupposed to be an ethno-blind commentator. Or am I assuming wrong\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eOn that 1959-1960 campaign, was there anything\u00a0 unique about the way the PPP Mandinka campaigned\x3f In other words, \x3cstrong\x3ewere they the only people who injected ethnicity or sectionalism into their politics at the time\x3f\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0aThe answer to this question is an emphatic No\x21 Sam has been kind enough\x0ato let us in on the fact that his own parents were supporters of\x0aJahumpa and his Muslim Congress, and not Pierre Njie \x26quot\x3bbecause he\x27s\x0aChristian.\x26quot\x3b If we are to be honest with each other, Sam\x27s own people\x0avoted with \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3etheir hearts, and not their
> heads\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x26quot\x3b as he labeled\x0aSuntu Touray\x27s reaction. In other words, they were guided by emotion\x0ainstead of reason. Pierre Njie\x27s religion had \x3cu\x3eabsolutely nothing\x3c\x2fu\x3e\x0ato do with his ability or lack thereof to run our country. So why was\x0athat a factor at all in the choice that Sam\x27s people made\x3f If Sam has\x0aany problems with his parents\x27 political choice, he hasn\x27t said so. But\x0aevidently, he is less understanding about the majority Mandinka who\x0avoted the same way\x21 LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE, they voted with \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3etheir hearts, and not their heads.\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x26quot\x3b They DID NOT BUCK ANY TREND. So why single them out for criticism\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eOn I.M. Garba Jahumpa\x0aespecially, Gambian history would record that he was the one who\x0aformally injected sectionalism, or ethnicity
> into Gambian politics\x21\x0aThis is a serious charge, so allow me to elaborate.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eYou see, between 1943 and 1959\x0a\x28before PPP joined the political scene,\x29 roughly 95\x25 of all Aku\x0aspeaking people in Banjul were Christian, and the same proportion of\x0aWolof speakers were Muslim. The so-called Aku were by far the more\x0aeducated locals. Now if you want to dislodge an Aku from elective\x0aoffice, you have a choice of going after him as an \x26quot\x3bAku candidate,\x26quot\x3b\x0a\x28with clear ethnic undertones,\x29 or as a Christian \x28with subtle ethnic\x0aundertones, even if an overt religious one. \x26quot\x3bAku\x26quot\x3b was synonymous with\x0aChristian.\x29 Jahumpa settled for the more subtle option, a\x0acharacteristic that has now become a tradition among Ethnic\x0aNationalists in The Gambia. They never say anything direct\x3b they
> only\x0atalk in codes\x21 Anyhow, regardless of Jahumpa\x27s tactics, the effect of\x0awhat he did was the same. By deftly injecting this Sectionalist wedge\x0abetween Banjul people, Jahumpa was able to achieve what he sought,\x0awhich was to get himself elected into office at the expense of more\x0aqualified Aku speakers. In fact, that divisive tactic of hiding behind\x0areligion to sideline the more educated Aku speakers was so effective\x0athat the man that PDOIS folks keep telling us is the Father of Gambian\x0aPolitics \u2013 Edward Francis Small, was \x3cem\x3ecrushed \x3c\x2fem\x3eat the polls\x21 This was well before the PPP was even formed. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3ePDOIS people never tire of\x0areminding us of the patriotism and issue-driven politics of late Mr.\x0aSmall. So why was this patriotic, and decent man defeated\x3f More\x0aimportantly, was the agenda of the
> candidate who defeated EF Small more\x0aprogressive\x3f Not according to PDOIS, or Jabis Langley, or one Mr.\x0aDacosta, all of who have written extensively about early Gambian\x0apolitics. The main difference between PDOIS and the other writers is\x0athat the latter two emphasize that \x3cem\x3e\x26quot\x3bbefore the advent of the\x0aprovincial-born, Banjul-educated Dawda Jawara, no Banjul politician\x0a\x28including EF Small,\x29 championed the cause of the disenfranchised rural\x0amajority.\x26quot\x3b \x3c\x2fem\x3eThey both advise that we see EF Small in that context.\x0aWhere their opinions of Mr. Small converge is that relative to all the\x0aother politicians, he was the one candidate who saw himself as a\x0aGambian first. It is for that reason that they all agree that he\x0adeserves to be seen as the Father of Gambian politics.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eBut from the foregoing, it
> is\x0aobvious that sectionalism, tribalism, or ethnicity \x28choose whatever\x0aname you want,\x29 was part and parcel of The Gambia\x27s political scene\x0abefore Protectorate \x28PPP Mandinka\x29 people even came along\x21 Yet, we\x0acontinue to read about, and hear of allegations and insinuations from\x0athe Sam Sarrs about how the PPP people used \x26quot\x3bfilthy\x26quot\x3b tribalism to\x0adislodge the Wolof \x28from power they never had\x29 as if the PPP folks had\x0aintruded on the scene and introduced something new. Fact\x3a Banjul people\x0awere already DIVIDED ALONG SECTIONAL LINES BEFORE the PPP was formed.\x0aIf the PPP people did anything at all, it was to do to the Banjul Wolof\x0awhat they did to the Akus - thanks to their relative numerical\x0astrength. Nothing more\x21 The Aku moved on when reality hit. But Wolof\x0aNationalists seem to be stuck in a time warp. This is 2008 for
> goodness\x0asake\x21\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eWhy are Wolof Nationalists still\x0abitching about a forty-eight years old election\x3f It does give a whole\x0anew meaning to the term \x26quot\x3bsore losers\x26quot\x3b -doesn\x27t it\x3f When will this\x0asulking end\x3f What are they after\x3f An election happened half a century\x0aago. Why not get over it\x3f Isn\x27t it about time that we concentrate on\x0amore pressing things \u2013 like, say Gambian politics in 2008\x3f Our politics\x0astill remains primordial and dominated by complete frauds and idiots of\x0aall shades. There is absolutely nothing exceptional about Mandinka\x0apoliticos. If through some magic, you remove ALL the \x26quot\x3bMandinka\x0apolitical scam artists\x26quot\x3b from The Gambia\x27s political scene today, you\x27ll\x0astill have a mess in your hands because the rest of what you\x27ll be left\x0awith are no
> better. So why are we being dragged back to 1960 when our\x0ahouse is on fire in 2008\x3f Do the Sam Sarrs follow what goes on at The\x0aGambia\x27s parliament\x3f Why not pursue an agenda that will segue our\x0apolitics to the next level\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eLest I forget, let me hasten to\x0anote here that a distinction needs to be made between PPP politicians\x0aand PPP founders. PPP politicians like Jawara were in fact Carpet\x0aBaggers. They are \x26quot\x3bMonkey Work, Baboon Chop\x26quot\x3b characters like the GNA\x0aMilitary Boys call such people. Jawara did not sweat at all to get the\x0atop position. In fact, he was even unwilling to sacrifice the loss of\x0ahis salary, for which reason, the Founders PAID him a salary to lead\x0athem. In essence, he was handed a finished product on a gold platter.\x0aWas he the wrong man to lead these people\x3f Of course, he was
> \u2013 in my\x0aview.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eOn the other hand, the PPP\x0aFounders were a motley crew of Country, mainly Mandinka-speaking\x0ailliterate old men who were driven by the desire to have their voices\x0aheard in the affairs of the country in 1959. At all cost\x21 Their story\x0ais akin to a David v. Goliath scenario. The odds were prohibitively\x0aagainst them. Now, what was eating away at these old men\x3f The answer to\x0athis question is what Wolof Nationalists NEVER acknowledge, nor want to\x0ahear anyone else say\x21 But let\x27s set aside the affliction call Political\x0aCorrectness and cite some of the complaints Country people \x28some STILL\x0aALIVE\x29 had against Banjul Wolof especially.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSam quotes Prez Eisenhower\x27s son\x0aabout his father\x27s
> opinion of what he saw in Banjul in 1943. Sam should\x0ado more research because Ike went further than what Sam noted. Ike\x27s\x0asummation of Banjul and The Gambia in 1943 was one word\x3a \x26quot\x3ba Hellhole\x21\x26quot\x3b\x0aThat harsh reality notwithstanding, the residents of this Island which\x0awas \x26quot\x3bceded\x26quot\x3b \x28using Colonial terminology,\x29 to the British in the early 19\x3csup\x3eth\x3c\x2fsup\x3ec\x0aby a MANDINKA Seyfo, were rabidly xenophobic, and tribalist to the\x0acore. Prof. Adu Boahen describes the Ashanti King Obiri Yeaboah as a\x0a\x26quot\x3bmartial ardor\u2026 who enjoyed blood sports.\x26quot\x3b In the same vein, many\x0aBanjul Wolof in that period had a \x3cstrong\x3every twisted sense of humor\x3a \x3c\x2fstrong\x3ethey\x3cstrong\x3e \x3c\x2fstrong\x3eenjoyed Humiliation Sports\x3cstrong\x3e.\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0aDespite their own unflattering lives, they openly poured scorn on\x0apeople from the hinterland. Some people
> still alive remember walking\x0adown streets in Banjul in the late 1940s and throughout the 1950s, and\x0agetting jeered, heckled, and taunted with words like \x26quot\x3bSantong Ko\x21\x26quot\x3b\x3b\x0a\x26quot\x3bNko\x21\x26quot\x3b\x3b \x26quot\x3bGo back to the farm\x21\x26quot\x3b\x3b etc. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3e\x3cem\x3eSantong KO\x3c\x2fem\x3e, especially\x0aonly means \x26quot\x3bsomeone from the countryside,\x26quot\x3b in Mandinka. But it was said\x0aas if it is on a par with \x26quot\x3bthief\x26quot\x3b, \x26quot\x3bmurderer,\x26quot\x3b \x26quot\x3brapist,\x26quot\x3b or something\x0adirty like that. In essence, country people were routinely demeaned and\x0adenigrated. But worse than that treatment, one needs not go far to find\x0aold men who remember some country person dying in Banjul at that time,\x0aand being unable to find help among the local Muslim population
> to give\x0athe deceased a decent farewell. This, despite the fact that the\x0amajority Wolof speakers in Banjul were Muslim as well\x21 Sanjally Bojang\x0atalked about this in his chat with Foroyaa before he died. As he\x0aremembered it, so does my late grandfather, and two other old men I\x0aknow still alive. Add to this the open discrimination they underwent in\x0afinding employment, and you get a picture of what drove various\x0aMandinka groups under the leadership of people\u00a0 like Sanjally Bojang,\x0aand Pa Keita to shove aside their differences to form a coalition in\x0aorder to matter in the post-Colonial period. They were simply terrified\x0aby the prospects of mainly Wolof-speaking Banjulians taking over from\x0athe Toubabs \u2013 given their \x28the Founders\x29 experience at the hands of\u00a0\x0athose people. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eNow people who have been\x0aharassed,
> bullied, or treated these ugly ways for a protracted period\x0acould be forgiven for being irrational in looking for anyone who fits\x0athe bill \x28settling for a transplant like Jawara because of his\x0aBarajally roots.\x29 Who among us could, in good conscience fault them for\x0atheir fears\x3f Are these mainly Mandinka-speaking people justified in\x0aassuming the worst of the Banjul Wolof\x3f What would Sam Sarr and his\x0atypes have done in their shoes\x3f More importantly, how does Sam\x27s\x0acomplaints about Mandinkas compare to what his people did to \x3cstrong\x3eCountry people\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0aOVER several DECADES\x3f When some of us mention what was done to Country\x0apeople in Banjul, we are condemned as bitter and hateful. But the Sam\x0aSarrs never relent in their fabricated tales about what \x26quot\x3bMandinka\x0apeople did to Wolofs in 1960.\x26quot\x3b And this is used as justification for\x0awhy they\x27re kissing up to Yaya Jammeh today. In their
> mind, they\x27re\x0a\x26quot\x3bPaying Back what Mandinka people did to them.\x26quot\x3b Never mind, the truth\x0aabout what actually happened, or the \x26quot\x3bothers\x26quot\x3b in our country. How can\x0awe ever become a nation with an outlook on things\x3f It\x27s 2008, yet some\x0aare still fighting their parents\x27 1960 battle\x21\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eTo underscore the plight of\x0acountry people in those days, it is helpful to recall that when a\x0asenior British Colonial Official came visiting \u2013 in 1958 I believe it\x0awas, ABSOLUTELY NONE of the Wolof political leaders of Banjul bothered\x0ato seek the representation of country people to get their input. The\x0aofficial came and went without hearing anything from the majority of\x0aGambian people. Country people felt dejected and voiceless. This is a\x0apoint that both Langley and Dacosta note in their writings.
> Unlike some\x0apeople, the two men show integrity. In any case, why should anyone be\x0asurprised that these same group of old mainly-Mandinka men rejected the\x0aovertures made by some Banjul politicians to lead them a year later \x28in\x0a1959,\x29 when it became clear to the Banjulians that they stood no chance\x0aagainst the majority rural dwellers\x3f The old Country men did what any\x0arational person would have done\x3a ignore the Banjul politicians\x27 attempt\x0aas insincere and self-serving. Who can blame them\x3f \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSo when Suntu Touray raises the\x0aflag of caution, some of us recall these stories, among many others. I\x0awon\x27t even go into what some of the Banjul Wolof merchants in\x0aparticular were doing to farmers \u2013 Mandinka, Fula, Jola, even Fana\x0aFana, in those days. You see Sam, we didn\x27t start off right. A lot of\x0adirty things
> happened, and CONTINUE to happen, in that country. And I\x0aknow with \x3cstrong\x3eabsolute certainty\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e that Colony Wolofs are\x0aNOT the victims in most cases\x21 Nine out of ten times, they were the\x0aones doing the victimizing. I don\x27t believe that the sins of the\x0afathers should be visited on the children, which is why I don\x27t\x0aunderstand why the Sam Sarrs keep bringing up this 1959-1960 campaign,\x0amost of the major participants in which are all DEAD\x21 Ironically, the\x0aman that Sam\x27s own parents supported flipped around, folded his party,\x0aand joined the same \x3cem\x3efilthy Mandinka political scam artists \x3c\x2fem\x3eafter he lost to them at the polls\x3cem\x3e\x21\x3c\x2fem\x3e What does that say about Jahumpa\x3f \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eWhat I find very irritating\x0aabout Sam\x27s Wolof Nationalist types is the haughty attitude that
> they\x0asomehow have a monopoly on the truth about Gambian history. You see,\x0ajust because others don\x27t whine and raise hell doesn\x27t mean there is\x0aonly one culprit in Gambia\x27s socio-political scene. There never has\x0abeen. Banjul Wolofs themselves were routinely bullied by Akus before\x0aothers got to the scene. Even in school, they caught hell from some\x0aAku-speaking teachers. However, that attitude proved to be infectious,\x0abecause the Banjul Wolofs turned around and treated other Gambians that\x0afollowed them in worse ways\x21\u00a0 So in truth, the majority of the\x0aMandinka, Fulani, Jola, Manjago, etc were \x3cstrong\x3emore often than not at the receiving end of Colony Wolof bullying, not the other way around.\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e Yet, it is the Wolof Nationalist who are always crying victim\x21 Victim of whom\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eThis is the gist of
> what Mr.\x0aTouray was trying to alert Sam about. Instead, he just trashed the man.\x0aTouray even cited an example that ANY HONEST expatriate Gambian can\x0aattest to about the scene at the Christening ceremony he presided over\x0ain London recently. What Touray said is NOT an isolated case at all,\x0aneither is it restricted to Christenings. You see that same scenario at\x0ameetings, at Parks, etc. Yet Sam dismissed this as a fig leaf\x0apropagated by \x3cem\x3eanti-Wolof Mandinka\x3c\x2fem\x3e people to convince others\x0athat \x26quot\x3bWolofs are unwilling to speak Mandinka.\x26quot\x3b Is Sam Sarr one of those\x0aWolof who does not want to speak Mandinka intentionally\x3f Only Sam can\x0asay. But are there any Wolof like that\x3f Absolutely\x21 Not only do some of\x0aus know Wolof like that, we are even friends with some of them\x21\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eThere is something
> very\x0ainsulting, and patronizing about Sam\x27s posture that suggests that he\x0aknows how every Wolof behaves. Sam Sarr knows himself, and how he\x0athinks and behaves. Unless if Sam is Dr. TJ Eckleburg \x28as in \x3cem\x3eThe Great Gatsby\x3c\x2fem\x3e,\x29\x0ahow in the world would he know how every other Wolof behave\x3f Or more\x0apertinently, how would he know what Suntu Touray\x27s experience is\x3f Sam\x0aSarr encountered Dr. Modou Manneh briefly and diagnosed him as\x0atribalist because he THINKS the man was unhappy with him speaking in a\x0anon-Mandinka language to him. Fair enough. Why is it impossible for\x0aSuntu Touray, or any other person to have had a similar experience with\x0aa Wolof person\x3f This kind of twisted logic is what ticks some of us off\x0aabout Wolof Nationalists\x3a Wolof people who cannot speak other Gambian\x0alanguages or dialects just happen to have NO NEED to learn these \x28going\x0aby Sam\x27s explanation which itself betrays a
> Colonial Mentality,\x29 but\x0aGambians who cannot speak Wolof are somehow tribalist because Wolof is\x0athe Lingua Franca \x28we are constantly reminded.\x29 But says who\x3f \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eThis Wolof Nationalistic tendency of assigning themselves the role of \x3cem\x3eRule Maker\x3c\x2fem\x3e, or \x3cem\x3eDefiners\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0ain Gambian society remains one of the stumbling blocks in the quest to\x0acreate a Gambian nation. Things are not what they are unless \x3cstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3ethey\x3c\x2fem\x3e \x3c\x2fstrong\x3esay so\x3b someone is tribalist because \x3cstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3ethey\x3c\x2fem\x3e \x3c\x2fstrong\x3esay so \x28without bothering to proffer any convincing evidence\x29\x3b something doesn\x27t exist unless \x3cstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3ethey\x3c\x2fem\x3e \x3c\x2fstrong\x3esay it does\x3b whatever
> \x3cstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3ethey\x27re\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e involved in is \x26quot\x3bnational\x26quot\x3b, but anything \x3cstrong\x3e\x3cem\x3ethey\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0adon\x27t control is \x26quot\x3btribalist\x3b\x26quot\x3b\u00a0 etc. this is not only symptomatic of\x0atheir inflated sense of their importance in Gambian society, it betrays\x0aa very ignorant, and arrogant mindset. Where does this temerity come\x0afrom\x3f \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIf Sam Sarr has an issue with\x0aMandinka people, which I think he does, he should be honest enough to\x0alay it out squarely without hiding behind some dead issue like this\x0a1959-1960 campaign. I say this because Sam went to elaborate lengths to\x0aportray a non-existent Mandinka tribal cabal during the PPP era. In my\x0aview, Lamin Saho bungled the Radio Gambia News Reading sequence issue.\x0aWhat\x27s the point
> in conducting a Census if the results are not used for\x0aformulating Public Policy\x3f The largest Gambian ethnic group is\x0aMandinka, followed by Fulani, though you wouldn\x27t know that from Sam\x27s\x0adiscussion, or many things Gambian. That, because the Fulani, by nature\x0ahave made themselves the Lapdogs of either Mandinka or Wolof people. I\x0aknow something about this because my own family are Fulani who migrated\x0afrom Futa about two hundred years ago. They settled among Mandinka\x0apeople, who they taught, and converted into Islam. They called these\x0aMandinka people \x26quot\x3bTalubeh\x26quot\x3b and the Manden called them \x26quot\x3bSaidy\x26quot\x3b \u2013 thus the\x0aprefix to my family name. Anyhow, when Foday Kabah came along on his\x0aconquests around 1890, my people quickly abandoned most things Fulani\x0ato appease him. We never fully went back to our roots since. And my\x0aFulani friends from Guinea tell me things that make me wonder
> whether\x0akow-towing is in our genes.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIn my view, Gambian News should\x0abe announced according to size of ethnic population \u2013 Fulani before\x0aWolof any time\x21 Lamin Saho did a half-hearted job, and provided fodder\x0afor frustrated Wolof Nationalists who were at the time looking for \x3cstrong\x3eanything \x3c\x2fstrong\x3ethey\x0acould latch on, to show how \x26quot\x3banti-Wolof\x26quot\x3b Mandinka people are. This\x0ashould have been a routine Radio Schedule change. Why in the world is\x0athat a cause for a National crisis\x3f Was it tribally-insensitive\x3f\x0aApparently. But is there more to it than that\x3f You tell me. \x28This was\x0athe 1980s, and after Banjul \x3cem\x3eSankapra\x3c\x2fem\x3e\u00a0 ML Saho resigned his\x0aappointment as Health Minister in 1982 \x28he supposedly campaigned on the\x0abelief that he would be promoted to
> Veep,\x29 there was no Banjul Wolof in\x0athe cabinet. Thus, Wolof Nationalists were seething with rage for much\x0aof the 1980s.\x29\x29 Otherwise, Dr. Lamin Saho never ran for national\x0aoffice\x3b he ran against his blood cousin Sheriff Dibba in heavily\x0aMandinka Lower Badibu. \x28The two men share the same maternal grandfather\x0afrom what I understand.\x29 Saho was defeated the first time he ran in\x0a1977, before eventually winning twice in a row. How tribalism has\x0ahelped him in his political career, I cannot fathom. And for Jawara not\x0astepping in, that\x27s the man\x27s Signature Attitude. Let\x27s take a look at\x0aa parallel case.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIn 1984, the GNA was\x0ainaugurated. I don\x27t know if Sam was at the Reception they held in\x0aFaraja. But a very senior cabinet member who was, told me a story that\x0ais very revealing of Jawara\x27s personality.
> Lloyd Evans, former IG of\x0aPolice and Establishment Secretary, pulled this gentleman and Jawara\x0aaside, and laid it out \x28in Wolof\x29\x3a \x3cem\x3e\x26quot\x3bYou see these boys\x3f They are\x0aShy-shy\x21 We cannot trust them for a minute. You HAVE TO get involved in\x0atheir appointments and promotions. Make sure only people you trust\x0ahandle certain sensitive positions...\x26quot\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e The gentleman quotes Mr.\x0aEvans as saying bluntly. But what did Jawara do\x3f He let Ndow Njie run\x0athe show. Sam was a senior officer in the army. He can tell us who the\x0aofficers of the army were before another blunt fellow came by \x28Gen.\x0aDada from Nigeria,\x29 who told Jawara point blank \u2013in not so many words,\x0athat he is ignoring the Army Officer Composition to his own peril.\x0aAccording to who\x3f Someone who was in the thick of things\x21 Anyone who\x0aknew the GNA\x27s Officer Structure can tell you that had Jawara placed\x0asomeone like
> Turo Jawneh \x28his relative,\x29 at the head of the army, he\x27d\x0aprobably die in office, or leave at his own volition. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eBut my point is, even in this\x0acritical area, keeping a tap on which could have prevented the tragedy\x0athat ultimately consumed his regime, Jawara pulled back and let the\x0aLine Managers use their discretion. Sam Sarr knows the process of how\x0aArmy Officers got their promotions under Jawara, and how they do so now\x0aunder Yaya Jammeh. So why then is Sam trying to blame Jawara for not\x0ainterfering in what was really a very silly matter like a Radio News\x0aSchedule\x3f The answer is simple\x3a\u00a0 Sam Sarr wants us to read tribal bias\x0ain Jawara\x27s failure to reverse Dr. Saho\x27s decision when in fact, Jawara\x0abehaved the same way when Ndow Njie was stuffing the higher echelon of\x0athe GNA with a mainly Wolof-Aku cast,
> which fact was one of the main\x0aingredients of the 1994 coup\x21 The junior officers and soldiers of the\x0aGNA didn\x27t have any respect for the soldierly qualities of their\x0asuperiors -thanks to nepotism. History shall record that the 1994 coup\x0awas as much an internal revolt by junior officers and soldiers AGAINST\x0aTHEIR SENIOR Officers, as it was against the politicians that led the\x0acountry\x21 But watch Sam blame the success of the coup on Nigerians.\x0aNigeria\x27s own first coup was carried out by relatively junior officers\x0abased in Kaduna in 1966. Within days, ALL the leaders of the coup were\x0ain jail, replaced by their seniors - Gen. Ironsi, Ojukwu, and others.\u00a0\x0aBut it was the responsibility of foreigners to stop the Gambia\x27s 1994\x0acoup. What claptrap\x21 The question is\x3a why were GNA soldiers unwilling\x0ato listen to Captains, Majors, and Lt. Colonels instead of following\x0athe Sub-Lt.s they fell
> behind\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSam\x27s desperation to paint a\x0aMandinka anti-Wolof cabal, betrays his deep-seated anti-Mandinka\x0aprejudice. Perhaps, we can\x27t blame Sam because he must have been fed\x0asuch sentiments from early in his life. My evidence\x3f Sam is getting\x0areally worked up about a fifty years old election campaign he NEVER\x0atook part in himself\x21 Where is his passion coming from if he wasn\x27t fed\x0asuch prejudice early in his life\x3f And Sam has promised to defile\x0aanother young mind \u2013 his son\x27s\x21 How does feeding his son half-truths\x0ahelp the boy understand Gambian history\x3f Demonstrably, Sam\x27s own\x0aversion of our history is one-tracked and bereft of any context.\u00a0 Yet,\x0athis is the one he is vowing to teach his little boy\x21 Shouldn\x27t truth\x0amatter in how we teach our children\x3f No wonder lying has
> become\x0aacceptable to so many of us.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eOn Dr. Manneh, again, it\x27s more\x0afumes than substance. Sam indicated that someone had told him\u00a0 that the\x0aman is irascible, yet he sallied forth with the allegation that\x0aManneh\x27s dirty looks at him were due to him speaking \x3cem\x3e\x26quot\x3b\u2026 in a language different from Mandinka\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x26quot\x3b\x0ato Manneh. How did Sam Sarr deduce that conclusion from Manneh\x27s looks\x3f\x0aA more probable explanation \u2013given what people told Sam, might be that\x0athe man is a pain in the behind. A rude fellow. Why discount that in\x0afavor of tribal prejudice\x3f Did Sam notice Manneh being all smiles to\x0athose speaking Mandinka to him at the same time\x3f But then again, Sam is\x0aon a mission, and no incident is trivial enough for his purpose.\u00a0
> \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eDr. Manneh used to contest a\x0aJokadu district, not a Badibu one. His district is one of the most\x0aeclectic ones in rural Gambia. Sam should research the ethnic makeup of\x0aManneh\x27s constituency.\u00a0 If I recall right, Dr. Manneh actually won that\x0aseat as an Independent candidate after he was kicked out of the PPP.\x0aSomehow, some people in that district \u2013non Mandinka, must have liked\x0awhat he was doing for them. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eOn Dr. Manneh and Dr. Saho\x27s\x0aqualifications, and the insinuation that unlike one Haidara Ceesay, an\x0aimpostor who was booted out of the Gambia College Staff, \x28while Drs.\x0aSaho and Manneh were given a pass because they\x27re Mandinka people,\x29 I\x0acan only talk about I know for a fact. In 1987, I was
> getting ready to\x0aleave the Sixth Form. I was with an uncle at the Quadrangle when we\x0abumped into a friend of his named Kebba Dampha \x28NOT online KD,\x29 a\x0aMandinka fellow. This man is from Saihou Sabally\x27s area \x28who as Finance\x0aMinister at the time championed his cause from what I understand.\x29 That\x0aKebba Dampha has lived in London for a very long time. At the time, he\x0aclaimed to have earned a Masters Degree in something. Mr. Dampha was\x0aappointed \x26quot\x3bThe Administrator Designate\x26quot\x3b at the Central Bank of The\x0aGambia. Kebba Dampha was fired faster than you can count \x26quot\x3bone - two\x26quot\x3b\x0awhen his verification came back negative\x21 He had the backing of Saihou\x0aSabally, yet he was fired\x21 Does Sam Sarr mean to tell us that the \x3cem\x3eMandinka cabal\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x0adidn\x27t realize this Kebba Dampha is Mandinka when they fired him\x3f I\x27ve\x0aheard people raise doubts about Manneh and Saho\x27s
> qualifications. But\x0athe insinuation that they got away with fraud because they\x27re Mandinka\x0ais orphaned by the facts in similar cases. Unlike others, they chose to\x0arun for political office instead of the Civil Service. My feeling is\x0athe\u00a0 Civil Service was better equipped at ferreting out impostors than\x0athe PPP Party machinery was. Many of their MPs didn\x27t have much\x0aeducation, so it is easy for an impostor \x28IF that\x27s what Manneh and\x0aSaho are,\x29 to blend in without much trouble. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSam\x27s take on Sheriff Dibba, and\x0awhy he quit the PPP and formed his \x26quot\x3btribal\x26quot\x3b party is also unsupported\x0aby the facts. Lets quote Sam directly\x3a \x26quot\x3b\x3cem\x3eDibba a Mandinka who was\x0aamong the founders of the PPP when the party was called the People\x27s\x0aProtectorate Party had later broken away when it
> became the People\x27s\x0aProgressive Party and formed his own tribal party, the NCP, on the\x0apremise that Jawara was not Mandinka enough and had betrayed his people\x0ato the Wolof. There was no truth in it but the gullible fell for it as\x0ausual.\x26quot\x3b\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eFirst, the PPP never competed an election under \x3cem\x3eProtectorate People\x27s Party\x3c\x2fem\x3e. Jawara prevailed on the founders in Basse to change the party name to People\x27s Progressive Party \x3cstrong\x3ebefore the 1960 elections\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e.\x0aSheriff Dibba remained a member of the PPP top tier \x28held posts of VP,\x0avarious cabinet posts, as well as Ambassador to EU\x29 until mid-1975 when\x0aHE WAS FIRED by Jawara\x21 Dibba DID NOT resign voluntarily. And the NCP\x0awas not formed until late 1975. As such, Sam\x27s version of events is\x0aanother concoction being
> spread by his Wolof Nationalist types to\x0astigmatize Mandinka people. The allegation that Dibba\u00a0 \x26quot\x3b\u2026\x3cem\x3eformed his\x0aown tribal party, the NCP, on the premise that Jawara was not Mandinka\x0aenough and had betrayed his people to the Wolof\x26quot\x3b \x3c\x2fem\x3eis a complete fable\x21 Classic revisionism\x21 \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eHaving read his postings several\x0atimes, I keep wondering why Sam Sarr is going to such extent to portray\x0awhat never was\x3f It defies commonsense. Mandinka folks had a rock-solid\x0agrip on Gambian governments for thirty years. They could have\x0adiscriminated against Wolof people any way they wanted. There was\x0aabsolutely nothing the Wolof could have done about it\x21 But did they\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIt\x27s because of
> the paucity of\x0atime that, some of us have not delved into the composition of the\x0avarious PPP governments from 1962 to 1994. But clearly, there is need\x0afor this - a look at every position from Divisional Commissioner to\x0aSecretary General\x3a who held the positions\x3b for how long\x3b what their\x0aethnicity is, etc. Perhaps that will finally do for us what commonsense\x0ahas failed to do\x3a stop the unending fifty years-old Whisper Campaign of\x0acalumny that some Ethnic Nationalists have been waging to distort what\x0aessentially is Gambian history. As OJ once told me, Colony Wolof ought\x0ato \x26quot\x3btone down their criticism of the PPP because of what we did for\x0athem.\x26quot\x3b He was talking about a people who constitute less than 10\x25 of\x0athe Gambia\x27s population, yet constituted the majority of ALL IMPORTANT\x0apositions in the various PPP governments.\u00a0 Yet, some continue to cry\x0avictim. Victims of Mandinka tribalists. Sometimes,
> one can\x27t help but\x0afeel sick at what one hears, or reads. A little gratitude would be in\x0aorder. If truth be told, Mandinka people helped Colony Wolof\x0atremendously. What the Sam Sarrs call a \x26quot\x3bWolof hegemony\x26quot\x3b was allowed to\x0aflourish during the PPP era, NOT BEFORE. Before the PPP era, Aku\x0aspeakers were fully in charge. It was in fact the \x26quot\x3btribalist\x26quot\x3b PPP\x0aMandinka folks who put Colony Wolof on top\x21 This was one area where\x0aJawara should be extolled.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIf I had the time, I\x27d move from\x0athe empirical to the semi-professional by taking a two-prong\x0aCost-Benefit approach to the issue of what The Gambia as a country lost\x0aas a result of Colony Wolof defeat in 1960, and what Wolofs as a group\x0alost from same election. Since this is unquantifiable, we can simply\x0arely on publicly verifiable
> data. But since I lack the time, I\x27d just\x0asummarize it thus\x3a had the Banjul Wolof won in 1960, they\x27d have put\x0atheir own \x26quot\x3bqualified people\x26quot\x3b in most important positions in government\x3b\x0ahad they won, they\x27d have created institutions like The Gambia\x0aCommercial \x26amp\x3b Development Bank, Gambia National Trading Corp, Gambia\x0aUtilities Corp, Gambia Public Works Department, Gambia Ports Authority,\x0aCentral Bank of the Gambia\x3b Gambia Cooperative Union,\u00a0 etc, etc. Guess\x0awhat\x3f The horrible Mandinka tribalist people call PPP did exactly what\x0aPierre Njie, or JC Fye, or Garba Jahumpa would have done\x21 \x3cstrong\x3eALL the new institutions were headed by mainly Wolof-speaking Banjul people\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x21\u00a0 \x3cstrong\x3eEvery single one of them\x21\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\u00a0\x0aSo where is the Tribalism beef\x3f Methinks, this is a great deal for any\x0apeople who\u00a0 lost an election.\u00a0 You got
> everything else you would have\x0ahad you won. Isn\x27t that consolation enough\x3f Is there any concession\x0aMandinka people can make to Wolof Nationalists that would assuage their\x0aresentment\x3f What\x27s this hatred about\x3f Must you have people wrapped\x0aaround your fingers to feel relevant\x3f I have no doubt in my mind that\x0athis Mandinka hatred has to do with the fact that, they\x27re the only\x0apeople in The Gambia who consistently stand up to Wolof Nationalists. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eIt is noteworthy that almost\x0aevery single one of the new institutions I cited was run into the\x0aground. Nobody paid any real price for these crimes. I\x27m sure in\x0aJawara\x27s thinking, pursuing them would have amounted to a \x26quot\x3bMandinka\x0aanti-Wolof hegemony\x26quot\x3b crusade. Whatever his thinking, he backed off that\x0aroute. Our country suffered tremendously
> because of what those Banjul\x0apeople did. But my bad, this is an Off-Limit topic. The Sam Sarr\x27s have\x0ano complaints about Jawara letting Banjul Wolof crooks bleed us dry,\x0abut they\x27re mighty miffed that Dr. Lamin Saho changed a silly Radio\x0aNews Lineup. I was wondering what to make of Sam\x27s recommendation of\x0aIsatou Njie as Yaya Jammeh\x27s replacement until I read this latest\x0aoutrage. \x3cem\x3eThat\x3c\x2fem\x3e woman who passed along Yaya Jammeh\x27s \x3cstrong\x3eOrder To Shoot\x3c\x2fstrong\x3e\x0alittle kids is somehow good enough to rule the Gambia, but Dr. Saho and\x0aManneh are \x26quot\x3bfilthy scam artists.\x26quot\x3b If this is not a classic case of\x0ausing ethnicity as an instrument of bully, and coercion, I don\x27t know\x0awhat is\x3a \x26quot\x3bthey hate us, and are criticizing us because we\x27re Wolof\x26quot\x3b,\x0a\x26quot\x3bthey won\x27t vote for us we\x27re Wolof\x26quot\x3b, etc, etc. No Baba,
> \x26quot\x3bthey\x26quot\x3b\x0acriticize certain Wolofs because of their incompetence \x28which they try\x0ato hide behind their ethnicity\x29\x3b \x26quot\x3bthey\x26quot\x3b hate certain Wolofs because of\x0atheir Beneatha attitude \x28like in \x3cem\x3eA Raisin In The Sun\x3c\x2fem\x3e\x3b \x29\u00a0 and\x0a\x26quot\x3bthey\x26quot\x3b don\x27t vote for certain Wolofs candidates because they\x27re worse\x0athan the alternatives\x21 How about a little growing up\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eSo enough of this Western\x0aArtist-style neurotic, self-analytical, and narcissistic behavior\x3a\x0a\x26quot\x3bMandinka people turned against Jawara because they hate Wolof\x3b\x26quot\x3b\x0a\x26quot\x3bSheriff Dibba broke away because he hates Wolof\x3b\x26quot\x3b \x26quot\x3bthey don\x27t speak\x0aWolof because they hate Wolof people\x3b\x26quot\x3b etc. There is something\x0aincredibly
> prepubescent about this mindset. It makes George Bush look\x0alike a genius. Who said Mandinka lives revolve around Wolof hatred\x3f\x0aWhat is to gain from that\x3f The one thing that we can all agree on about\x0athe last forty years is that the two groups of people who cannot stay\x0aaway from each other in The Gambia are Mandinka men and Wolof women.\x0aSome hatred it must be.\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eAnd finally, on this persistent\x0aallegation that Mandinka politicians were telling the \x26quot\x3bMandinka masses\x26quot\x3b\x0aanti-Wolof puff on their campaigns, please let\x27s stop being Drum Majors\x0afor ignorance\x21 Unlike any other Gambian party, the PPP is a Bottom-Up\x0aparty. It was FORMED BY THE MASSES who went shopping for leaders\x21 I\x0adiscussed what pushed them to form their party. Does it therefore make\x0aany sense that, these \x26quot\x3bmasses\x26quot\x3b
> needed to be told why not to vote for\x0aWolof candidates who didn\x27t care about them before they formed their\x0aown party\x3f Banjul Wolof had an ugly reputation that caught up with them\x0ain 1960 \u2013 period\x21 But instead of admitting that, we hear of this\x0ainsulting, and patronizing allegation from bold Story Tellers that the\x0a\x26quot\x3bMandinka masses were told by \x27scam artists\x27 that \u2026\x26quot\x3b \u2013 as if that\x0amattered at all in the scheme of things. If the Mandinka candidates\x0adidn\x27t utter a single word at all, they\x27d have been voted in because of\x0athe alternative. \x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eDid the Wolof candidates use\x0asimilar language against the PPP\x3f Let\x27s assume that they didn\x27t. Yet\x0aBanjul Wolof people voted overwhelmingly for them\x21 Why should the\x0abehavior of other voters be interpreted any differently\x3a Wolof
> voters\x0avoted for their own WITHOUT being told WHO NOT to vote for, but somehow\x0aMandinka voters only voted for theirs because THEY WERE fed \x26quot\x3btribal\x0afilth\x26quot\x3b by the PPP. The mendacity of some people\x21 The \x26quot\x3bMandinka masses\x26quot\x3b\x0athat some people heap scorn on, defied their own then-powerful Mandinka\x0aChiefs \x28who ALL supported Wolof Pierre Njie, something we don\x27t hear\x0afrom the Sam Sarrs,\x29 to vote for the PPP\x21 But guess who else voted on\x0aethnic lines\x3f Colony Wolof people\x21 So what\x27s the problem\x3f Why are some\x0asingling out one segment for condemnation in what was a classic\x0aSectional election\x3f\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\u00a0\x3cbr\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3cp\x3e\x3cfont face\x3d\x22Comic Sans MS\x22 size\x3d2\x3eAnother ridiculous story that is\x0afrequently peddled is the story that PPP politicians told their\x0asupporters that they\x27ll \x26quot\x3btake Wolof and Aku peoples\x27 storey
> buildings\x26quot\x3b\x0aaway to give them. This is part of the reason why it is common to see\x0aWolof Nationalists walking around haughtily with an air of superiority\x0abecause of such asinine ideas in their heads. I was in Banjul in\x0aFebruary 2007. Forget 1960. Excepting\u00a0 government buildings, there are\x0astill far less than 200 storey buildings in the whole of Banjul\x21 In\x0aFebruary 2007, the majority of the people who live in the Banjul I saw\x0alive in PLASTERED KIRINTING houses\x21 So where are the storey buildings\x0athat the hundreds of thousands of PPP supporters were supposed to have\x0abeen promised in 1960\x3f It\x27s one thing to hear some nitwit senselessly\x0arepeat this kind of fable at some Attaya Vous, it\x27s quite another to\x0aread such garbage from so-called educated people. And this story is\x0atold as if it is a caricature of the PPP leadership when in fact, all\x0ait does is reveal the incredible obtuseness of the people who
> continue\x0ato spread such improbable tales. How can the PPP leaders take from\x0aBanjul Wolof and Aku what they don\x27t have\x3f Did a particular PPP\x0apolitician say something like that\x3f Maybe. But was that a \x3cem\x3ethe\x3c\x2fem\x3e major theme it\x27s made out to be\x3f No\x21\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fp\x3e\x0a\x3c\x2ffont\x3e\x3c\x2fspan\x3e\x0a';
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