Yes but the phenominon at the airport is more dangerous because
it is more than simple begging. It is the first - and thus most
lasting - impression that visitors get when the land at Yundum.
It jeopardizes the industry (tourism) that holds the most potential
for bringing Euros, Pounds and Dollars into the economy. The
Gambia has miles upon miles of beautiful beaches, well-trained
hotel and restaurant staff, perfect climate from November through
May, an anbundance of colorful birds, and so on. All of that
will be worthless if the experience is ruined by bumsters, and
yes, that's what these people at the airport are... BUMSTERS.
If the secretaries of state are serious about crushing the
bumster phenominon, they need to address it at the airport as
well as the tourist development areas.
Other African countries do not let people near the terminal or on
Airport property unless they are in possession of a valid ticket,
etc. Why wouldn't that work?
Mod
--- Joe Sambou <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Pa Modu, thanks for your observations. You are absolutely right but this is
> not just happening at the Airport alone. You see it at the entrances of
> banks, government offices, commercial venues, markets, etc., and it is not
> restricted to youngsters alone. You also see adults, male and female.
> Another phenomenon I observed is the amount of solicitation that go on in
> the offices, by strangers, relatives, girlfriends, you name it. Pa Modu,
> folks do not have any other options, pure and simple. The masses of the
> poor have ballooned to near explosion. What goes on in that country is you
> have a small group of folks on top of the food chain and the rest are just
> hanging by a thread. Dependants of this overwhelming majority are falling
> to the bottom daily, because their providers cannot support their growing
> dependant load. If you have a high drop-out rate, thousands graduating from
> high school yearly, thousands already unemployed, and very very limited
> employment opportunities, the result is a spill-over in the streets. These
> people have to survive some how and there is no government or social service
> that they can lean on to get back on their feet. Pa Modu, do you know that
> folks in the diaspora are the ones supporting our crumbling economy? We
> fund the school fees, pilgrimages, weddings, hospital stays, and general
> daily living conditions in that country. If this was coupled with
> government initiative to encourage and support a productive base, then we
> would not be talking about this today. On the contrary this government is
> busy suffocating its citizens. We are dependant for everything from the
> outside, including the rice that we can grow in abundance, for heavens sake.
>
> Most of the basics that we complain about we can produce ourselves in
> abundance. Whether it is rice, onions, fish, tomatoes, pepper, vegetables,
> etc., we can produce. I know some of our fresh folks on this list are
> jumping up and down asking, why aren't these folks engaging in the
> production of these consumables. In response, did Yaya have a farm prior to
> his access to our funds? No, he did not. To do these things you need land,
> money, and sacrifice. The latter we have in abundance. It is the land and
> financial resource that these folks do not have. A while back Gassama was
> chiding the booming housing market and was suggesting that this junta has
> something to do with it. I reminded him that for every 10 houses built, 9
> are funded by a diasporan. Who is putting food on the table during this
> Ramadan for the majority of our people? It is not the meager salaries that
> have devalued four fold, but the contributions from Omar, Haddy, and Fatou
> from the outside. Thus, the reason why every household in our country would
> starve themselves to send a son or daughter abroad.
>
> What we see as beggars, hustlers, etc., is the result of poor leadership.
> The devaluation of our dalasi is also the result of poor leadership and as
> you can see, they have no clue how to fix it. If you want to depend on
> borrowing for the survival of a nation and you do not put those resources
> into productive activities, but consumption by the few, or to erect phantom
> facades, the result is deeper and deeper in debt and poorer and poorer of
> the masses, which also creates the spill-over effect at the airport that you
> and I see as a nuisance. For those that wear the shoe it is called
> survival. Leadership with a vision will get us out of this vicious cycle,
> and clearly the bunch we have there are neither equipped nor capable of
> saving the day.
>
> Chi Jaama
>
> Joe Sambou
>
>
>
>
>
> >From: pa-modu jack <[log in to unmask]>
> >Reply-To: [log in to unmask]
> >To: [log in to unmask]
> >Subject: Beggars or hustlers?
> >Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2002 06:25:55 -0800
> >
> >My recent trip to Gambia left me totally overwhelmed by the number of
> >youngters begging or try to hustle you at the Banjul Airport.It is so
> >embarassing to get that first impression of the second republic at such a
> >meeting place.
> >I believe many "been tos" have experienced the same thing.I put this issue
> >here so we can find a solution to this grave matter.
> >Pa-Modu Jack
> >
> >
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