Folks,

The following is from The Point's Sept 24 issue. Courtesy of www.qanet.gm . 

Malanding



Good Morning, Mr.President Ensure A Level Playing Field 

In the aftermath of the 1996 election (and in fact prior to it) the Commonwealth and other world bodies decried your administration's failure to ensure a political level playing field for the full expression of the will of the Gambian populace. 

The truth is that sanctions of the past would never be the same with the trend of things in the Western world today following the attacks on America. The new culture that is taking shape in the West provides for two worlds; one that respects certain civilized norms of existence on the earth and another pariah world open to punitive measures be they arbitrary or not as we might see in the coming days. 

Afghans would have to suffer for the deeds of few people; people that imposed themselves on the poor population that would pay for deeds they were not party to and for which they were not consulted.

The British and their allies are today hammering on the need for greater democratic values and the US are talking about a new civilized world. 

The choice is Gambia's and we must chose.

Lets come back to our last sanctions. The main charges then against your administration were the banning of the PPP, NCP and GPP, the involvement of the security forces in the electoral process and the monopolization of the public media by your party, the APRC. 

Mr. President, this time round, you have lifted one of these charges with the repeal of Decree 89 paving the way for the full participation of the former banned politicians in the political process. 

Now the other two issues must be addressed by yourself so as not to taint any victory that might come your way should the people so decide. 

This brings us to the seemingly over-zealousness of some of your officials who openly support you and by extension your party when the institutions they serve require them to uphold restraint and impartiality. 

Where on earth can one see Directors of National Intelligence Agencies campaigning openly. You can only see it in The Gambia with Kebba Ceesay and Abdoulie Kujabi addressing rallies, campaigning for you.

Now, the other day, Tombong's TV showed five (5) APRC rallies in the same evening without giving a single second to the opposition to show Gambians that you do not fear them. How then can the independent press be blamed for giving adequate if not full space to the opposition which is shunned by its own tax payers public media? 

One also wonders why the police should escort in such a 'protocolaire' manner a motorcade of your party's brand new vehicles? It beats our imagination as to who gave out the order to the police as parties are not empowered to instruct the police. Or was it another display of over-zealousness? 

This is a country that we want to see become modern and respected and these kinds of attitudes and compromissions are to say the least worthy of some other age.

As these were the very issues that led to our shunning by the international community, are Ceesay, Abdoulie, Tombong, Njie really helping us or driving us back to square one for the reaping of other sanctions from the international community?

Now, if they support you (which we believe they do as demonstrated) let them do like their colleagues in other countries who uphold the republican role of their institutions and relegate their personal sympathetic disposition for close doors meetings.

We were not around but a veteran journalist told us that you and your party had a good show on nomination day. The man talked about your supporters match stretched over a two-kilometer trail behind your vehicle from the Kanifing Municipality into Banjul. His view is that with such a support, there is no need for any foul play on the part of the ruling party as chances seem even between you and your opponents. So, why allow your officials heading national institutions and their men and women to lend you that hand you seemingly don't need to make a good and credible run? Mr. President, we are tired of sanctions. Good Day.

 

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