Dispatches from a fragile country-What doe’s 12 years rule of Yaya Jammeh mean for the Gambia? By Abdoukarim Sanneh
  There are many pseudo intellectuals and so-called progressive Gambian think tanks that are partly to be blamed for the strengthening dictatorial rule in our country. Many of these people have collaborated with quarter baked educated soldiers since in the early days of July 1994 in all types of crimes against defenceless and voiceless masses of Gambians in the name of freedom that never happened. Today the majority of our people are hallowing in absolute poverty while the disparity between the richer and poor citizens is much wider as ever before. What does the 1994 take over of government yields? The answer is simply and it turned Yaya Jammeh and his gang of criminals from ragamuffins into millionaires.
   
  Where are the disgruntle elites and so-called intellectuals who those days bastardise us that PPP was the problem? They have committed crimes by glamorising the military take over of July 1994 without critically assessing its impacts on our three decades of multi party democracy simply because they have axes to grind with the PPP, they failed to realise that with all its shortcomings, the hallmark of PPP was political confidence and tolerance, rule of law and functional democracy. Many of these individuals, in pursuit for their individual political ambitions and selfish interests, think that Yaya Jammeh’s grandiose projects of constitutional reforms and bogus commission of enquiries will yield positive results but for 12 years, they are nothing order than masters of illusions. Their pseudo ideas and bickering in support of the way forward after few years, when many of those ideas came into a blur print under military turn civilian democracy “militocracy”; almost all have
 been thrown into dustbins.
   
  The grandiose project for re-designing the 1970 constitution for limiting the term of presidency and checking the abuse of power by the executive became a myth but not a reality. The 1996 constitution was drawn to justify all the crimes committed by the junta. It was authored to indemnify and also legalise all the military decrees, which were drafted to strengthen military dictatorship as statutory codes. With all the shortcomings of the 1996 constitution and also ban on political activities during its evolution, most of the document was not subjected to political discussion and also to the domain of public scrutiny. With the manipulation of the constitution year after year, I wander what the editorial committee of FOROYAA news paper will explain to the Gambian people after prophesising for Gambia under the glorious days of that document in their campaign for the people to vote for yes in the referendum.
  Many people accused the PPP Government of benign neglect and financial corruption but 12 years of Yaya Jammeh have shown, a webs of financial and criminalisation of state beyond imagination. Under Sir Dawda Jawara, opposition parties were tolerated and there was relatively free press. Today, the daily life of Gambians is engulfed with state of fear. There is high-level of intimidation of political opponents and media organisations that dared to criticise has now become a hallmark of Yaya Jammeh’s rule. It is a fact that a soldier without political education is virtually a criminal. The Gambian people are now aware that the famous slogan of the regime such transparency, accountability and probity has vanished into Gambian clouds and does not mean nothing order than fallacy. A poor soldiers, who was having less than two thousand dalasi in his account before taking power in 1994 is today richer than the state he is ruling. Yaya Jammeh has looted our national coffers and is
 still poaching our institutions to enrich himself. Since he came to power, Yaya Jammeh has followed the pattern of late Mobutu of Zaire like his mentor. He has acquired a series of properties including a plantation estate, properties in Morocco, private island in the Bin tang bolong (A tributary of the river Gambia), businesses such as Kairaba hotel, high class sindola hotel, fishing vessels with monopoly of the Atlantic fishing coast of Gambia, game reserve etc. He has all types of animals such as zebras, Tigers, Lions and crocodiles, which many believe are some time fed on flesh of his opponents so that their DNA will not be trace to detect a foul play.
   
  Yaya Jammeh after taking power in 1994 have set up commission which came up with lots of recommendations almost all of which are violated. Yaya Jammeh’s greediness and corruption have been extended to land grabbing and having numerous properties within the Greater Banjul, Kombo and Foni areas. It is the contemporary realities of 12 years misrule in our country which proved many political commentators wrong. Many of this bunch of illusionists thought that Yaya Jammeh and his team of virtual criminals are fresh force keen to sweep away the so-called lethargy and corruption of the old days. There was no justification of the take over of July 1994. It was motivated by greediness, hate, anger, jealousy, egoism and systematic selfishness, which are a continuum to destroy the fabric of our society.
   
  In the Gambia today, we have witnessed the president’s immature manifestation of tribalism and hate for a section of the population. In the Gambia today, we are also aware of the fact that the president, because of his tribal affiliation, is fuelling the conflict in Southern Senegalese province of Casamance through moral support, finance and also giving sanctuary to rebels. The conflict in Casamance have a serious impact on the geo-political realities of our sub-region and at the moment the hard-line faction which is not prepared for ceasefire is now concentrated along the porous border between Gambia and the region. It seems our country is now a rear base for these bunch of criminals who are causing maim to women and children of Casamance. Giving Salif Sadio the Gambian diplomatic passport is further compounding the fragile relationship with Senegal and thus fostering the instability in that region.
   
  It is about time for every Gambian to be alert now because Yaya Jammeh has sowed the seed for the destruction of our nation. The daily life of average Gambian is characterised with despair and hopelessness. Every sector of Gambian life is further deteriorating. From the economy, infrastructure, health, education, environment etc. It takes 12 hours to travel from Banjul to Basse, which is a distance of about 360 kilometres. The economy is anaemic and with rising unemployment and failing agricultural sector, rural/urban migration is beyond the records of Gambia’s statistic.
   
  The 12 years rule of Yaya Jammeh have witness a massive brain drain. Recently I came into contact with a lot of highly trained Gambian students who came into United Kingdom through Government scholarships. In the discussion of issue relating to Gambian politics, many of these people lamented to me that they cannot return back to the Gambia with the present status quo prevailing. Their dilemma is frequent interference of the public service and its politicisation process by the executive, ass licking, frequent sackings and tribalism among others, which is what I may call “Jolanisation” of the civil service not because of competency but tribal affiliation (NEPOTISM). With stagnation of salaries, effective and efficient public service becomes a thing of the past, while corruption and bribery syndrome becomes a hierarchy in the officialdom.
   
  The leadership in our country is the laughing stock of our continent. The madness of Yaya Jammeh is beyond imagination. This clearly visible or demonstrated with the President and Vice-President parading honouree degrees in front of their names as if they have toiled for these titles in a rigorous university environment. Because their idle brains they become the devil’s advocate of Gambian politics fostering totalitarian dictatorship.
   
  In the Gambia today, intellectual discussions and debates for the way forward is distil into graveyard. While sycophancy and singing praises to the dictator becomes a way of life. Important institutions which promote human rights, academic freedom and other democratic value are none functional or existence because of the state of fear. The fragile opposition parties and division due to leadership power struggle between UDP/NRP Coalition and NADD have given the butcher to further accelerate his vicious cycle human rights violation with impunity. The state have promoted and will continue to promote terror on the citizens and media with all types draconian laws and methods all of which aims to muscle free speech and put our people into darkness without the watch of the media for political enlightenment. It is about time to stop underestimating the trend of Yaya Jammeh’s criminalisation. He is very manipulative, divisive, corrupt, brutal and greedy for power. It is these
 qualities he possesses that is bleeding our nation and fuelling the conflict in Cassamance.
  
   

 		
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