Paul, thanks for your response to Malamin. I, however, disagree with some of your comments. I do not think that Mr. Roberts is competent for the Job, based on his past performance of handling his current responsibilities. He is not independent in fact and in appearance. What kind of advise can you give to this man when he is running the errands of Yahya? What happened to the right to suffrage for Gambians in the diaspora? How does calling for outside observers translate to lack of trust of all Gambians? What Gambians lack trust in is those that are in control of our country and are about to do anything to stay in power. Since the average Gambian does not have the power to enforce their will through the ballot box, and they know that based on past performance of this government and the IEC, that their wish will not be accepted, thus, the need for third parties (they do not have to be from the West) to witness the thievery. Because what is going to follow is peaceful disobedience until justice is served. We would need the understanding of the international community when we stand up to these criminals. Calling for election monitors in essence is a preemptive strike against what is bound to happen, unless you do not believe that the majority of Gambians want these criminals out, and that they would do anything (even kill) to stay on. We are not calling for a perfect electoral system as you seem to suggest, but a free and fair one. Now, you tell me if Mr. Roberts has been fostering that environment in your opinion. Based on Robert's waffling on a number of issues that have serious implications on our country, WE are not going to let him get by with anything this time around. That is called taking control of our destiny. We will let him perform his responsibilities as long as he is on the straight and narrow. However, we would not hesitate to put the breaks on him the moment he begins to meander off track. I agree with you that we have competent Gambians who can perform the job, unfortunately they have been bypassed. I respect your position, but respectfully disagree. Thanks for adding value in the discourse. Chi Jaama Joe Sambou >From: paul t mendy <[log in to unmask]> >Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list ><[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Re: Election procedures: Question >Date: Fri, 28 Sep 2001 14:03:08 +0000 > _________________________________________________________________ Get your FREE download of MSN Explorer at http://explorer.msn.com/intl.asp ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html You may also send subscription requests to [log in to unmask] if you have problems accessing the web interface and remember to write your full name and e-mail address. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------