We Are Not Going Back To The Drawing Board

I stay away from partisan politics but this time around, the PDOIS has finally exposed its inflated sense of self-importance, and its control freak leadership.  Even the most loyal and hardcore followers of Halifa Sallah are starting to ask questions about the motive behind an editorial penned yesterday in the Foroyaa by one Ousman Njie for Halifa and his PDOIS party. The opening sentence of the editorial stated the obvious as only Halifa and PDOIS can; telling us that brain and not emotion is the key to leadership. Everything else about the editorial is vile, repulsive and insulting.

The editorial’s venture into American history only served to reveal the ignorance of the author about the history of the civil rights movement in America.  Martin Luther King was not a politician and never aspired to be one.  Even if he had harbored the notion, it soon evaporated because he realized early that he was more powerful and influential in his role as leader of a movement operating outside the machinery of government than trying “to take over the White House or the Congress.”  To think that only through government that change can be effected is pure madness. It is also folly to advance the false notion that “in International Law states and not personalities are recognized” and hence those “who control state power become the legitimate authority for the state”. The statement even though shortsighted, tells us a great deal about PDOIS’s view of government as the agent of supreme power.  May I remind the PDOIS that Adolf Hitler was recognized by law as the legitimate head of government but it took non-governmental organizations and victims of the Holocaust to help draw attention to the heinous crimes committed by a legally constituted and internationally recognized government.

The compartmentalization of Gambians into those “children of Independence and those born during the colonial period” by the PDOIS is a vainly concealed effort at sowing seeds of discord between the alliances that seemed to have emerged after Raleigh, London and Stockholm which culminated in those that emerged among the civil and non-political groups like DUGA-DC and the Organization for Democracy and Justice in Africa.  "The children of Independence" did not march the streets of New York and stake out at the Ritz-Carlton alone; those born during the colonial period joined us. We received and continue to receive moral and financial support from young and old, men and women, from Gambians and non-Gambians alike.  Gambians should and will vehemently oppose any attempt by any politician or group of politicians to compartmentalize Gambian society, be it UDP, APRC or PDOIS.  

The PDOIS editorial proceeded to accuse us, “the young of today” of being morons and marionettes who are being manipulated by those born during colonialism, and driven into political adventurism because we do not have a mind of our own and have less “clarity, maturity and tact”.  How insulting can Halifa be?  Is he pre- or post-Independent child?  I know Yahya Jammeh is post-Independent child because he's been reminding Gambians of it every day.  The advise PDOIS gives to the ‘young of today” is for us to “partner with those who wish to empower the people through necessary and viable means so that they can take full ownership of the country.”  In short, PDOIS is saying to the Coach Pa Samba Jows of this world that they should be partnering with Halifa Sallah and not with the pre-Independent relics , when he Halifa, has steadfastly refused to get off his high horses and join the demonstrators, at least in spirit.  But no, he’d rather hide behind Foroyaa editorials to throw rocks at those willing to take on Jammeh head-on when everything seemed to have failed.

To convince the “young of today” that we are on a fool’s errand for opposing the government of Yaya Jammeh because he’s legitimate in the eyes of Washington and London, the editorial cited the fact that the Syrian Foreign Minister was welcomed and heard at the U.N. which, in Halifa’s mind, is tacit support of the Assad regime by the Obama administration, ignoring the geopolitical importance of Syria and the fact that neither Barrack Obama nor any other member of the United Nations could deny another the right to take to the podium to speak.  It is a member’s right and not a privilege.  Halifa should know better.  It would have been a different matter if the Syrian Foreign Minister was provided a platform at the United States Army War College which could only happen with the consent of the Obama administration.

If Halifa Sallah or any member of PDOIS thinks that the demonstrations and activist agitations around the Gambian Embassy in Washington is to get foreign governments sever diplomatic ties with Banjul, then they are missing the point.  The protests rose out of the desire to change tactic after 19 years of political ineffectiveness of the opposition, including PDOIS, and designed to bring international attention to the violent dictatorship in Banjul, an objective that is being achieved beyond expectations.  And if you think we the so-called ‘children of Independence” are going to the drawing board, PDOIS and Halifa Sallah better think again.

Governments are extensions of their constituents but they may not necessarily and truly reflect the desires and aspirations of the governed, and this is particularly true of dictatorships.  Therefore, for Halifa and PDOIS to continue providing cover for a despotic leader like Yahya Jammeh by citing international law is further confirmation of what many have in the past, accused them of - they are collaborating with the corrupt and violent regime of Yaya Jammeh, whether they know it or not.  If after 19 years of writing 100 page letters to Yahya Jammeh following every unconstitutional and extra-judicial infraction without a single response is not enough reason to change tactic then nothing else will.  Therefore, the “young of today” have decided to take a different approach to political activism than to return to the drawing board.  There is of course nothing preventing Halifa Sallah and PDOIS to continue doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results every time.  A better option is for Halifa and PDOIS to get off their high horses and join the fight to get rid of an incompetent, corrupt and violent regime without endless lectures and preconditions.   

A Turning Point in The Gambia Struggle - Guest Blog

After Gambians in the USA humiliated him during his recent trip to the 68th UN General Assembly, president Jammeh returned home and, in typical fashion, used the state resources of GRTS to shamefully lie to the Gambians at home about what happened in New York.

He did not report that a good crowd of Gambians had gathered at the Gambian Mission in New York to register their displeasure with his dictatorship. He did not mention that his tyrant-in-the-making of a secretary general, Momodou Sabally, was almost beaten up by a lady he confronted at the demonstrations. He did not ention that his chief diplomat to the UN, Momodou Tangara, was actually beaten up in a fist fight by Falai Baldeh. He did not mention that he was scared into spending his entire time curled up like a mouse inside his hotel room, and he certainly did not mention that he was forced to cut short his trip to run back home without even visiting his ill-gotten mansion in Maryland purchased with stolen Gambian millions.

Jammeh used the state run propaganda tool of GRTS to lie to the nation. They shamefully used editing and camera tricks to doctor an interview he had with one Gambian to try and diminish the impact of the demonstrations. Unfortunately for Jammeh, the advent of camera phones, Facebook and other social media made sure Gambians at home and around the world know the truth. Events in New York were already circulating around the world unedited and almost in real time. Gambians at home are already talking about how surprised and disappointed they were to confirm that Jammeh is a lion at home but a mouse when away from State House and Kanilai. The video of Jammeh’s wife, Zainab, being smuggled through the hotel kitchen while his husband remained hidden in the hotel room, is something Gambians are still laughing about.

Freedom Newspaper spoke to the man whose words were twisted in the GRTS propaganda video and he confirmed that the GRTS video is a total misrepresentation of his interview with them. Key parts GRTS deliberately omitted include his questioning Jammeh on the murder of veteran Gambian journalist, Deyda Hydara, and the recent murder of 30year old Kasim Kanyi by Jammeh’s thugs. Mr. Jobe has been a supporter of the anti-Jammeh movement and he reassured our listeners that he remains a strong critic of Jammeh and his thugs.

Now realizing that his GRTS propaganda attempts to diminish the events in New York were not working, largely because of the power of the internet, Jammeh was forced to find alternatives. Unfortunately for him, the options were limited. He resorted to a blame game. Rather than letting Gambians and the world see that he was beaten by ordinary Gambians standing up for justice, Jammeh thought he would be better off letting them think there had to be a bigger force supporting these Gambians. First was the drastic and sudden announcement that he was withdrawing the country from the Commonwealth, branding the institution a “neo-colonial” institution, followed by two strongly-worded anti-Western statements on GRTS attacking the USA and UK and accusing them of orchestrating a “smear campaign” against The Gambia. As if that’s not ridiculous enough, a desperate Jammeh went on to accuse the USA of forming the country’s main opposition. He also tried to invoke tribal sentiments to divide the Gambian people. Again, unfortunately for Jammeh, we live in a different era and Gambians are not buying the distraction tactics this time. Instead, they’re more determined than ever and hit him with an upper cut he never dreamt of. 

As he was busy bashing the USA and UK, the taking over of the Gambian embassy in Washington DC must have hit him like a sack of bricks. Peaceful but determined, Gambians entered the Gambian embassy. The class and discipline they exercised is nothing short of admirable. No embassy employee was harassed and no property was destroyed. But the message was loud and clear – Gambians are ready to take on Jammeh and will stop at nothing to demand justice. According to DUGA and the other groups of Gambian activities, the events of New York were not a one-off. They’re part of a strategy and if anyone had any doubts, you don’t need to look past the taking over of the embassy in DC to see that they mean business. The activities and results are a model to be duplicated in cities all over the USA and Europe. Jammeh and his cronies can expect some “royal treatment” every time they step outside the cocoon of the guns of the Gambia National Army.

What impact will this have you ask? For starters, it has shown Gambians that Jammeh is only brave when he is in Gambia and has his guns around him. This is why he stayed hidden and would not dare step out of his hotel room in New York. Secondly, it shows how mentally weak he is to be so shaken by the activities of a few Gambians that he takes drastic actions like withdrawing from the Commonwealth. It shows that Gambians have had enough and will stop at nothing to confront the tyranny. Perhaps most importantly, activities in New York and in DC will be an inspiration for Gambians around the world, especially those in Gambia. Gradually, they will realize that power lies in the hands of the people and that it only takes a little courage and BOOM!!!...like a house of cards…..

Kemo Sanyang