-------- Original Message --------
Subject: RE: [pdoisgroup] Buharry is on top of it.
From: "Amie Sillah" <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Thu, July 1, 2004 1:59 pm
To: [log in to unmask]
Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 52/2004, 1-03 July, 2004
Editorial
DIALOGUE OR DICTATION
THE PRESIDENT AND HIS COUNTRYWIDE TOUR
The IEC Should Take Note!
The president of the republic has been making it very clear that he will
not give regard to his oath to perform his executive duties without fear
or favour, affection or ill-will. In stead, he has been telling the
people that if they fail to vote for him he will not provide them with
public services such as hospitals, schools, ambulances, boreholes,
milling machines and other services. The president has gone very far to
undermine the integrity of the Independent Electoral Commission by
asserting that the polling stations are increased so that they would know
how people vote. This would determine which communities are to receive or
be deprived of benefits. It is outrageous for the president to make such
comments, which are calculated to intimidate the voter. It also does not
tell well on the independence of the I.E.C. The fact of the matter is
that it has been observed by many voters that if polling stations are far
away from people’s homes many tend not to vote. It has been a popular
demand for the polling stations to be increased and to be situated in
places closer to the voter. This speeds up the voting process and prevent
long queues. The practice has the tendency to reveal the number of votes
per polling station that each candidate receives. However, this should
not be a disadvantage in a genuine democratic society with a
democratically minded leadership that wishes to promote free and fair
elections which produce the undiluted choice of the people. If the
president wants to use the process to victimize those who exercise their
freedom to choose who they want, that should lead people to bow down to
his wishes. That would amount to blackmail. A free people can never allow
themselves to bow down to intimidation. The people should therefore
continue to express their will freely to vote for who they want. If the
president fails to deliver services without fear or favour, affection or
ill-will he should be considered unfit to preside over the affairs of a
sovereign people and be removed. This is the only way to prevent a
sovereign people from being subjected to the dictates of rulers. The
president should be shown that the Gambian people will not accept threats
from leaders they can remove from office. If the president does not
desist from such threats the people should teach him the lesson that they
are responsible for putting him in office and he is not responsible for
giving them citizenship. They are citizens irrespective of his will while
he is a president because of their will. If he seeks to dictate to them
they should remove him to teach him who has power in a sovereign
republic. CULTURAL TOURISM OR HOMECOMING
THE CONTRADICTIONS OF THE ROOTS FESTIVAL
Halifa Sallah Speaks to Some of the Guests
Some of the guests who came to The Gambia in search of an African
identity were advised to speak to Halifa Sallah. In an interview with
FOROYAA he said that the Roots Festival has contradictory objectives. He
said that many of those who advertised the festival see it as part and
parcel of cultural tourism. This puts it as a part of the travel trade
aiming to attract spenders to promote economic well-being. He said that
the people he had spoken to had a different impression of the festival.
They saw it as a form of homecoming, a journey in search of a place they
can belong to and identify with as their home. Those who have
commercialized the programme create activities to entertain. They expose
the visitors to traditional practices without explaining their relevance
to the creation of a positive African and human identity. Those who see
the festival as homecoming often want explanation, why huts, bad roads,
beggars and general poverty still plague the continent after decades of
independence. They want to know why The Gambia / Africa they want to be
proud of or belong to still harbours so many ills they are not proud of.
Halifa explained that the current nature of the Roots Festival excludes
this agenda of mental liberation and self-discovery and simply
perpetuates a narrow cultural viewpoint. He told the visitors that in
2005 the People’s Centre will have its own programmes to sensitize those
who wish for a homecoming experience on Pan Africanism and the legacy of
those who have struggled for Africa to be homeland for people of African
descent. Halifa told them that Africa is very rich but harbours 340
million poor Africans because of our own failure to create a united
Africa immediately after attaining national liberation. He explained that
there is need to combine the three stages of production for a modern
economy; that there is need to produce raw materials as the primary stage
of production. There is need to process the raw materials as the
second stage of production and there is need to produce machines to
support both the primary and secondary stages as the tertiary stage. He
argued that at independence most African countries were at the primary
stage; that they lacked the banks to invest in the secondary and tertiary
stages; that people like Nkrumah spoke about a cooperative banking system
where all newly independent African countries could make contributions
to, establish an African Investment Bank to support the secondary and
tertiary phases ! of development.
The visitors were told that many of the leaders were only interested in
occupying the mansions left by the colonialists and become rulers of a
poor people rather than work towards unifying the continent and create a
United States of Africa. He lamented that the end result of narrow
materialism is that most countries are still at the primary stage
producing mainly raw materials and importing everything else from their
former colonial masters. He said that the huts and general poverty they
see is not African culture but the signs of a neglected people and
continent. He said the potential is there but could only be realized if
we have leaders who would stop pulling money in Swiss banks and instead
put it in an African Investment Bank to finance the projects needed on
the continent. He told them that their own brothers and sisters at home
think that they are coming from rich countries and should give them
creativity. He told them not to be disturbed by the lev! el of ignorance
and poverty but see it as a sign of the failure of African leadership. He
argued that they should educate their brothers and sisters that the
perceived prosperity of the US is being mystified by credit cards. They
should explain their real situation and then help their brothers and
sisters to see that they should unite their efforts to create an African
leadership that will be true to their mandate to articulate the plans and
programmes that will ensure that the total economic emancipation of the
continent and the empowerment of the people to have the true architects
of a destiny of liberty, dignity and prosperity. The visitors took videos
and promised to spread the message far and wide. To them it was
homecoming indeed, not commercial cultural tourism. D-DAY FOR JARRA
WEST
The electorate of Jarra West constituency, which became vacant after the
conviction and imprisonment of the former Majority Leader, Baba K. Jobe,
will be going to the polls today to determine the fate of the vacant
seat. This shows that power lies with the people. In fact, section 1 of
the constitution stipulates that the sovereignty of The Gambia resides in
the people. The election in Jarra West today is more than just deciding
who is to replace Baba K. Jobe. The electorate of Jarra West will decide
today whether or not they will assert their authority or allow someone to
impose his or her will upon them as the president has indicated.
THE APPEALS OF BABA JOBE AND WAA JUWARA
WHAT IS THEIR STATUS?
As the saying goes justice delayed is justice denied. I have been
motivated by this statement to find out the status of two important
appeals now before the Court of Appeal, namely the appeal of the
Secretary General of NDAM, Lamin Waa Juwara who was released on Friday
25th June and that of Baba K. Jobe who is still serving a term of
imprisonment of more than nine years. My investigation has revealed that
the legal representatives of both appellants are yet to receive certified
copies of the records of court proceedings which are necessary for the
appeal to proceed. When I contacted the courts and the legal
representatives of both appellants I was duly informed that in fact the
records have already been typed and the judge is now doing the
proofreading. For the information of the reader Lamin Waa Jawara was
tried and convicted for sedition and imprisonment for six months. He has
already served the six months while the appeal is yet to be heard. For
his part Baba K. Jobe was convicted and imprisoned for a term of more
than nine years on 29th March 2004. His appeal was filed on 6th May
2004. UN EXTENDS MANDATE OF GAMBIAN PEACEKEEPERS
The Chief of Staff of the Gambia Armed Forces, Colonel Baboucarr Jatta
has informed this paper that the UN has extended the mandate of the
Gambian peacekeepers in Liberia who were due here last month. According
to Colonel Jatta, the peacekeepers who were due to return home in June
will instead come in September. Colonel Jatta said despite the fact that
The Gambia did not meet the quota for UN operations, the level of
professionalism demonstrated by its soldiers has impressed the UN to the
extent that the mandate of its soldiers has been extended. “Others have
met the quota for UN peacekeeping missions, but the UN is urging them to
go. They (Gambian soldiers) have excelled in executing their duties which
is why the Field Commander in Liberia and the UN are interested in them,”
Colonel Jatta remarked. Colonel Jatta said that the UN has urged
countries without a battalion in Liberia to leave the aforesaid country.
He said despite the fact that The Gambia has a company (about 100 to 150
soldiers) in Liberia, the UN has urged her to stay. He said that in order
for a country to meet UN standards for peacekeeping missions, it must be
in a position to deploy a battalion and must have standard equipment
which the Gambia Armed Forces lack at the moment. He posited that The
Gambia government is presently leaving no stone unturned in order to get
standard equipment for the Armed Forces. He posited that peacekeeping
missions are a source of foreign exchange earnings for the country. MAI
FATTY ACCUSES JUSTICE PAUL
The treason trial involving Abdoulie Sonko and the State is never short
of controversy. Mai Fatty, counsel for the accused, on Monday urged the
trial judge, Justice M. A. Paul to refuse from hearing the matter.
Fatty’s application came at a time when the defence was supposed to make
a no case submission. “There has been a change of situation with regards
to the defence position. We are applying to the court to refuse itself
from hearing this matter. The court has manifested substantial bias
towards the defence and our position is that the court cannot dispensate
justice on this matter. There has been many instances when the defence
has been denied proper hearing,” Fatty remarked. At this point, Justice
Paul, urged the prosecutor, Chernor Marenah to respond to Fatty’s
submission. Marenah stood up to say that he has left the matter to the
court to decide. “I don’t know you. I only met you here as a lawyer. You
have a problem, you don’t want to learn. If you think the court does not
want to do justice in this case, there is a proper way of doing it
(applying). If I am not taking insult from you, that does not mean I am
biased,” Justice Paul remarked. Fatty posited, “It is our duty as
counsels to protect the integrity of this court. The integrity of this
court is the common interest of everybody. I will not insult any counsel,
and I will not take insult from counsel or anybody.” Justice Paul at this
juncture ruled that Fatty has made very serious allegations against him,
noting that unless the latter take the correct steps, he will not
withdraw from the matter. He later asked Fatty to make his no case
submission or ask the witness to enter his defence. Fatty asked the court
to grant him an adjournment in order for him to make a no case
submission. Justice Paul asked Marenah to respond to Fatty’s request, the
latter urged the court to grant Fatty an adjournment. MANSONG
DAMBELL LOSES CASE
The Gambia Court of Appeal headed by Justice Gibou Janneh on Thursday
delivered judgment on the protracted legal battle involving prominent
businessman, Mansong Dambell and the West African Examination Council.
The Court of Appeal turned down the judgment delivered by the High Court
in favour of Mansong Dambell. The latter was awarded D3, 636, 000.00 by
the High Court. The appellant, WAEC later filed an appeal at the Court of
Appeal. The appellant did enter into a business deal with Mansong. Two of
the contracts were executed by the latter but the last contract was
terminated by the appellant. This prompted Mansong to file a writ at the
High Court claiming D1, 818, 000 as damages for breach of contract.
According to Justice Janneh, after reading the relevant portions of the
judgment, the court found out that the High Court judge made an error in
that the correct amount representing 20 % of the overall contract price
of D1, 818, 000.00 is D363, 600.00 and not D3, 636, 000.00 as read by the
former judge. In delivering judgment, Justice Janneh stated that the
Appeal Court thought it relevant to award D3000.00 costs at the High
Court and D5000.00 in the Appeal Court in favour of the appellant.
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Joe Sambou
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