I hope we can keep focus on whats at the heart of this discussion 
thread.  They are: why after 20 long years, do many Gambians 
particularly those who should no better (my words) still misunderstand 
PDOIS- Suntou's question and what metrics are out there to assess the 
effectiveness of PDOIS well meaning program for  civic education and 
political consiousness - my question. In other words, if PDOIS is so 
good for them why are Gambians not buying into it? Is it ignorance / 
apathy / tribalism of the audience (the Gambian people) or it is PDOIS 
poor communication skills - talking over the heads of ordinary Gambians 
- or shear ignorance of how to do politics in the Gambia - trying to fit 
square pegs in round holes? 

If PDOIS birth has been a deliberate and concious decision by a group of 
well meaning people...., then, it is  prudent that  those who care, to 
question how far has it come to realizing the dreams of the founding 
members. Be it educating the people of the Gambia about owning their 
country; or PDOIS running the affairs of the Gambian state.
 
Malanding Jaiteh




[log in to unmask] wrote:

>Joe,
>     Thank you. The debate about PDOIS will soon begin  to take a new 
>dimension. Those who have willingly accepted to take  ownership of the party, will 
>try to bring clarity into the debate and enter  into a genuine dialogue with our 
>Gambian contemporaries, so as not only to  defend the proud legacy of the 
>party, but also to convince the Gambian people  that PDOIS is the only party that 
>can help the country to create its rebirth. 
> 
>     The birth of PDOIS is not an accident. It was  a deliberate and 
>conscious decision by a group of well meaning people, who  sacrificed a lot to respond 
>to a question of immense national  ramification: What is a sovereign being? 
>Secondly, and most  important, what role can they play to help the Gambian 
>people regain their  sovereignty? This was a fundamental question that was 
>necessary, given that the  whole dynamics of our political structure was based on an 
>uneven and  exploitative relations between those who govern and the ones that 
>they  governed.
> 
>    PDOIS started its mission from a simple premise: if the  people don't 
>know what they own, and what belongs to them, they surely will not  be able to 
>defend it. Hence in order for the people to defend what they own, to  defend 
>their sovereignty, they need to be sufficiently orientated  to be able to 
>determine their own destiny. This in a nutshell guides  the conceptual development of 
>the programs and activities that the party has  been engaged in for the past 
>two decades. 
> 
>     Should there be a genuine assessment of the  party and its activities, 
>more so its shortcomings for the past two decades? Of  course, yes. The 
>negative perceptions that has been ingrained in the minds of  many regarding the 
>party, and which has no basis in the party's  overall objectives, are some of the 
>contentious issues that has to be dealt  with. 
> 
>     Lets take the issue of socialism for example.  Many people are wont to 
>say these people, PDOIS people are socialist and  communist.  But I can tell 
>you this: I have listened to most of the  speeches of Halifa Sallah since the 
>birth of PDOIS or even before; I have  read most of his writings since the birth 
>of PDOIS or even before, but I  have never read or heard him say that he is a 
>socialist except on one  occasion in the early days of the party when they 
>have to define the  acronym PDOIS. There was also a phamplet to that effect. 
>What does PDOIS'S  socialisms connotes? It is all about principles and programs. 
> 
>      Rene 
>
>
>
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