Folks, I do not think that there is one Gambian that can in good conscience, 
have an issue with the service, dedication, and commitment of halifa Sallah 
to the positive uplift of Gambians.  So, why did Gambians vote the way they 
did?  Why did Gambians re-elect a murderer and a thief that has been killing 
and stealing from them for the past 12 years?  This is not about being 
afraid, but rather what Gambians wanted to do for what ever justification.  
After they voted the murderer back into office, how are the masses coping 
with paying their kid's education?  How is their health?  How about their 
living condition?  Do they have clean drinking water, etc.?  The answer is, 
nothing has change and will change for them but to continue to live 
miserably for the next five years.  We were reckless in what we chose, thus 
we shall live the outcome of our decisions.  That is those on the ground, in 
the pit of the fire.

Now, to those that are thousands of miles away, we have our own share of 
responsibility in this lost opportunity.  First of all, Gambians watched the 
only organization that dedicated its time, efforts, and resources for the 
uplift of Gambian interest, get wrestled and bogged down by dishonest and 
incompetent self serving party organizations, mounted on tribalism and 
nothing else.  STGDP worked for four years bringing Gambians together to 
form a united front against the rogue government in the Gambia; brought the 
four political party leaders to the table to also form a united front to 
challenge and defeat the APRC; Raised funds from within and among Gambians 
and helped the predecessor of NADD and NADD to contest and win elections; 
sponsored a radio program that gave the opposition a voice to be heard by 
Gambians on the ground; lobbied congress men and women and the US state 
Department, civic orgs. and interest groups to address the Gambian 
situation, etc.  All this, only to see a bunch of tribalist that have no 
agenda but to push for ethnic superiority and alliance to shatter the hopes 
and dreams of all Gambians, including their very selves.  Those who knew 
better took the philosophical route under the banner of intellectualism, 
skirting taking on the backwardness that confront them.

In the end, with the help of few other Gambians, the same STGDP members dug 
into their pockets to fulfill their civic responsibility to our people and 
ourselves and give their best.  However, as stated below, that was not 
nearly enough to fight a kleptocracy with millions of dollars.  We did not 
need to match the Kleptocracy dollar for dollar, or in percentage 
accumulation.  All NADD needed was something as little as $100,000 or less, 
to be able to carry their message consistently in the last weeks before the 
elections.  Gambians, you and I, in the diaspora, refused to support a 
program we all agreed is the best that ever happened to us.  This is a time 
for all of us to reflect on our sincerity and honesty on what we want to see 
in our country.

Now that we are seeing the result of what we allowed to happen, happen, we 
have an opportunity to start the rebuilding process.  All must be tasked to 
action and not speech alone.  Do we want to increase the voice of the 
opposition in the NA?  If no, then we can continue to do nothing and be 
fatalistic.  If yes, then, are we willing to dig into our pockets to work 
with the opposition and increase their numbers?  Can we get a commitment for 
each to contribute at a minimum, $100, toward our liberation?  Folks, that 
is a very small price to pay for ones liberation or empowerment.  Now, we 
can philosophize all we want, in the end, money is needed to make this 
happen.  Can we commit to continuing our journey towards our liberation, 
that is the question.

Can we speak with one voice after our commitment, to hold accountable any 
that is against our collective interest?  Folks, this in simple language 
means that we dedicate ourselves to our national interest, and not tribal, 
religious, or other sub interests.  Leadership is very important in any 
struggle and so, we cannot afford to allow any that do not share the common 
interest to disrupt or soil our collective resolve.  The is an opportunity 
for us to rehabilitate ourselves, or a continuation of the path that kept 
yielding us disastrous results.  What say the people?  I raise my hand to 
this challenge and more, any yeah's or nays?

Chi Jaama

Joe





NADD FLAG BEARER ON THE  ELECTION

The lessons are clear. The destiny of the Gambian Republic lies
in the
sovereign hands of her sovereign people. In the same vein, my
political weight  and
fate lie in their hands.
Of course, it is rational to conclude that  people just decided
to vote for
either candidate for the presidency because of  their assumption
that NADD
cannot win and then proceed to prophecy that voters  in
Serrekunda Central will
vote for me in the National Assembly election. I will  not allow
my mind to
harbour such a fanciful logic.
Hence if I were to be  asked whether I will be a candidate in
the forthcoming
National Assembly  elections my answer will be simple. My
political fate now
hangs on the balance  of probabilities. It is for the people to
decide. It is
not for me to decide. To  me representation is not a career but
a duty that
one is called upon to perform.  Whenever the people want me to
rest I will
gladly do so. I have gained nothing  from politics.
The fact that Wuli East and Wuli West gave me second place in
the election
while Serrekunda Central gave me in 2006 almost 1/3 of the votes
they gave me
in the by elections of 2005 must not be taken lightly. I need to
know how the
people in Serrekunda Central rank me in terms of message,
credibility,
popularity or charisma and trustworthiness. I want the voters in
Serrekunda
Central to answer these four fundamental questions for me.
During  the Presidential campaign, did they find my message to
be inferior to
those of  the other two candidates? Did they find me to be less
credible than
the other  two candidates? Was I less charismatic or popular
than them? Did I
inspire less  trust and confidence than them? If their answers
are in the
positive then I have  no reason to contest National Assembly
elections not to
talk about future  presidential elections. If their answers are
in the negative
then I would want  to know what motivated them to vote the way
they did. In
short, if the good Jola  is one who votes for Yahya Jammeh, the
good Mandinka is
one who votes for  Darboe, the good Fula is one who is under the
dictate of
Hamat and good Manjago  is one who follows Henry, then where is
the place of
Halifa Sallah, a  detribalized human being who has long
committed tribal suicide
and belong to no  tribe in Gambian politics. If this is how
people intend to
conduct politics in  this country then let me be excused to
build my centre for
Social Science  Research and civic awareness and leave the task
of liberating
The Gambia to the  future generation.
In order to interact with the electorate, I will conduct a
constituency tour
to listen to what people have to say regarding my role as  their
representative these past four years. I will start the tour on
Tuesday,  31st October and
continue up to Sunday. I will send people to visit voters and
get their
opinions. I will conduct the widest possible consultation to
determine  my
political weight and fate as the Member of Parliament for
Serrekunda Central
Constituency.
I hope the people in Serrekunda Central are fully aware that it
is the
executive, the Office of President which has mandate to make
policies,  prepare a
budget to be approved and monitored by the National Assembly to
solve  the
problems of the nation. It is the role of the KMC to raise funds
from the  rates,
licences and taxes to provide good roads, public taps, street
lights,  proper
waste collection facilities, recreational facilities, markets,
community
centres and so on. The duty of a National Assembly Member is to
serve as a watch
dog to tell the executive what it should do and inform the
people whether it
is  being done or not. This is how they can put pressure on the
executive just
as I  have put pressure on them regarding the terrible
conditions, which
existed near  Sandika in Serrekunda. National Assembly members
should combat bad
laws and  promote good laws. They should conduct civic education
to educate
their  electorate. It is now left to them to determine the type
of MP they want in
January 2007. I have done the best I can. I have exposed how
women still
draw  water from wells and queue for hours to get water from
taps 500 to 1000
metres  away. I have exposed the poor road conditions. I have
exposed the
unemployment  situation and the high cost of education. I have
done what is not even
the role  of an MP, that is, to deposit half of my National
Assembly income in
to a fund  that some borrow from to run small scale businesses
or sponsor
disadvantaged  students. We have launched sponsorship schemes
for poor students
sponsored by  interested persons; provide vocational training to
members of the
community,  provide football gears to children, established a
counseling
service to settle  land disputes, marital problems, juvenile
delinquency cases,
psychological  problems, labour disputes. We have a library
where students
conduct research and  seek advice to write their thesis and
dissertations. There is
not a week that we  are not invited to present papers or give
lectures to
societies and schools.  Most of the monies received from
workshops go to finance
the fees of students  including the education trust fund for
girls.
We are consulted by NGOs, CBOs  and other societies in writing
their
constitutions. We are also invited  internationally to give
lectures on the problems
of the African continent. Not  being an MP will not make me to
stop these
services.  I used to provide  them before being an MP and I will
continue to
provide them even if I cease to  be an MP. Being asked to quit
will provide me with
more time to do research.
In my view, people in developing countries often confuse the
period of
National liberation and the period of the Democratic Revolution.
People like
Marty, Castro, Nkrumah, Nasser, and Ghadaffi have played major
roles in creating  a
sense of Nationhood, a sense of Common destiny among their
people just as
George Washington of the US did but was opposed to multi party
system. Without
people liberating and taking ownership of their countries one
could not talk
about building democratic societies or government for the
people. Herein lies
the merit of the nationalist leaders
What many liberated countries have  failed to do under the
pretext of
ideology or pragmatism is to carryout the  democratic revolution
to the fullest point
of empowering the people to be  totally in charge of their
countries. Once
the people of each country are in  charge everywhere and
governments exist only
to serve them there will be  national peace and world peace. The
most
important of all battles to be won in  the 21st century is the
battle of democracy.
All progressive forces should  strive to win this battle for the
fullest
empowerment of the people to push  world history forward to
guarantee greater
liberty, dignity and prosperity for  the people. This is the
direction NADD wants to
take the Gambia.
I maintain  an active political life because of my subscription
to the
philosophy that even  though it is good to understand the world
it is better to
contribute towards  changing it. Knowledge for its sake is
sterile unless it can
be translated into  action to make the world a better place than
we found it.
Infact, my centre  for social science research and civic
awareness is
stagnant because of the  duties I had to perform as an MP and
for NADD. If the people
do decide that it  is best for me to give way to others I would
then proceed
to prepare my long  awaited dissertation for sociology under the
title “The
Language and Culture of  Custom, Tradition, Religion and Rights
in the Gambia.”
This will be very  important to the way the future generation is
brought up.
There is a lot of  conflict in society today because of lack of
understanding
of how socialization  should take place in the 21st century.
That will provide
a new insight.
It  will show that religion is a depository of moral values and
culture that
should  not be a source of conflict. It will shatter the myth of
the clash of
civilizations between the west and the east. It will give
credence to certain
universal values and culture that could transform the world
into a universal
home of people living in liberty, dignity and prosperity.
In the area of  International Relations I would work on the
title “The
Doctrine of Collective  Sovereignty.” This will be very
relevant to solving the
problems in the Middle  East, Darfur and emerging conflicts on
the continent.
Instead of a polarized  world and the creation of spheres of
influence. This will
show the importance of  creating zones were clusters of states
like Israel,
Iran, Syria, Iraq, Palestine  will agree on standards of how to
contain each
other on the basis of strategic  balance of power and establish
a compact
monitored by the international  community to maintain good
neighbourliness. The
doctrine of collective  sovereignty could have enabled Sudan,
Chad, Libya, Central
African Republic,  Niger to all serve as a cluster of states
adhering to a
common standard  monitored by the African Union. Instead of
seeking military
solution in Darfur  civic education will start in the refugee
camps and elections
done to select a  leader as a starting point to empower the
people. Men, women
and youth  representatives could be selected. In the same vein
negotiation
for cease fire  should go hand in hand with negotiation on a
comprehensive plan
for the sharing  of wealth and power. In my view the future of
world peace
does not lie in the  unilateralism of George Bush of the US or
Neo anti
imperialism of Chavez of  Venezuela. It lies in the promotion of
collective sovereignty
where all states  are required to adhere to standards of
governance that are
acceptable to the  people of the world. In this way developing
countries can
develop better  standards than the developed countries and push
them to create
a new  international economic political. Military and diplomatic
order instead
of  justifying their own misgovernance by pointing out the
inadequacies of
the  developed countries. Anyway, this is just mentioned in
passing. Let me get
back  to the point.
Now one may ask: What is the future of NADD and the NADD flag
bearer?
It should be understood that my mandate as a NADD flag bearer
did not  go
beyond the acceptance to serve for one term as President with
the sole  objective
of putting in place a democratic constitution, laws and
institutions,
policies and practices that would protect fundamental rights and
freedoms, build  a
transparent and accountable financial system, eradicate the
excesses of
incumbency and set the country on the road of a genuine multi
party system that
can guarantee free and fair elections. Since we did not win the
elections I had
to ask the NADD executive to come to a determination and
decision on the
political fate of NADD and its current flag bearer.
In short, should NADD  disintegrate or should it be retained?
Should the post
of flag bearer be void or  should it be retained? The members of
the NADD
Executive have resolved that as  far as they are concerned NADD
has been
enthusiastically received and accepted  by the people.
According to them, the objectives NADD to separate state from
party, conduct
civic education, curb the advantages of incumbency by
restricting  the term
of the NADD Presidential candidate to one term of five years,
open up  the
media to divergent views and build a foundation for a genuine
multiparty  system
to emerge, respect and protect fundamental rights and freedoms
and  consolidate
a democratic foundation for the country, are still valid. They
resolved that
NADD should be maintained and that it should contest the
forthcoming
National Assembly election. According to them, NADD’s
flag-bearer  was shown to the
people after many felt that the opposition will present only
one candidate;
that time was needed to explain to the voters what led to the
split for them to
be able to make up their minds where to cast their votes.
“That finally many
abstained and others who traditionally use to cast their  votes
for the UDP
did so in anticipation tat it could win. They argued that now
that it is clear
to such people that UDP cannot lead the opposition to victory,
many saw the
need for the type of alliance NADD sought to build based on the
equality of
all opposition parties just to achieve the aim of building a
democratic
foundation for the country.
The Executive partly attribute NADD’s  results to the
overwhelming resources
of the APRC which enabled it to go back  where NADD displayed
strength such as
Fass Saho, Fulladu etc, to erode its  support. The short time
exposure of the
NADD candidate, the inadequate resources  which prevents NADD to
give
T-Shirts and flags to its supporters to retain their
identification with NADD. The
Executive lamented that STGDP could not provide  the resources
anticipated
because of the split in NADD. They noted that the  movement for
Democracy in New
York and the Movement for the Restoration of  Democracy in the
UK were
completely absent in giving support to NADD in the  campaign.
They asked me to make
enquiries why that was the case. They resolved  that we should
thank all those
who supported NADD in kind cash, votes, prayers  and spirit
especially the
voters of Wuli. They resolved that the flag-bearer  should
continue and that the
structures created in Wuli, which enabled the  voters to develop
a strong
resistance against inducement and intimidation should  be
emulated everywhere. They
mandated me to issue a press release to this  effect. They
called for a
tactical alliance between NADD and the other  opposition parties
or independent
candidates so that the strength of the  opposition in the
National Assembly will
increase. They resolved that all those  who are opposed to such
a political
alliance should be seen to be working so  that there will be no
opposition in
the National Assembly thus making the Gambia  a one party state.
They concluded
that such people should be exposed. What is my  respond to the
resolution of
the Executive Committee for me to continue to be  flag-bearer?

_________________________________________________________________
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