Coach,
I am really glad to hear from you once again and to all the rest of you
great guys on Gambia-L. You people have been doing a wonderful job by using
the site to discuss issues affecting our dear country and also giving advice
to the leadership and to each other. That is indeed great and I urge each
and everyone of us to see this forum as a positive contribution to the
consolidation of democracy and the freedom of speech that has been a bit
elusive to some people in this country.However,rather than using the forum
to castigate each other or discuss trivial issues, we can really make the
best use of this rare opportunity available to us to educate each other and
the rest of the country and the diaspora about how we can make use of the
best things this country can offer as well as try to instill some sense of
responsibility into our young leaders' minds  for them to understand that
being on top does not the least make them any better than the rest of us. It
is only when we all respect each others views and opinions that we can be
able to prosper as a nation. We are indeed lucky that The Gambia is one of
the most homogeneous country in Africa where hardly anyone is a stranger in
any part of the country and we all tend to know each other. That is at least
one positive aspect of our small size. We should therefore capitalise on
those positive aspects that unite us rather than anything else that tends to
divide us. We have the opportunity to make this small nation of ours greater
than its size because we have got the necessary human resources and all that
we need is the ability to harness those potentialities.

I wish to salute all of you, particularly Coach, Cherno Baba Jallow and
Alpha Robinson, and of course to all the rest of you who frequent this site.
together we can really make a difference.

Best regards to you all
D.A.Jawo
----------
>From: saul khan <[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Reply to Ebrima Ceesay: Alpha's Proposals for Gambia-L
>Date: Wed, Dec 1, 1999, 12:43 am
>

>Mr Ceesay,
>
>You're entitled to your opinion, but as far as I'm concern, this is a dead
>issue.
>
>Peace.
>
>Saul
>
>
>>From: ebrima ceesay <[log in to unmask]>
>>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
>><[log in to unmask]>
>>To: [log in to unmask]
>>Subject: Re: Alpha's Proposals for Gambia-L
>>Date: Tue, 30 Nov 1999 06:33:02 PST
>>
>>Saul Khan,
>>
>>I saw the piece you sent to Alpha Robinson in private, and I don't think I
>>can even find the right words to describe how disappointed I was when I
>>read
>>your material.
>>
>>Actually, your piece reminded me of what a leading African political
>>scientist remarked to me, during a seminar I attended, just last week, in
>>Bristol, UK.
>>
>>Having heard me speak with lucidity and enthusiasm about my vision for
>>Africa in the 21st century, the political scientist remarked to me, during
>>lunch break as follows: "Mr Ceesay, I enjoyed your talk...but I am no
>>longer
>>moved by good speeches. Why? Because many of us who are fortunate to be
>>articulate in speaking and eloquent in writing are the very ones who put
>>Africa in the mess in which it finds itself today"...
>>
>>He continued: "rather than help clarify complex issues for our people, so
>>that they can make the right choices, many of us who are bright are only
>>good at confusing our people, by injecting into their minds, very backward
>>ideas such tribalism etc, ideas that do no good anyone, except harm to a
>>whole Nation"...
>>
>>Now, having read Saul Khan's private e-mail to Alpha Robinson, I am
>>convinced, more than before, that what the political scientist told me the
>>other day, in Bristol, does hold water, or some truth.
>>
>>Gambia L, I am afraid to say this, but if Saul's private e-mail to Alpha is
>>anything to go by, then Saul could be a fitting example of one of those
>>bright Africans - mentioned by the political scientist - who, instead of
>>clarifying complex issues for their people, are bringing out to the fore,
>>irrelevant issues that would only create more havoc and chaos on the
>>African
>>Continent.
>>
>>No one who has been reading Saul's contributions to the L can deny the fact
>>that the guy is bright and very eloquent. In fact, I must say here that I,
>>for one, did enjoy reading most of his postings; and, needlessly to say, I
>>also did learn a lot from his contributions.
>>
>>But having said that I must say I was very disappointed when I read the
>>content of the private e-mail he sent to Alpha Robinson. I would never have
>>expected a brilliant guy like Saul to have come up with such an unfortunate
>>e-mail, a mail whose content, in my view, was irresponsible, retrogressing
>>and, above all, more likely to divide our people, instead of uniting them.
>>
>>And, besides, as my able sister, Jabou Joh pointed out yesterday, some of
>>the issues raised by Saul "have no bearing on the subject raised by Alpha."
>>
>>Frankly speaking, I would have expected a guy like Saul - given his wit and
>>acuity - to have taken the lead in warning against tribalism in Africa in
>>general, and the Gambia in particular, instead of coming of with
>>remarks/sentiments that could, in fact, stir up trouble in our society.
>>
>>Sincerely, some of the sentiments expressed by Saul in his e-mail to Alpha
>>are, to say the least, very worrying and disappointing. But I, for one,
>>have
>>found consolation in the fact that Gambians have now become more
>>politically
>>mature and more critically minded.
>>
>>Henceforth, no one can take the majority of the Gambian people for a ride.
>>Many Gambians can now distinguish between what is sincere and what is not
>>sincere; what is truthful and what is unreal; what is progressive and what
>>is retrogressive; what brings peace and harmony and what stirs up trouble.
>>
>>I am sure all right thinking Gambians on the L, and outside the L, will
>>never entertain some of the views expressed by Saul in his private mail to
>>Alpha.
>>
>>The economic and political problem facing our Nation, on the eve of the new
>>millennium, are quite enormous; and, really, what we need to do, or occupy
>>our minds with, is to try and come up with concrete ideas on how we can
>>build a much more better Gambia, for all of us, in the 21st century.
>>
>>I am in for a debate, but it has to be a very healthy one, which is
>>conducted with respect, maturity, decency, clarity, sincerity and
>>truthfulness.
>>
>>In my view, a healthy debate among ourselves is very necessary, so that
>>with
>>all the ideas and suggestions being brought forward, we might finally
>>succeed in devising the right blue print that would help build a better
>>Gambia, in the 21st century; a Gambia where the people's needs and
>>aspirations would, at long last, be addressed.
>>
>>I must, however, say that, nowadays, the debate on the L is very healthy
>>and
>>encouraging. Consequently, it is in the interest of all of us to make sure
>>that such a trend continues.
>>
>>Let us continue to engage in serious and responsible debates so that what
>>needs rectification in our country would be rectified, and what is already
>>right would be protected and preserved.
>>
>>Building a genuine democracy is not an easy task, but it is not
>>insurmountable. It only requires the right mix of enlightened leaders, an
>>active civil society, institutions that work and, of course, time.
>>
>>Anyway, the signs of the time are very encouraging; and, for me, they
>>signal
>>a bright future for our motherland. The days when the Gambia has had a
>>docile civil society had long gone. Henceforth, let us vigorously
>>scrutinise
>>all our politicians, be they in government or in opposition, so that those
>>who are sincere and committed to the cause can be discerned from those who
>>are not genuine.
>>
>>Hamjatta and Saul have started scrutinising PDOIS' role during the
>>transition period and beyond, and it would be very healthy if such a
>>scrutiny, as insinuated by Jabou and a few others, is also extended to
>>other
>>politicians and political parties in the country, as well the media,
>>including my own role during the transition period if you will.
>>
>>I am confident that this scrutiny, if conducted fairly and objectively, the
>>Gambia, as a country, would be the only WINNER. It would enable us to
>>identify those politicians who are genuinely committed to the principles of
>>transparency and accountability and those who are not.
>>
>>In my view, the era when our politicians regard the people as mere
>>supplicants who must beg them (the politicians) for favours is about to
>>fade
>>away in Gambian politics.
>>
>>I may sound over optimistic here, but I am of the view that sooner rather
>>later, our politicians must wake up to the reality that they either have
>>deliver the goods, or risk being voted out of office by their electors.
>>
>>Let us, therefore, continue to be on our toes, probing, listening and
>>asking
>>vital questions, especially with regard to how our country is being
>>governed, so that we can help build a much more developed and prosperous
>>Gambia in the 21st century.
>>
>>Having said so, let me now return to the main issue, which is Saul's
>>private
>>e-mail to Alpha Robinson. Saul, let me make it very clear to you that I
>>don't know Alpha well, but I could sense/feel that the brother was genuine,
>>and had no hidden agenda whatsoever, except a love for his country and her
>>people, when he sent his proposals to the L.
>>
>>By the way, Saul, I was in the Gambia during the 1996 elections; and I can
>>tell you, in all honesty, that Alpha's comment regarding tribal politics
>>during the 1996 election was a fair/legitimate comment. Indeed, there was
>>evidence that there were A VERY FEW politicians who, on their own will,
>>tried to urge some of the voters to vote along tribal lines.
>>
>>But the important thing here is that the leaders of all the political
>>parties in the Gambia, as far as I know, had, at the time, openly
>>encouraged
>>the voters to elect their leaders, based on their programmes and policies,
>>and nothing else.
>>
>>In my view, it would be very unfair and irresponsible for that matter, to
>>accuse the leaders of the political parties of having a tribal agenda.
>>However, having said that it was also a valid comment for Alpha to have
>>suggested that there were certain politicians (although not any of the
>>party
>>leaders I must add here) who tried to inject tribal sentiments during the
>>1996 elections.
>>
>>The other day deposed president Jawara accused Mr Jammeh of injecting
>>tribalism in some parts of his government, but if you really observe
>>Jammeh's appointments very clearly, it becomes clear as a sunny day that
>>two
>>KEY factors come into play, when he considers people for appointments; and
>>these two factors are loyalty and trust.
>>
>>I may wrong here, but, in my eyes, what Mr Jammeh looks for when appointing
>>officials is someone who would be trusted and loyal to him. And needless to
>>say that Mr Jammeh can find such a person in any of the tribes in the
>>Gambia.
>>
>>As for Ousainou Darboe, a BBC colleague of mine, Mick Slatter, who came to
>>cover the 1996 presidential election, had asked him during a press
>>conference, held by the UDP, a few days before the election, whether his
>>party had a tribal agenda, or whether it was formed along tribal lines.
>>
>>And, in reply, not only did Mr Darboe dismiss such claims as nonsense, but
>>he also cited the fact that the deputy leader of his party, Yahya Jallow,
>>is
>>Fula, while Ebou Manneh, a senior figure of the party is Wollof.
>>
>>Furthermore, Lawyer Darboe also revealed that one of his wives is Wollof
>>and
>>that many of the friends were, in fact, Wollofs, Fulas, Jolas etc. So
>>brother Saul, let's be very careful with this talk of tribalism in the
>>Gambia. Let's bury the word under the carpet once and for all, because it
>>is
>>like playing with fire.
>>
>>I'll take this opportunity to call on you, to use your NOUS in a positive
>>manner, so that we can save beautiful Gambia from the mayhem and
>>destruction
>>tribalism has brought in other parts of Africa.
>>
>>By the way, it is very encouraging to note that, in actual fact, tribal
>>politics is already fading away in some African countries.
>>
>>Let me also take the opportunity to report on some of the positive
>>developments taking place on the African Continent, on the eve of new
>>millennium.
>>
>>It was refreshing to hear at the Bristol seminar that some of the leaders
>>in
>>Africa have now woken up to the reality that African development will
>>become
>>a reality if and only when they are able tap the continent's rich human
>>resources overseas.
>>
>>Consequently, a few African leaders, who aware of the fact that the return
>>of such human resources will serve as a leverage for accelerated
>>development, have begun attracting their citizens abroad back home. And
>>already the dividend is paying.
>>
>>There are now a few African countries that have started doing very well in
>>economic terms; and, for me, all these developments signal a bright future
>>for the Continent in the 21st century.
>>
>>I am sure if the Harold Macmillan, the British Prime Minister who
>>accurately
>>predicted the end of colonial rule in a speech to the Parliament of South
>>Africa could be resurrected, he would repeat in clearer terms his historic
>>statement that a more devastating wind of change was blowing in today's
>>Africa.
>>
>>This wind will dismantle the pillars of repression and tyranny in Africa,
>>following which an Africa which will accord all her citizens a very decent
>>and dignified living would be built once and for all.
>>
>>In fact, an unnoticeable renaissance has already started transforming our
>>continent, although I must be quick to add that the transformation is very
>>slow. An Africa in which governments are becoming accountable to their
>>citizens; in which real progress is being made to reduce poverty is already
>>under way.
>>
>>Take Mali, for example. Under president Alpha Oumar Conare's leadership,
>>economic growth has been restored and, most remarkably, the country has
>>sprouted over 1,000 radio stations, making it one of the most "tune in"
>>countries on the globe.
>>
>>Another good example is Botswana. At independence in 1966, Botswana was one
>>of the world's poorest countries; but today, it boasts of a vibrant economy
>>with 15 consecutive years of budgetary surplus and substantial foreign
>>exchange reserves. The life expectancy of its citizens has risen from 49 to
>>65 years.
>>
>>Ghana is also reported to be doing well in economic terms. The inflation
>>rate which remained 60 per cent from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, had
>>dropped to 10 per cent. Economic growth is now chugging along at a healthy
>>5
>>per cent.
>>
>>Also Ghana's fledgling stock exchange has burst onto the international
>>scene
>>and, presently, it boasts of a capitalization almost $2 billion dollars.
>>
>>By the way, there are now over 15 African stock markets, and Afica is also
>>reported to possess 54 per cent of the world's cobalt; 32 per cent of its
>>bauxite; 52 per cent of its manganese; 81 per cent of its chromium stocks.
>>South Africa alone is said to have 84 per cent of the world's reserve of
>>platinum.
>>
>>Also, 20 per cent of US oil imports now come from Africa; and American
>>investors are finding Africa highly profitable. In fact, the average annual
>>return on the book value of US investments in Africa in the 1990s was over
>>25 per cent, compared to less than 10 per cent worldwide.
>>
>>Still talking positively about Africa, let me also inform some of you who
>>do
>>not know, that African infant mortality rates have also declined from 165
>>to
>>per 1,000 - 30 years ago to 97 per 1,000 today.
>>
>>Also, average life expectancy has risen from 40.1 years to 51.3 years. The
>>aggregate African growth rates in 1995 and 1996 averaged twice that of the
>>previous decade, and in 21 African countries, the economic growth rate is
>>at
>>least double the rate of population growth.
>>
>>Furthermore, in 1996 and 1997, 26 African countries conducted multi- party
>>elections. It is true that many Africa countries still remain under
>>military
>>dictatorship, but, at the same time, there is also a good number of African
>>States that are making headways both in political and economic terms.
>>
>>I'll conclude with these remarks, but I forgot who uttered them: "when we
>>want to rise, we will. When we are ready to grow, we can. The only thing
>>holding us in place right now, are the things we do."
>>
>>Ebrima Ceesay,
>>Birmingham, UK.
>>
>>PS: D.A Jawo, welcome on board, and I hope you'll find Gambia L useful. I
>>am
>>sure if time permits you, you will do some good writing for the L. By the
>>way, how is the Gambai Press Union doing? Hope things are okay. My warmest
>>regards to Pap Saine, Deyda Hydara, Yorro Jallow, Alieu Badara Sowe (borom
>>Jasigui) and all the rest of the crew down there.
>>
>>______________________________________________________
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