Oko ,
Say more . Dont forget to add the "OSUSU" .
Chi Jamma ,
Bro Sheikh Tejan

Oko Drammeh wrote:

> The Power of Social Clubs in the Gambia
> An unofficial history documentation by Oko Drammeh
>
> PART ONE
>
> THE GIFT OF THE GAMBIANS
> In the absolute attempt to compensate the loss of value in our national
> currency, in Agriculture, Inflation, and life in general. We have to
> work harder. In under developed countries human energy is the principal
> capital. We have to work like bees for the Gambia, national obligation
> that bears disturbing resemblance to China, Guinea, Japan, Cuba and
> Germany. Communities must organize work groups and minimize public
> spending and engagement  in the fields of computer training. Keeping the
> country cleaning, health care, making bricks for schools and hospitals ,
> joining work groups ,youth social clubs and a few years from now you
> will not be able to see a Gambian  girls half naked going out for
> prostitution and boys living the Gambia for more money in Europe and
> America. The Gambia is a dynamic country.
>
> UNACCOUNTABLE TRUST
> The program involves a little more than innumerable work bees. The
> Gambian people always did for them selves based on word of trust and
> dignified self help. Both, The former British government and the
> Government of the Gambia were limited in their support to the cultural
> and traditional communities in the Gambia and the social clubs had to do
> it. They had to organize the cultural activities, the social feasts, the
> ceremonies, dance parties, bicycle races, boat races and many many other
> ceremonial activities. Almost every week there was a big occasion where
> the club would organize on a large scale event ( Dance, Sabarr, Fanal,
> Ndolim, etc) and this would TRICKLE down to everyone work bee in the
> community to make some money. From the artists, the articles sold, the
> tailors, the gold smith, the Berbers, the tie-dye people (each club had
> a uniform ),the cooks, the vegetable women, the fishermen , the wood
> cutters, etc etc, everyone made some income from these occasions. they
> were source of income to the communities.  They gave steady unofficial
> employment  to a wide range of cultural professionals. The ceremonies
> included ,The  Wollof drumming, The Gambia Gumbay Boys, Mandingo-Bayeso
> with Butay boy. There was also the Primet street Ball- Puserr for young
> migrants coming to Banjul from Foni and Cassamance. Each evening, from
> Monday to Saturday there was something to do where a lot of food and
> drinks were served and desert also a doggy bag to take home. But we all
> had to work collectively hard for it and made it happened.
>
> YOUTHS OF BANJUL
> Each young boy belongs to a secret society coming up based on which
> circumcision mbarr you come from and your level of sophistication. There
> was a ranking system in the streets of Banjul. Sometimes these high
> profile elites would form a club, as well as the Ragga boys of Half die
> (half die culture is original Banjul roots which has resisted the white
> establishment since day one of colonialism. Police don't go to half-die
> or pick a person from Half-die). There was another system that was based
> on class and skin colour in the Gambia " The mulato "from Cape verde.
> They made the song" Senora ak wongara- du -bena.meaning: "They had
> spannish blood and were superior to the local Africans. Most of the
> people employed in the establishment did not allow their kids to join in
> these street games and societies. But during vacation they would join
> clubs and Creole society clubs. There is no way that you can re-attend a
> circumcision house of tricks (who is who in the streets) .They had to
> study for a  secured job at the or whatever. Some would break the rule
> and becomes an NDONGO-BOY    (brave & smart boy/a status). It was like a
> modern day gang but with a cultural background. This later makes you, a
> solid body composed of body and a living spirit. For us Africans, the
> spirit is the thing.
>
> NATION OF TRIBES
> On the cultural front, the migrant tribes that inhabited the capital
> Banjul  were known to have deep rooted spiritual magic and mystical
> powers These rites and disciplines of each differs and very frightening
> series of rituals. It’s about the spirits, reuniting with the village
> mind. There are various original hypnotic dances and ritual masks.They
> range from ; The Bambara Fatou Jamana, The Susu Bamba- Jigejah, (Susu),
> Nigerian Hausau Pakin /Die-man bae'ge, Creole Hunting- ManDevils,
> Fairies (Creole), Makalos (Creole)es, Ifangbondi (mandingo myth of the
> flying mask ) Mam Sand'e (Wollof super Human myth). This make up your
> psyche, your dreams and prayers. The myth in these folk tales will guide
> us later to choose which kind of manhood society one will join later in
> life. This is were some decide to go with the culture way, while others
> will prefer assimilation.
>
> UNACCOUNTABLE INNOVATIONS
> It was the social clubs that brought the number one band of Africa Ryco
> Jazz of Congo to the Gambia, Gerald de Pino and the Heartbeats, Bantou
> Jazz. The social clubs were the backbone of the economy. Since the
> colonial master could only afford to employ 10% of the population. The
> youths were creative money earners. They would be treasure hunting
> (grass madi) searching for coins, emeralds, pearls precious metals to
> sell at the market, swimming nearer boats picking floating peanuts
> (cor-fan ), selling sheep feed (dufal harr), climbing over foreign ships
> and throwing timber wood over board into the sea for sale. The boys will
> pledge their word of honour for mothers, widows, poor women and
> religious leaders with the popular pledge word of "I will be back". They
> will always honour their word and come back with the part of the sold
> items and these women can go to the market and buy food to eat. Lying
> was a stigma, a very anti-social behaviour in the Gambia. No one lies
> when they promise things like fish money, market money, school fees,
> school funds, etc and many other urgent social needs. A promise was
> worth more than gold in the Gambia.
>
> THE YOUTH CLUBS
> In Banjul in the 50's and 70's we had many social clubs of many
> categories with social status , dress codes and social class. There was
> a big class struggle in Banjul. If you don't have going to England in
> your mind your parents will call you AIMLESS because England was our
> spiritual home. So for your dreams to come true you have to make it to
> England. Whatever you study doesn’t matter but you have to prove
> yourself in Banjul with the way you talk, the way you walk and the way
> you dress. This activity was only in Banjul because this was the
> colonial period and in the colony included only Banjul, Sere Kunda and
> Bakau In Bakau there were mostly foreigners from Guineas and they only
> work as cooks, watchmen, army and police offers, field force working for
> the British and the Royal Army Force there was no development in Bakau
> and Serekunda. Serekunda had the yellow streetlights and one way traffic
> to Sukuta. In Banjul there were streets and street lights cars and
> government wharf. The vessel Apapa (Ship) would come to Banjul and the
> ship Areole from all over West Africa and England to Banjul. Banjul was
> a thriving city and the Senegalese called it Batis. This is imperialism
> and THIS IS THE PLANTED SEED OF TRIBAL WAR BETWEEN RURAL AND URBAN IN
> AFRICA.
>
> PART TWO – Nation of Tribes
>
> THE CLASS STRUGGLE
> Each street in Banjul would have a small social club which will
> eventually be a big club later. All clubs would initiate a junior boys
> club But in each district were settlers live in a tight community  (we
> called them towns), e.g: the Portuguese- Africans were at Jollof
> &Portuguese (Leman &Picton street) and the RAF (royal air force soilders
> ) from  Seirra Leone, Nigerian and Ghana  were at soldier town (sa-
> jete-wun) and so on. Only one part of Banjul was original Gambians and
> that was Half-die. This was fanal (Famara awal- nee) territory and
> Makalo Sara community. Half-die boys were not welcomed in the houses of
> migrant homes. Always under suspicion! These communities of the
> half-Gambian African guests in the Gambians had many gossip songs back
> then against the Gambians. They had dogs and most of their compound
> gates had weights and locks on with heavy car spare parts. So local
> Gambians started to gather together in youth groups and started to label
> themselves as Been-To's as well, (been to England) and started to move
> away from the divine mbarr culture This became the cornerstone of social
> clubs in Banjul. This was also how false life came to the Gambia.
> Rampant Lies came to the Gambia in 1965.There was a Seirra Leonean band
> that sang it." 1965 false life cam na ton". (The super Combo band)
>
> INTRODUCTION OF SOCIAL CLUBS IN THE KOMBOS
> Later there were clubs in Serekunda when B.O.Janneh started the dancing
> hall at DippaKunda, Ryco Jazz played there as well as Gerald di Pino and
> the Heartbeats. Later on in Fajara there were in house social clubs and
> in within the civil service the club fever went all the way to the
> secretarty General's office. It works like a MAFFIA on this level,
> because they can refuse you employment. They will take money, goat,
> sheep, oranges, mangoes, milk, plots of land as bribe to give a
> government paid job with a secured pension. There was a certain quota
> that the religious owned school can accept each year, large number of
> Muslims dominated the school system but the Muslims did'nt have a high
> school. So each year small number of Muslims will be accept  to a high
> school ( 8 Muslim a year/ 4 to GHS a & 4 to SAHS )and  were allowed in
> Christian high school. The Muslims didn’t have a place to go. So we
> (myself) went to Crab Island School, were there were no FORMS but
> STANDARDS all the way to standard to 7and later standard 8. But Adult
> school was worst and later called BCC school. It was hard to be at BCC
> and join a social club. At the police depot your standard 7 certificate
> don't win you respect. Later there were social clubs in the villages of
> gungur, sukuta, brikama and throughout the Gambia which followed the
> same trend and maintained the cultural integrity of the community.
>
> CLUB ELITES BECAME HAND PICKED PPOLITICIANS
> The local clubs of half die were more specialized in ballet, football
> and theater, they had : At half-die they had :  The Lineans Vous,  Los
> Amigos , The Half Die Invincible, The Kent Street Vous and Hyde park
> vous. In soldier town, they had Carolina vous, Comot-Behind-me vous,
> Meta youths, Feista vous. Rosalina Elizebthan ,etc,.The clubs like
> Realetts of Leman & Cameroun street (was a Janneh kunda vous and moved
> to Leman street)  Marouns house and later Cave night club. They were
> mainly Gambian and Lebanese but bent on Colonial practices like cricket,
> occasional picnics dance parties with European flavours, sandwiches,
> country and western music. The social status of some of the individuals
> in the various clubs were becoming nation wide and house- hold names.
> Some developed pop star look alike (suits and ties) and others like
> revolutionaries, with "The communist block" beards and dark glasses.
>
> For example The Kent street vous was a revolutionary vous whilst the
> Realetts were a civil servant's club, but there were very progressive
> social clubs. Kent street brought us Stokley Carmicheal & Miriam Makeba
> to the Gambia and the PanAfrican Revolution. They also brought us the
> Tonya Newspaper. The politicians took advantage of these boys and turned
> them into agents of their political groups and later employed them the
> civil service with an iron fist bourgeoisie development orientation.
> Many amongst the Kent street vous guys went to Ghana under the Kwame
> Nkumarah scholarship program but a few from the right wing social club
> didn’t go to Ghana. They went to England, Scotland and Ireland. They
> were the ones who use d to say that a degree from America was not a real
> degree. The government used to resend people to England after studying
> in America for British educational orientation Some parents didn’t want
> their children to go to Ghana. The British called it the communist trip.
> It was arranged by Garba Jahumpa and Kwame Nkumah. Later the British
> fought and finished off Garba Jahumpa (Gambia), Abdul Gamal Nasser
> (Egypt) and Osagefo Dr. Nkumarah Nkumarah I.M..Garba Jahumpa brought
> political education to the Gambia and Pan African Movement. He also
> attended the Pan African Conference in Manchester in 1945 with Marcus
> Garvey.
>
> FROM THEN TILL NOW
> The younger (10 friends) Deux copines , The Honey bees, Hamilton, The
> Raith Rovers, The Beatles, Soto Koto, Most of the social events in the
> Gambia were organised and paid for by these clubs. The clubs were the
> economic back bone huge human resource and the source of talents for
> our, youth leaders, politicians, union leaders, sports clubs, and, music
> bands and ballet groups. Each week a club would produce something quiet
> massive. This time in Africa we don't know much about western pop music.
> All the music we listen to was Swahili from Kenya, Congolese music,
> Latin music and Highlife from Ghana and Nigeria.. So if you have brother
> or a sister in England (on scholarship an Anglican or Muslim student)
> you will introduce to British music ,the scholarship Catholics students
> would go to Ireland ,but there was no music scene this time in Ireland.
> So the introduction of western pop music culture was in the hands of
> these Londoner - Gambians who brought to Africa their Gramophones,
> Country and western music, Chelsea boots, suits and ties and  record
> albums They were the suppliers of the western entertainment. The entire
> community would use their Gramophones and records before we have dance
> bands in The Gambia.
>
> Every one had a purpose.
>
> Oko Drammeh
> "Extracts from The upcoming book "My Ndongo Life "
>
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