Ebrima, thank you for an excellent articulation of the issues. No matter how
you slice it, the picture is truly gloomy. It is clear that Yaya is not good
for us. Any society that helps perpetuate Yaya, is a very sick society. As
you pointed out, we in the Diaspora can only protest to a certain extent. It
is very important that the opposition on the ground also complement our
efforts in this fight to eradicate tyranny in our country.

The independent press are doing a fantastic job. According to news I read
today, the students are also doing a fantastic job. In my opinion, the
students already did all they had to do for the oppressed Gambians. Frankly,
if I did not hear from the students again, I would not be terribly
disappointed. Your Sources and other decent G_L subscribers in Banjul are
also doing a great job. To demonstrate the good job your Sources are doing,
here is a quotation culled from the Observer stating Fatoumatta Jahumpa's
response to a question asking whether Dr. Saho joined the APRC or not:
"Well, I'm not yet aware of it. This is news to me. I read it on Gambia-L
because you see, those people are now acting as if they know our government
more than us. They are the government now."  When Tamsir Jallow was asked to
react to the revelations, he also claimed to be unaware of the story. Well,
they can say whatever they want. But thanks to G_L, we can at least give the
opposition a heads up. They can prepare for Dr. Saho or whosoever APRC
decides to field as candidate.

Saho will be an easy prey for UDP. Ousainou Darboe should know Saho very
well. Saho has a lot of skeletons in his closet. The Observer mentioned that
Saho has been involved in a lot of legal battles, but the paper did not tell
us what those battles were. Darboe should know about the deals Saho has been
engaged in with Germans and other friends of The Gambia. I will hold fire
for now until we confirm that Saho is in fact going to run for the APRC. But
rest assured that UDP should have no problems unmasking Saho for what he is
and getting the Baddibukangs to repudiate Saho.

As you said, the opposition just have to make sure that Roberts does not
steal the elections for Yaya, again. What the opposition is going to accept
from Yaya this time, will determine what Yaya is capable of getting away
with during the presidential elections and the full parliamentary elections.
So, no one can overstate the fact that the opposition needs to stand its
ground. They should insist on all the conditions you mentioned in your
piece. They should treat this as a life and death issue. They should
recapture these seats by any means necessary. Anyone that wants to steal
this elections should be killed. If Roberts or Saho want to sacrifice their
lives in order to please Yaya, so be it. The opposition should have no mercy
for these people. If they want to steal the elections, they will have to pay
with their lives. That should be the bottom-line.

Moving to the students, I think it is admirable what these children are
doing. They have, in no uncertain terms, repudiated Yaya and called him a
liar. Yaya lied to them when he promised them that he was going to act on
the Commission's report. The whole world now know that the vermin cannot
keep his word. But more significant than the condemnation coming from the
students, is how the students collectively decided to do something about
Yaya and Pap Cheyassin Secka's despicable actions last week. The students
are threatening to sue the government. This is commendable. But contrary to
what one might think, I received this news about the students with great
sadness. Why? Because we cannot afford any more martyrs coming from the
students' ranks. They have sacrificed enough for us. Political, Religious
and other leaders in the country have to take over this fight. All the
decent people in the country have to rise up against Yaya. It is sad that in
these dark days of our history, children are again allowed to take the lead,
while people like Sidia Jatta are sitting in parliament bickering about
whether PPP or APRC sacked more civil servants. This is despicable. Just
look at the way Wade is handling the death of ONE student in Dakar during
clashes with security forces. Even before investigations have started, Wade
has already acted by replacing one of his ministers and indirectly
deflecting blame away from the students. The new appointee shows that Wade
is interested in dialog with the students. But what did we have in Gambia
where FOURTEEN children were killed? Sankung Badgie was promoted. Ousman
Badgie went to the Commission and told blatant lies and on occasions refused
to testify on certain issues. Baba Jobe was promoted. Baboucarr Jatta is
still running the army. The Vice president and the Education minister are
still in their respective positions. The criminals that murdered our
children are still roaming the streets of Banjul scot-free. And mind you,
this is after a lengthy (bogus) investigation. Yaya has to pay for this
crime.

Ebrima, I thank you again for your tremendous efforts. Keep up the good job
you are doing. One day you will be vindicated. I look forward to reading
your next Message and also hearing from your invaluable Sources.
KB

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