Culled from Allafrica.  How long do we, as a nation, intend to just suffer
peacefully?  How long are we going to be suffocated by our pride, only to
resort to poverty begging in "Suturah" (in secrecy)?  How long do we intend
to be in denial that we connot feed our families and we are starving to
death?  How long do we intend to continue with our pretence that things are
ok or normal?  Yes, this is lunacy.  A whole nation comatosed.  Our people
are dying, yet in the face of their killers, they put on a smile and tell
the killers that they are the best thing that happen to them since PPP, only
to cry until blood runs down their cheeks when the killers turn their backs.
  The worst thing that ever happen to us is this idea of "Roos" and
"Sutura".  We would rather die in secrecy than cry fowl, because it is very
important that our neighbors not know our plight.  Please read on.


Our State of Nationhood; Our Lunacy (Part One)

The Independent (Banjul)

EDITORIAL
February 28, 2003
Posted to the web February 28, 2003

Banjul

The definition of "lunacy", someone once said, was doing the same thing over
and over again and expecting to get a difference result. And that seems to
be the situation in which Gambia, and Gambians have found themselves in
lunacy. Not the literal meaning of words but what it indicates. There is
also something very sinister with the way our "leaders" function, and the
way we the citizenry allow them to function by pretending in their presence
that all is either well and good, or that it is not their fault, as leaders,
that the dire mal normalcy that plagues our economy, our political
landscape, our security: food, shelter, basic human rights, as well as our
future is not only strangulating but deeply disturbing; unsettling in the
sense that with all the talk about having a vision, and all the articulation
of "change" non of these have been realized, and will not be realized now or
in the very near future if we do not dare to look first at our leaders in
the face and tell them that they are poor performers, and in turn look at
ourselves in the mirror and admit that we are ultimately responsible for the
cupidity that is killing our economic stability, and ruining our social
fabric.

It was dishearting; to say the least that Gambia's 38th birthday was
relegated to insignificance, and autocratic pretence, or was it
hopelessness? And treated like another day. This is lunacy because the year
2003 has seen that worse economic crisis in The Gambia, more incompetence by
those representing us in government than ever before.

It is lunacy because instead of Independence Day being used as a day for a
reflection, and rededication to a national cause, of which there of very
little, it was, instead used as a day of rhetoric, backed by the arrogance
of a leadership that is tired but has refused to admit its fatigue. This is
lunacy. It is lunacy because Gambians it seems, have lost their moral fibre
to be responsible citizens in contributing their lot by refusing to ask the
pertinent questions that need asking, and demanding the answers that are
expected from those that were elected, paid for by Gambians and projected to
perform in their task as custodians of the nation. This is lunacy.

It is lunacy because for the first time in our history a majority leader has
"dished" out loans to National Assembly members of his own party (D100, 000)
with the excuse of alleviating their poverty. Those so-called "honourable"
members have taken the charity, admitted to taking it to a point of even
praising their leader's generosity - without asking whether it is ethical to
do so or more importantly where that money came from, and how it would be
repaid, and ultimately by whom. That is lunacy.

It is lunacy because the same members have been known to pass bill, laws of
this sacred land without even reading them, let alone understanding their
far-reaching implications to not only those they represent but the future of
many Gambians yet unborn. This is lunacy.

It is lunacy because Gambians have just witnessed a price hike on bread from
D2.50 to D3.00 (16 percent) increase - meaning that for the average three
loaves must be on the table for breakfast (D9 for what used to be D6). In
the week that will be D63 and in a month it would be a whopping D22. 00 and
that is just bread. And the public has remained largely mute on these
outrageous increases, having instead accepted the debacle and resorted to
the vices that are attributed to poverty begging.








_________________________________________________________________
Tired of spam? Get advanced junk mail protection with MSN 8.
http://join.msn.com/?page=features/junkmail

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?S1=gambia-l
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~