Mr Gassa:
Thanks for your timely response and effort to clarify your points which you
so eloquently pointed out. Again, you have demonstrated the ideals of a
true believer in your totally selfless motivation irrespective of what it
is.
I must reiterate that the observations I made are simply what i believe
most reasonable people will ask. While I also believe that some of the
other issues currently being debated on the L seems to carry more
priority, I will attempt to summarise my suggestions where I feeel
appropriate in response to your article.
Gassa, because ignorance is bliss, it is folly to be wise, and you are
within your rights just like all the other contributors to write what they
feel appropirate to defend and perpetuate their ideologies, and I am in
no position to judge you right or wrong, for it is totally absurd to
render all the efforts being currently done by the APRC regime as
regressive, however we must also remember that power belongs to the people.
In conclusion, I am still not convinced that there is a parallel between
and ALLEGED TORTURE and an ALLEGED DISHONEST Employee, but maybe time
might convince me otherwise.
To use your favorate words, you too must have a good day, and use your
other postings to address the more important issues being currently debated
on the L.
Best Regards,
Ablie Njie-Lekbi
I still see apples and oranges, because of the lack of parallels
Jungle Sunrise
<[log in to unmask] To: [log in to unmask]
> cc:
Sent by: The Gambia Subject: Re: Very unfortunate case regarding Alagie Mbye- APPLES AND
and related-issues ORANGES.
mailing list
<[log in to unmask]
JOHNS.EDU>
01/19/02 11:03 AM
Please respond to The
Gambia and
related-issues mailing
list
Ablie Njie Lekbi wrote:
"I must also applaud you for being among the few people who feel the need
to defend the status quo in view of the apparent and obvious majority of
the L who vehemently oppose your views."
Thank you Mr. Njie. My motivation is totally selfless and most people who
really know me would testify to. My only motivation is my conviction that
unless some of the reports sent on the L to deliberately mislead those who
heavily rely on it for information concerning our country we shall continue
to be suspicious of each other and will never join hands to uplift the
lives of our peoples. Anybody assuming otherwise must be living in
cloud-cuckoo-land. Finally, rest assured that I would only put on the L
what I believe to be the truth.
You also wrote:
"I must echo that there are those of us on the L who try to apply a very
well balance opinion regardless of what the issue is. You can consider us
the supreme court of the Gambia L, for we do not care if one is PDOIS, UDP,
NRP or APRC or sympathisers of the Gambia, as we religiously read all the
postings and try to make suggestions or observation where we see fit."
Mr. Njie, I shall take your word for the above and hope that, as the
supreme court of the L, you shall continue to be objective.
You also wrote:
"Finally, I must also say that, I fail to see the parallel between the
two stories you've eluded to. What does one being ALLEGEDLY tortured by
the NIA has to do with one's ALLEGED dishonesty? They are two separate
issues and must be separated.
I see APPLES and ORANGES."
Olly-Mboge also expressed similar sentiments and goes on to write: "Gassa,
can you help us understand the relationship between the two issues here.
Just seeking enlightenment."
Based on the above, I shall try to give my own interpretation of the
Alhagie Mbye saga based on how it was reported. I must first of all again
re-iterate that I did not write the article but only posted it to the L.
In the said article, we are told that Alhagie Mbye, a senior staff
reporter of The Independent Newspaper, had been relieved of his function
"for engaging in activities incompatible with his duties, thus putting the
reputation of the newspaper and country at stake".
Now, let's revisit what the Managing Editor of the paper that Alhagie Mbye
worked for as senior staff reporter, Mr. Alhagie Yorro Jallow, had to say
about his sacking. In his reaction, he is quoted as having said:
1. The Independent Newspaper stands for the truth.
2. We cannot work with somebody who tells lies.
3. My role is to preserve the integrity of the paper.
4. I cannot work with him.
5. He cannot use the paper for his own personal interest.
6. Mbye is a criminal.
Let us now go through what Alhagie Mbye was alleged to have done. It is
alleged that:
1. He travelled to Dakar in Senegal late December 2001.
2. Prior to his peregrination extorted D3, 300 from a Lebanese
businessman, promising to help him secure official documents.
3. It was further alleged that Alhagie Mbye named one permanent
secretary in The Gambia as his close friend who was willing to help him
secure some documents for the Lebanese businessman.
4. He was also alleged that after he had succeeded in extorting the sum
of D3, 300 from the said Lebanese businessman, he proceeded to Dakar
without obtaining permission from the management.
5. Sources further disclosed that upon arrival in Dakar, Alhagie Mbye
sent a fax message to the management of the Independent newspaper, alleging
that the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) had wanted to kill him.
6. It was also disclosed that whilst in Dakar, Alhagie Mbye visited the
West African Journalist Association (WAJA) offices and also granted an
interview to a Senegalese newspaper La populaire, claiming to be the
Editor-in-chief of the Independent newspaper.
7. In the interview with both la populaire and WAJA officials in Dakar,
Mbye painted a negative picture of the domestic politics and human rights
situation, the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), security operatives,
among others.
8. Furthermore, Alhagie Mbye insisted that he would be jailed if he
comes back to The Gambia and would therefore appreciate assistance from
international press associations like Reporters sans frontiers to help him.
The Managing editor of the paper Mbye worked for, says that he cannot work
with Mbye because Mbye TELLS LIES, and the paper stands for THE TRUTH, it
is his role as managing editor to PRESERVE THE INTEGRITY of the paper and
that he (Mbye) cannot USE THE PAPER FOR PERSONAL REASONS. ?Emphasis mine-.
From the above, one is tempted to ask what are the lies? Is it about the
fib that he was the Editor-in-Chief of the paper when he was not? Was it
because, in duping the Lebanese businessman, he lied about his close friend
being a permanent secretary in the government? Was it about what he said
about the NIA? Was it about what he said about domestic politics? Was it
about what he said about the government and country?
In trying to answer some of the above questions, one is again tempted to
ask which of the above allegations were considered strongest by the
management of the paper when they were deciding his fate? One may also ask
why the Managing Editor felt it necessary to defend the integrity of the
paper, re-iterating that the paper stood for truth and that Mbye cannot use
it for personal reasons?
It is also very easy to quote many instances where the APRC government has
accused some journalists of being uncouth, unprofessional and un-patriotic
and whose only objective is to file false reports to get attention. There
have been many other instances also when the government has accused some of
them of trying to use journalism in order to gain asylum in the West and in
that endeavor they would deliberately write false stories so as to get
themselves arrested in order to add more weight to their quest to gain
asylum abroad.
Now Mr. Njie and Olly-Mboge, in the light of all the above, are we
comparing oranges and apples? Surely, one can see that his alleged duping
of the Lebanese businessman, his claim of being a close friend to a
government permanent secretary and his claim of being the Editor-In-Chief
of the Independent newspaper are not particularly serious and does not
affect the integrity of the Paper.
Have a good day, Gassa.
There is a time in the life of every problem when it is big enough to see,
yet small enough to solve. -Mike- Levitt-
MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: Click Here
<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>
To view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]
<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>
|
