Another ample proof that this so-called attempted coup is nothing but  
invented fabrication to be used as a tool to accomplish Jammeh's evil plots.  Look 
at the net they are trying to cast now.
 
NADD’s Flagbearer On National Assembly Motion To Condemn “21st  March 
Abortive Coup
The Point 
Thursday  13th April  2006

With reference to  the above-captioned subject, the NADD Flagbearer, Hon 
Halifa Sallah, had this to  say.

Compatriots, reports have been published in the Gambian press on the  
position of the NADD parliamentary opposition regarding a motion introduced by  
nominated member Fatoumatta Jahumpa Ceesay, on 3rd April 2006 to call on the  
National Assembly members to condemn the abortive coup of 21st March,  2006.

Compatriots, the reports in the press contain ambiguity.  Clarification is 
therefore necessary. The parliamentary majority drafted their  own motion 
without any consultation with the parliamentary minority. In  presenting and 
defending the motion they attributed motives and passed  judgements and became 
evidently partisan by claiming that the socio-economic  prosperity, progress and 
general welfare enjoyed under the APRC regime added up  to permit no 
justification for a coup.

The parliamentary minority  listened attentively to the arguments forwarded 
by the members of the  parliamentary majority. Other than the member for Banjul 
South most of the  members who spoke inflamed the situation. Instead of 
counselling for restraint  they called for retribution.

Finally, it was the turn of the majority  leader. He did not only utter 
inflammatory remarks, he went further to assert,  with all the emphasis at his 
command, that the parliamentary opposition would be  guilty of treason if they 
failed to condemn the abortive coup d’etat.

It  is at this point that I intervened, as minority leader, to vehemently 
object to  such irresponsible remarks, which constituted a gross violation of the 
standing  orders of parliament.

In my intervention, I indicated that it was rather  unfortunate that the 
motion was couched in the judgmental language that befitted  a prosecutor or judge 
and not a national assembly member. I questioned why  national assembly 
members should make inflammatory remarks when even the  President decided not to 
raise the issue in his address.

Contrary to the  opinion of the majority leader that our refusal to join them 
in their  inflammatory remarks constituted the aiding and abetting of coup 
makers we stood  on the bedrock of sound principles in behaving as we did.

First and  foremost, it is prudent that in a state of conflict one should not 
allow oneself  to be drawn into it; on the contrary, one should serve to be a 
builder of peace  rather than put fuel on fire. One should be a peacemaker 
rather than a  warmonger.

It is in this light that I issued the following  words:

Hon. Speaker, when we are dealing with such matters, we should  deal with 
matters of principle and not substance. Any democrat or those who  intend to be 
democrats would know that people who are accused of crimes are  presumed 
innocent until they are proven guilty. It is not the duty of Assembly  Members to be 
judges but it is the duty of Assembly Members to advocate for  principles. 
The principles are very clear. Article 4 paragraph (9) of the  Constitutive Act 
of the African Union calls for the rejection of all  unconstitutional changes 
of government. This is due to the fact that Africa is  an Africa of the 
people. Africa has passed through the stage of monarchs,  tyrants and despots, 
ruling over the people. Africa has grown and perhaps that  is why we have started 
to advocate for the principle of democracy; that power  must be derived from 
the consent of the people and should be exercise in their  interest. We must 
bear in mind what that entails. We in the opposition have  departed from the 
position of our colleagues where they are avoiding the  principle and are 
promoting partisan politics, which has been reflected by the  Majority Leader (Hon. 
Churchill Baldeh).

It is important to bear in mind  that if we start to condemn the coup on the 
basis of somebody saying that he can  come to Banjul and back to Nuimi and 
that his children can come to school in  Banjul and back to Nuimi, people 
travelling to Jarra and Wuli in the South Bank  can claim that it takes them days to 
get home.

I don’t think that is a  reason for opposing or supporting a coup d’etat. It 
is not the nature of a  government in a country, whether succeeding 
economically or not, that determines  whether there should be a coup or not. It is a 
constitutional rule that power  must not be derived from the barrel of the gun; 
that is the principle! The  principle is that it should be derived from the 
consent of the people. We hope  that all these experiences would be lessons that 
what we need to consolidate is  democracy and free the people to be totally 
in charge of their  destiny.

This is not a matter of party. All of us in common own the  Gambia; all of us 
in common must defend that constitution. We in the opposition  therefore hope 
that this event that has taken place would be left to the  investigators, so 
that they would do their work and take those people who have  allegedly 
committed crimes before the courts to prove their innocence or guilt.  We hope that 
in this process, our democratic evolution would be enhanced. A  member has 
indicated the MOU we have signed between political parties and just  few days 
ago, we did the inauguration. We hope that spirit would continue. That  is the 
spirit which can make Gambia to be stable today and would make Gambia  stable 
tomorrow. The spirit of realising that all of us must defend the  fundamental 
rights and freedom of our citizens, the spirit that we must defend  the rule of 
law, ensure that political parties and political opponents will  abide by the 
principle of not engaging in demagogy and character assassination  but would 
live up to the politics of issues so that the people would decide who  would 
govern them.

This is the life we wish for this country. I must say  that I would like to 
advise the government that what has happened should not  lead to any culture of 
impunity.

What exists in the constitution as  rights for people who are detained must 
be respected. The more we respect this,  the more stable the Gambia becomes. We 
hope that stability will continue because  we intend to contribute to that by 
respecting the laws of our country, by  continuing to promote democratic 
principles, by committing ourselves not to  participate in governments that are 
derived from coup d’etat just as we have  shown in principle in the past. The 
best principle! We in the opposition have  shown our commitment to the 
democratic principle by vowing never to participate  in a government that is derived 
from a coup d’etat.

The position of the  flagbearer of NADD, which is the position discussed and 
unanimously approved by  the Executive Committee, is very clear.

As an alliance which intends to  form an alternative government our role is 
not to take side in conflicts but to  help resolve conflicts and prove that we 
can offer opportunities for both sides  to co-exist in peace in a new country 
led by NADD.

Secondly, we are fully  committed to the principle that government must 
derive its authority from the  consent of the people and should exercise that 
authority within the fences  erected and guarded by Democratic Constitutions and 
laws to promote the liberty  and general welfare of a people. Hence in principle 
NADD endorsed the position  of the African Union as stipulated in Article 4 
paragraph (p) of the  Constitutive Act of the African Union that:………..

In this respect, where  an abortive coup is alleged and death and destruction 
of properties occur, NADD  will condemn the destruction of life and property 
and once a free and fair trial  before a Court takes place and an alleged coup 
established it will condemn the  attempt to change a government through 
unconstitutional means. On the other  hand, where a coup is made NADD commits 
itself never to participate in such a  government and will strongly condemn and 
oppose any attempt to destroy  democratic structures and reverse any democratic  
gains.

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