Momodou S. Sidibeh,
thank you for a very fine analyse and comment on the ordinary gambians daily
life, a historic view, and putting things into perspective. As always a
pleasure to read your comments.

December last year after I spend a month in the Gambia around the
presidential election,  I tried to balance a comment based on what I saw,
heard and felt.

Like all gambians I am glad to see the infrastructure developments and all
the other things that happens. But I´m afraid that the gambian people will
have to pay for all this in the coming 100 years or more.
How can I say so ?
The danish development into a modern european standard of infrastructure,
industry and with a social welfare was made in a tempo  like in the
infrastructure-building of todays gambia. Made over a very short period in
the 50´ties and beginning of the 60´ties. But  since those days the tax -
pressure in Denmark has increased every  year, and I think that we are one
of the nations, where the working people pay most in income tax. And we are
still trying to get rid of the loans we took those days 40-45 years ago,
because we wanted to change our standard so fast. From a old-fashion farming
country, to a modern industrial one. We build so many roads, airports,
bridges, schools, apartments-buildings, small houses in new planned suburbs.
And families should have cars etc., etc. The standard was build on foreign
loans.

This is my perspective when I look at the very many progress in The Gambia.
I´m happy about them, but I know what they will cost the ordinary gambian in
many generations from now on. It´s paid with the decline of the dalasis, the
daily costs for food, lack of school materials, lack of medicine. And this
got me to say in december after my return, that I should like the people to
understand how a state budget was like a family budget. And a wish that the
political parties would try and inform the people, the supporters how the
different parties has different solutions to all this, different directions,
and why.

Keep on, when I read your Fishermans´s tale my thoughts went back to "small"
Makumbaya, "big" Kartong, the friends and families.

Comment and regards from
Asbjørn Nordam



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> The Fisherman's Tale - 2
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