Dear All,

Please allow me to contribute to the very important debate and dialog about the next
elections national assembly and presidential elections in The Gambia. A lot has been
said, as I'm sure a lot more will be, because the elections would mark significant
milestones in our march toward political maturity, and a democratic Gambia.  Please
keep the discussion going.

It's been a number of months since we had the by-elections in The Gambia.  The
elections effectively ended in a draw, because both the UDP and APRC each ended up
with one of the two seats that were being contested.  This being politics, each party
put their own spin to the results.  Thus, both parties felt pretty good about
themselves, and victorious.  As Youssou N'dour said in "Yolele", "Kii daanu, mel ni
mor daan.".

There has also been talk about registration of voters, and how the process has been
handled (or mis-handled) by the Jammeh government.  In addition, it seems that the
present government does not hesitate to intimidate the Independent Electoral
Commission (IEC), and those responsible for registering voters. To make matters
worse, there have been reports that the APRC (or at least it's activists) have been
recruiting non-Gambians to register as voters, while at the same time refusing
Gambian students to register as voters. In short, the APRC is not taking any chances
in ensuring that the rules are bent in their favor, even before we have the
elections.

Another issue that has been raised with regards the coming elections is the role that
government-owned media, namely GRTS, should play.  Given the track record of
government-owned media outlets in Africa, it is not surprising that GRTS has been
partisan in it's coverage of political issues in The Gambia.  For this reason, many
people suspect that this partisanship will carry into the electioneering, thus
enabling the APRC to use a publicly-owned media outlet to gain an advantage over it's
opponents.

And then there still is the unresolved matter of a number of decrees still on the
books, and effectively making a mockery of talk about the democracy in The Gambia.
Indeed, it was just a few days ago that we had a posting on Gambia-L lamenting this
state of democracy by Decree in The Gambia.  There is no question that this state of
affairs is un-called for, and totally unproductive if we are to build a strong
democracy in The Gambia.

All the above, and more, has provided enough fodder for people interested in talking
about such matters.  This has been especially true in the last few weeks following a
series of symposia organized in the US, and attended by representatives from the
Gambian opposition parties.  The first of these was held in Washington, DC, followed
by another in New York City.  From what I understand, other meetings have been
organized in Philadelphia, and Atlanta to enable the UDP leader meet with Gambians in
those places.

All this talk and dialog is good.  As Winston Churchill said, "jaw-jaw is better than
war-war."  The only difference we have with animals is that we can, when we choose
to, engage in a dialog to resolve conflicts.  In contrast, donkeys, bite and kick
their way out of the problem.  I sincerely hope that we continue working on having
more symposia, both in The Gambia, and abroad.  And, before I forget, I'd like to
take this opportunity to thank the organizers of the various meetings (Latjor Ndow,
James Gomez, Jr. & co in DC, as well as Saul Mbenga and the MRDG folks in New York).

By now, almost everyone is agreed on the idea of having the planned elections.  But
I'm not so sure.  In light of the many problems with voter registration, and the APRC
track record of high-handedness and arrogance, I think we all should step back a bit
and think hard about whether the elections we are heading for are the kind we really
want.

In my opinion, the opposition parties should first ensure that the elections will be
prepared for and conducted in free, fair, and peaceful conditions, before they field
their candidates.  There is absolutely no point in contesting an election that had
the voter registration process rigged in favor of APRC, in which all government-owned
media favor the APRC, and lastly, the votes cast will probably be counted
mischievously.  To proceed and contest the elections under these circumstances would
be a great disservice to the Gambian people because it would give the APRC the
legitimacy they would need to rule for another five years.

Furthermore, contesting the elections while Decree 89 (which bans some individuals
from contesting this or any other elections in The Gambia) is in effect would be
cowardly, and unfair.  Any candidate confident in his or her qualities should not
have any fears about the opposition.  Besides, it is immoral for President Jammeh or
anyone else to decree who in The Gambia is fit to be presented as a candidate to the
Gambian electorate.  To deprive, by Decree, the rights any Gambian is a threat to the
liberties and freedom of all Gambians.  For this reason, anybody willing to contest
the elections while other Gambians are denied their rights to contest or vote in the
elections does not deserve one single vote.

In light of these circumstances, I suggest the following:

1) That before they agree to contest the elections, the opposition parties insist on
ALL of these conditions:

a) Draw up and enforce rules and regulations that determine the role of
government-owned media outlets in the elections.  Specifically, there should be
strict and detailed editorial and programming guidelines they should follow to ensure
that all registered parties are given fair and equal coverage, and an opportunity to
present their case to the Gambian people.

b) There should be a total and complete ban on the use of government resources for
campaigning.  Thus, no political party or candidate should be allowed to use
government vehicles, fuel, facilities, services, and resources to campaign for
office.  By virtue of the privileges of incumbency, the President will be allowed to
use some resources (e.g. security details) on the campaign trail.  However, there
will be a thorough accounting of the resources used, and his party will reimburse the
government for them.

c) The voter registration process will be re-examined and any problem areas/issues
resolved to the satisfaction of the IEC.  While time is running out, I suggest that
we make sure that we have a voter list that everybody is comfortable with, even it if
means that the elections will be postponed.

d) Repeal Decree 89, as well as Decrees 70 and 71, which shackle the Gambian press.
As I have mentioned above, it is important that ALL Gambians are allowed to exercise
their rights to participate in the elections in whatever way they see fit, and within
the confines of the law.  The Gambian press has also been, and continue to be,
harassed and victimized by the high-handedness of the Jammeh government.  Such
behavior must stop, before we can contemplate elections.

2) In the event that the above conditions are not met, I suggest all opposition
parties boycott the upcoming elections.  In the long run, we would be better served
by elections that are free and fair (even if held 2 years from now), than by hastily
arranged and deeply flawed elections.  I just found out that Hamjatta Kanteh and
others have recently suggested on this list that the coming elections should be
boycotted.  To be honest, I haven't read all of them, but I'd like to add my voice to
calls for such a boycott.

Boycotting the elections should not be an end in itself.  Rather, the boycott should
mark the start of another phase of campaigns and struggles for freedom and justice in
The Gambia.  Toward this end, the boycott of the elections should be accompanied by a
re-doubled effort to bring pressure to bear on the Jammeh government for them to hand
over power to a transition government of national unity.  With all the talk we've
heard about having an Opposition Coalition, I think a better idea might be for them
to coalesce around the objective of President Jammeh handing over power to a
transition government of national unity.

In this regard, I'd like to risk being boring by re-visiting a posting I sent last
January to this list.  The posting
(http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?A2=ind0101&L=gambia-l&F=P&S=&P=67800)
discussed, among other things, the possibility of the Opposition forming a coalition
to contest the elections.  In there, I suggested that:

"the coalition [should] consider selecting a non-partisan candidate for President,
and further, that this candidate agrees not to run for office after his or her first
term. Other issues such as allocation of cabinet positions to different parties
should also be considered before the coalition is consummated.  Finally, a coalition
Government of National Unity would also present a wonderful opportunity to fix
obvious flaws like the decrees that shackle our constitution."

As it happens, Halifa Sallah of PDOIS expressed a similar sentiment.  In a June 8th
posting on Gambia-L
(http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/CGI/wa.exe?A2=ind0106&L=gambia-l&O=A&F=P&P=18294), he
wrote:

"In our view, formulae are definitely possible that can lead to greater
democratization without depriving the Gambian people of choices of economic policies.
For example, PDOIS' Presidential candidate would easily accept being a president for
one year to restore all the constitutional provisions that are reasonable and
justifiable in democratic society. Strengthen the IEC, open up the media and then
call for another presidential elections after creating the constitutional machinery
for that to take place in a year after assuming office. In this way the people will
make an undiluted choice. Such formulae are bases for coalition."

It seems therefore, that the idea of forming a transition government of national
unity has the backing of at least one opposition party member.  I strongly recommend
that other opposition parties give the matter serious consideration, with a view
toward working out the details of implementing such an idea, if it comes to it.  As
usual, I trust that The Gambia is endowed with a crop of talented and well-meaning
people who can make such an idea reality.

In conclusion, I'd like to say that with regards the elections, the Gambian
opposition parties have two choices: either contest an election that will be rigged
in favor of APRC (and give them the a legitimacy they would not deserve), or boycott
the elections and form a coalition to work toward a transitional government of
national unity.  Such a national unity government will oversee free and fair
elections, and help set The Gambia on the right course for the 21st Century.

Thanks very much for reading this.  Have a great week, and best wishes in your
endeavors.

Katim

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