Dampha, thanks for your rebuttal of Yaya's outlook on the state of the
private sector.  The people have the ideas but do not have the capital to
embark on the projects that he kept harping on over Ataya (tea) and roast
lamb.  See, this is what happens when you stuff your mouth with too much
roast meat and try to talk policy.  :)!  He completely missed the point when
he decided to address the symptoms for the cause.  Our people even tried his
"Allah's Bank" hoax and still do not have access to capital.  Like I said
before and you and others mentioned, this is one individual who had nothing
of significance besides him being human pre 1994.  Post 1994, the guy is now
the richest individual in the country and our people are just mute on the
issue or try to rationalize his wealth in any ridiculous manner.  Anyone
with access to our coffers can be a farmer, businessman, etc.  And if Baba
Jobe can manage an airline, any Gambian is capable of setting up shop with
very little capital and be a success.  Yaya cannot see the relationship
between having access to capital and being able to invest.  Finance 101, you
have to have capital (through savings, financing, borrowing, etc., but not
looting) in order to be able to invest legally.  So, capital precedes
investment and not the other way round.  This flawed line of reasoning on
his part is adopted because his ventures are not financed through savings,
financing, or borrowing, but through looting.  So, he can only tell us his
personal experience.  Next, what is he going to suggest, that inflation if
caused by the people and not his government's misguided policies?  Please,
if you want to address the lack of investment in our country, start with
your own administration's financial policies.  When was the last time your
administration and predecessor took a look at the commercial banks and their
colonial policies?  Why is it easier for a foreigner to get a loan than a
native?  Why is the rate of the Dalasi to the $ at almost D20 to 1$?  Why
are the banks charging 21%interest to the businessmen/women?  Why can't you
see that the high cost of borrowing correlates to the general rise in
prices?  Why, we have the banks discourage savings with government's help by
raising the minimum to open a savings/checking account D3,000?  Have you
ever considered that the lady that sells roasted groundnuts, smoked fish,
etc., is sitting on a sizable amount of the currency in circulation, which
if encouraged to save it and the banks change their lending policies, some
of our lack of capital for the private sector may be answered?  The more the
currency circulates in the community, the more wealth is created by the
community.  That, the government's borrowing to pay for salaries is also
aiding in reducing access to capital that could have been loaned to the
private sector.  That the higher the unemployment rate the less income taxes
that government can collect, etc.  You have to be able to see the
relationship of your policies and the ripple effect it causes in our
economy.  And we have a minister of finance on top of that, lord have mercy!

Chi Jaama

Joe Sambou


>From: Dampha Kebba <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Re: Jammeh on Gambian private sector investment.
>Date: Mon, 18 Mar 2002 11:54:19 -0500
>
>Here we go again with Yaya’s childish mumbo jumbo. ‘The Senegalese are the
>tailors. Why not the Gambians? The Mauritanians own the corner-stores. Why
>not the Gambians? The Ghanaians dominate the fishing industry. Why not the
>Gambians? It is difficult to swallow that this mental midget, after
>spending
>more than seven years on the job, still comes up with the same irrational
>rattling. Instead of focusing on the fundamental issues plaguing the
>‘private-sector’, he only comes up with this sentimental garbage.
>
>Yaya and his government have to understand that not all Gambians have easy
>access to Central Bank coffers like Yaya does. Not all Gambians also have
>access to bribes from countries that want favors from the Dictatorship. Not
>all Gambians can divert ‘Crude Oil’ proceeds (amounting to millions of
>dollars) meant for poor Gambians into PRIVATE Swiss Bank accounts. Before
>Gambians can ‘risk’ capital the way Yaya wants them to, the
>businessmen/women have to get the money in the first place. Instead of
>Yaya’s constant rubbish (castigating Gambians for being ‘lazy’ and lacking
>of guts) we want the government to address the issue of the lack of capital
>the ‘private-sector’ can use in order to invest (take risks). Where would
>the ‘private-sector’ get the money to invest in the things Yaya wants them
>to invest in?
>
>Yaya need not go very far to address this issue. He is a ‘businessman’. He
>has an airline and he also has a farm. Now, how did he get capital to
>invest
>in those ventures? His salary? Bank loans? Bribes? Downright stealing from
>Central Bank? Yaya can go further by asking himself whether the ordinary
>Gambian in the street has access to such sources of capital. It is almost
>impossible for ordinary Gambians to use bank loans to finance their
>businesses. The commercial banks would rather lend to the government
>risk-free. If Yaya and his government really wanted to address our REAL
>‘private-sector’ problems, the government will stop (minimize) its sale of
>treasury bills to the commercial banks. We all know that the bankrupt
>government will not do that. If it does, civil servants would not be paid
>their salaries.
>
>You move away from the ‘capital’ problem, you are hit with the ‘tax’
>problem. In order to make a simple 10% profit, goods have to be priced more
>than double their costs (all the way to Gambia). This is because the bulk
>of
>the mark-up business people slap on their goods would go towards paying
>interests on loans and government taxes. People in the country wonder why
>the prices of basic commodities keep rising under this illegal government.
>It is because of the sick economy we have being run by mental midgets that
>do not have the wherewithal to move us forward.
>
>Would a government that want to encourage the ‘private-sector’ ban private
>hajj-operators so that Yaya’s airline can maximize its profits? Gambian
>newspapers are replete with pilgrims talking about the same problems this
>bogus ban on private operators was supposed to have eradicated. The problem
>with the Gambian ‘private-sector’ is NOT the laziness of Gambians or their
>lack of imagination. The problem is the visionless government we have, that
>would rather talk about sentimental and nonsensical stereotypes than tackle
>serious issues. So long as we have the mental midgets at the helm, we will
>NOT have a vibrant ‘private-sector’. If you ask Yaya to estimate the energy
>costs (Nawec and private generators) for some hotels for instance, he would
>NOT have a clue what you are talking about or the implications that have on
>‘private-sector-led-development. The man is simply NOT up to the job.
>Always
>remember that before 1994 Yaya was NOT even running a household, let alone
>a
>business or a country. Apparently, his seven years or so experience has
>done
>him little good (if any). He still dabbled on the same childish (High
>School) garbage about the ‘resolve’ of Gambians. Let me tell him that
>numerous Gambians are thriving beyond his imagination in more conducive
>environments. If the environment was right in the country, many Gambians
>will also thrive. If Yaya can run a farm, and Baabaa Jobe an airline, I can
>run a space station and start taking tourists to space.
>KB
>
>
>
>>From: Jungle Sunrise <[log in to unmask]>
>>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
>><[log in to unmask]>
>>To: [log in to unmask]
>>Subject: Jammeh on Gambian private sector investment.
>>Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2002 16:41:12 +0000
>>
>
>
>_________________________________________________________________
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