Kejau thanks for bringing forward Retired Col. Chongan's book.
LJ, whilst you await your order for the book, i had the privilege of reading
the book two week or so ago.
From when i open the book, i couldn't stop, it was captivating, a serious
contrast of military live with that of the infamous Sam Sarr's hate fill
diatribe.

Although, Col. Chongan touched on very sensitive issues, the one area i felt
could have been handled differently is the few personalities whose actions
warranted him labelling them using tribal links to gain certain advantages.

This is my overall view of the book. The book will blow you away. Haruna, a
very good advocacy for one of our own. Thanks


*The Price of Duty, A most Read memoir: *

Alpha Ibrahim Chongan’s record of his security career and eventual
imprinsoment by the military junta of Yahya Jammeh is an educative and
emotional book. The magnitude of the intolerable inhumane maltreatment meted
out on them by fellow servicemen is both unbelievable and revolting.

Chongan’s overall rise in the Gambia* Gendarmerie*, later co-opted into the
police force to the rank of deputy inspector General with the relative
prestige, to a bereaved prisoner expose a sharp contrast.

The career of retired Col. Chongan exhibit dedication, courage and servitude
to the nation of the Gambia. Born into a family of highly respectable
linage, bordering on Fulbe and Wollof ethnicity, his father a former senior
police officer, Chongan wore the shirt of the Gambia gendarmerie and later
police force with pride and honesty. His career was sadly cut short by the
marauding buffoon of the semi-illiterate junta.

The good thing for young Gambians like me in the writing of the book is the
shear level of historical facts loaded in a personal account of a courageous
Gambian. Young Gambians will undoubtedly benefit immensely by reading the
book and reflecting over the accounts. It makes us wonder, how easy men
among us can inflict harm on fellow countrymen on truncated charges and
cooked up malicious allegations.

The memoir also recounts the courage of former magistrate Bory Touray who
bravely throw out the charges against Chongan and his co-conspirators. The
Junta at their behest were merciless and lacking care. Bory by all accounts
acted diligently for an inexperience magistrate.

The general experience of Alpha Ibrahim Chongan and co were gruesome to say
the least. The tales of September the 6th mock execution alone is enough to
cause harden men nervous breakdown and panic attacks.

Interestingly the initiator of that scandal, the infamous Sana Sabally
himself later on occupied a notorious prison cell.

 The paranoia and state of fear inflicted on innocent service men is
shameful and requiring a public enquiry if decency prevails.

The book equally revealed that, Yahya Jammeh exploit torture techniques in
demoralising and vilifying detainees after Sabally’s arrest. This fact proof
that President Jammeh authorises and is aware of human rights violations
against defenceless Gambians.

Mr Ibrahim Chongan should be commended for his efforts in setting the
records straight, correcting certain misinformation, and bringing to light
the incidences non-servicemen weren’t aware of. The false charges of
November 11 coup, the alleged coup plots of Sabally and Hydara, the death of
Hydara, the deaths of Lt. Basiru Barrow and others and the general prison
lives in particular bears testimony to the need in writing the book.

Finally, the experiences of Chongan have toughened him in facing difficult
situation life may throw at him. Arriving in the U.K, he completed a law
undergraduate and later a post-graduate degree sealing it by been called to
the Bar in London.

Chongan’s life story is a ray of hope for all people across national
boundaries that are today facing dilapidated conditions under dictatorships.

I for one highly recommend this memoir. Barister Chongan, thanks for the
opportunity is reading the book ahead erudite like LJ, Haruna and few
others.

Regards

Suntou Bolonba Touray





On Sat, Apr 10, 2010 at 2:00 PM, Lamin Darbo <[log in to unmask]>wrote:

>    Thanks Kejau.
>
> Nothing is wrong with the story as carried on *The Gambia Daily News* in
> the sense it is identical to that carried on other outlets. My query is
> limited to the word "*Sacrifice*".
>
> I strongly recommend you read the book before any interview with Mr
> Chongan. It may not be enough to rely exclusively on your personal knowledge
> of the man.
>
> In any case, it is important we patronise Gambian authors by purchasing
> their products.
>
>
>
>
> LJDarbo
>
>
>
>
> --- On *Sat, 10/4/10, Kejau Touray <[log in to unmask]>* wrote:
>
>
> From: Kejau Touray <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: RE: [>-<] Karamba Touray's review of Price of Sacrifice by Ebrima
> Chongan
>
> To: "gambia post" <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Saturday, 10 April, 2010, 8:39
>
>  Hi Lamin,
>
> Thanks for pointing out the inconsistencies. I believe the book title is
> Price of Duty, and was written by E. I. Chongan, Lt. Col. aka Balangba. So I
> still stand by the story. Do look forward to the paper's interview with the
> distinguished author of this book coming out soon and questions are welcome
> on any clarifications needed in the book and at what price duty cost, among
> other things.
>
> Regards,
>
>  Kejau
>
>
>
>
>
>
> ------------------------------
> Date: Sat, 10 Apr 2010 05:00:10 +0000
> From: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: [>-<] Karamba Touray's review of Price of Sacrifice by Ebrima
> Chongan
> To: [log in to unmask]
> CC: [log in to unmask]
>
>    Kejau
>
> Again thanks, but may I draw your attention to the fact that other media
> reports the title of Mr Chongan's book as *The Price of Duty - Balangba*.
>
> If this is the accurate title, as it would appear from the body of
> Karamba's material published by *The Gambia Daily News*, you may need to
> change the caption of the story, with particular reference to the word *
> "Sacrifice".*
>
>
>
>
> LJDarbo
>
>
> --- On *Fri, 9/4/10, Lamin Darbo <[log in to unmask]>* wrote:
>
>
> From: Lamin Darbo <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: [>-<] Karamba Touray's review of Price of Sacrifice by Ebrima
> Chongan
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Cc: "The Gambia and related-issues mailing list" <
> [log in to unmask]>
> Date: Friday, 9 April, 2010, 21:53
>
>     Thanks Kejau. That was a fine introduction by Karamba Touray.
>
> Although I reserve comment on the substantive issues discussed in the book,
> there is no question that Mr Chongan deserves celebration just for the
> effort. Accordingly, I congratulate our newest national author on taking a
> stab at a vital aspect of Gambian public life traversing the First, and
> Second, Republics.
>
> I hope on-line Gambia, especially the Diaspora element, would patronise Mr
> Chongan by purchasing *Price of Sacrifice*. The title is well chosen, and
> that alone is quite encouraging.
>
>
>
>
> LJDarbo
>
>
>
>
>
> --- On *Thu, 8/4/10, Kejau Touray <[log in to unmask]>* wrote:
>
>
> From: Kejau Touray <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: [>-<] Karamba Touray's review of Price of Sacrifice by Ebrima
> Chongan
> To: "gambia post" <[log in to unmask]>
> Date: Thursday, 8 April, 2010, 21:22
>
>  Karamba Touray's review of Price of Sacrifice by Ebrima Chongan.Dear
> editor,
>                         I'd like to submit the following book reveiw
> for your kind consideration.I have added a subsiquent email containing
> the book cover and jacket . I hope you will find value in the [image:
> Price of Sacrifice by Ebrima Chongan]
> submission. Thank you for your good work.
> Sincerely
> Karamba Touray
>
> I'd like to begin this review by stating that the author, Ebrima
> Ismaila Chongan formerly of the Gendarmerie and Gambia Police Force
> and now resident in the United Kingdom is my maternal uncle.  His book
> [image: EBRIMA_CHONGAN] The Price of Duty - Balangba to be released on the
> April 2010 is his
> [image: karamba touray]account of the 1994 coup and it's immediate
> aftermath. The book opens
> with a detailed description of the fateful day of the Coup on the 22nd
> of July, outlining a sequence of events as experienced by the author
> who at the time was Assistant Inspector General of The Gambia Police
> Force. The reader gets a pretty good understanding of how a small band
> of unremarkable soldiers got into a few army trucks and swept away a
> decades’ old democracy. While in theory there existed a national
> security architecture that was supposed to safeguard the nation and
> it's institutions, we learn from the book a combination of
> dereliction, incompetence and the knack for self preservation had so
> thoroughly undermined the overall security of the country as to make
> the power grab a cakewalk. An honourable effort by the author and a
> few police officers to forestall the Coupist at Denton Bridge was
> doomed because of the  qualitative desparity of weapons possessed by
> the Army compared to the lightly armed police at the bridge.
>            Following the success of the coup, Ebrima Ismaila Chongan
> was arrested
> and subsequently detained at Mile Two Prison for thirty months. He
> takes the reader through those months, days and events at a time
> replete with gory details of torture, death, illness, cruelty, faith,
> and the strength of the human spirit .In the authors narration, we see
> how seemingly ordinary Gambians intoxicated with power can turn into
> overnight monsters thinking nothing of torturing and killing people
> they know to be entirely innocent. Men groaning in excruciating pain
> from broken bones or other acute medical conditions are left to rot in
> the fetid and mosquito infested cells of the Prison while torturers
> ply their trade as a matter of routine. The author reminds us that
> even in the hell hole that Mile Two was with it's corrupt and brutal
> Director of prisons Thomas Jarju, there existed the consummate good
> Gambian in the person of a guard. This guard according to the author
> took it upon himself to go to the Chongan household and assure them
> that the author was alive and became the defacto line of communication
> between the family and the detainee especially since security
> detainees were for the most part denied family visits.
>
> Continuation of piece <http://thegambiadaily.co.uk/editorial_12.html>
>
>
>
>
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