Folks,

Please allow me to throw my "Fuka ak butut" (nine pence) on this interesting 
quiz. It is neither my intention nor my wish to debunk the answers given to 
the questions asked, but merely to set the record straight to some of the 
answers. The entire history of the Gambia is currently being "rewritten" and 
it is a trait, if left unchecked, will make our posterity acquire knowledge 
that is different from the truth.
Nowadays, congratulatory messages are sent "personally" to Yahya Jammeh on 
Gambia's Independence Day, when Yahya was born 3 months after 18th of 
February 1965. What used to be for the people of the Gambia is now solely 
meant for Yahya Jammeh. If such a trend continues, in about 50 years time, 
the whole country will believe that Yahya Jammeh was the one who fought for 
our Independence.
A recent discussion about "Churchill's Town" also revealed that some 
educated Gambians are also ripening the principles of distortion of our very 
history. The name Churchill's Town has nothing whatsoever to do with Sir 
Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill. The area was first settled by "wealthy" 
Aku families who shunned Sukuta because "poor" Akus were received there with 
open arms. This is another story however, the place was so called long 
before the great war when Winston Churchill was not very well known.
I also read, not long ago, in one local paper that Sanjally Bojang was the 
founder of the P.P.P. That is sheer nonsense. That Sanjally bankrolled the 
party at its inception is indisputable but founder, NO!.
Back to Fatoumata's quiz. Fatoumata first posed 6 questions requiring 
answers from the readership. Some people attempted to answer, but when she 
came up with her answers, I decided that it was about time we clarified the 
situation. Her first question was:

1 - Which Christian mission arrived in The Gambia in 1824 and which governor 
invited them?

And her answer is:

Dr Jaiteh got that correct: It's the Wesleyan Mission, invited by Sir 
Charles MacCarthy.

Understanding the backgrounds of Charles MacCarthy and of the Wesleyan 
Mission is of paramount importance here. The year, 1824, is of no less 
importance.
Charles MacCarthy was a product of a French émigré called, Jean Gabriel 
Guérault, and an Irish girl, Charlotte Michelle.  In fact, at a very young 
age he changed his name to MacCarthy, which was his mother's maiden name. At 
that period France and England were constantly at each other's neck and to 
join the British Army it was easier when you are called MacCarthy than 
Guérault. Charles MacCarthy spent two years as Governor of Senegambia and 
based entirely in St. Louis and Goree. There is little historical evidence 
that Charles MacCarthy had ever set foot in the Gambia, although one might 
surmise that he could have passed there on his way to Sierra Leone. It is 
indeed on record that MacCarthy corresponded with William Wilberforce, an 
Anglican, and his Church Missionary Society(CMS), but not with the Wesleyan 
Mission.
The Wesleyan Mission was in the Gambia long before Charles MacCarthy joined 
The Royal African Corps. In 1772 a Gambian Lady by the name of Fenda 
Lawrence paid her passage from the Gambia to Georgia in the United States. 
She was a Methodist. However, it is important to state that the founder of 
Methodism was John Wesley, thus the name Wesleyan. This fact totally 
dispelled Fatoumata's question nr. 4, which asked: "Which Christian mission 
changed its name from Wesleyan?"  To ask such a question is the same as 
asking: "Which Fatou changed her name to Bin?" There is no difference 
between a Wesleyan and a Methodist.
 In 1824, Sir Charles MacCarthy was in The Gold Coast (Ghana) trying to help 
the Fantis against the Ashantis and on the 21st of January of that year,at 
the Battle of Nsamankow (Essamacow) , he was defeated and his head chopped 
off. Did he come from grave to invite the Wesleyan Mission or did he do that 
in the first 20 days of 1824.

(NOTE: I have attached a report that will help some Gambians to have a brief 
knowledge of the Colonial Administrative tug-of-war the Gambia went through 
before Independence. It is a 12-page document that could be helpful to some 
of us.)

Fatoumata's second question and answer was:

2 - Which school existing today is the merger of two mission schools?

Dr Jaiteh got that too: Its the Methodist Boys' and the Methodist
Girls' High Schools that were merged into the Gambia High School in
1958

It will interesting to note that co-education of pupils over the age of 8 
(eight) years started in Banjul in 1958. Remember that before 1958 all the 
schools in Banjul, except the French School(Foyer) at Picton Street, 
belonged either to the Mosque or the Church.  Malfa School and Crab Island 
were the first state-sponsored Schools that open their doors to boys and 
girls over the age of 8 in 1958. In that same year half the girls of Wesley 
School(Methodist) were sent to St. Mary's School(Anglican) and half the boys 
of St. Mary's went the other direction. The phrase "merger of two mission 
schools" in the question is slightly misleading. The Methodist Boys' High 
School(MBHS), Methodist Girls' High School(MGHS), The Methodist Preparatory 
School, Wesley School and The Stanley Street School were all run by one 
body, the Methodist Mission. In January of 1959 (not 1958) the MBHS and MGHS 
were amalgamated at the premise of the Girls High School, at Cameroon 
Street, to become The Gambia High School. To my recollection the first 
Head-Boy and Head-Girl were Lawyer Ousman Sillah and an affable lady called 
Begay Jagne.In their class were the likes of the late Ousainou Njie, Alieu 
Faye, Feriya Njie, R.R G.Doewo Joiner and, I am somewhat woolly about this 
but I think, Dr. Jabes "Ayo" Langley. These guys were, certainly, in Form 6 
then.
 If there was a merger of two mission schools then it was the coming 
together of Wesley and St. Mary's Schools.

Fatoumata's third question and answer was:

3 - In which part of The Gambia was Kristikunda boy's primary school,
 built in 1941, situated?

Dr Jaiteh almost got it but then our friend Mo Baldeh is right:
Kristikunda is the present St John School of Basse. It was an Anglican
Mission School

The only thing correct in this answer, is that It was an Anglican Mission 
School. Christikunda is in Kantora and If you want to know where exactly 
Christikunda is just follow this direction; you wont miss it:
Drive up to Fatoto and then take the road to Fatoro. At Fatoro connect to 
the road leading to Wellingara Demba. Now take the main road heading to 
Koina. At Jau Kunda turn right as if going to Madina Fula Kunda  or 
Heramakono. Stop anybody and ask the road to Christikunda. Somewhere in that 
hinterland is Christikunda miles away from Basse. The school might have been 
moved to Basse, but the settlement is still there. Cherno Baba Jallow was 
somewhere in the vicinity when he mentioned Songkunda and Karsikunda. In 
fact, the population of Christikunda has increased from 10 in 1993 to 12 in 
2007. Don't they make babies in this neck of the woods?

Fatoumata's fifth question and answer was:

5 - Where in the provinces was the first primary school established? Which 
year?

Jabou got that right. The first primary school in the Provinces (the
Protectorate to be exact) was in Georgetown. It was in 1911 and it was
Roman Catholic. The Methodist school was built in 1949.

The place is correct but the date must be wrong. One of the first actions of 
the Methodist Mission anywhere they went, was to build a school and then a 
church and since I have indicated that the Mission must have been there in 
the 18th century. I wonder what took them so long to build a school in 1949.

I hope the above will clarify certain misconceptions of our history.


Prince

P.S.
Since Gambia-L subscribers are not allowed to receive attachments, for 
reasons only known to the management, I would advise Gambia-Lers to Google 
"R97077" and download the document attached to this mail. It is a .PDF file. 

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