Bamba Laye wrote:

"Gassa, it is an illusion in itself to assume that there is/was an
illusion “that, without western aid we will not survive…” among Gambians of
today. What many conscientious Gambians and friends of Gambia, including the
expelled diplomats, are crying for are a remedy for discomfort and
embarrassment in the global diplomatic and economic scene. Instead, Jammeh
and his advisers want to use the excuse and claim of undue interference in
“domestic affairs” to further plunge the nation into the abyss."

Bamba Laye, no sane Gambian would want to plunge the nation into an abyss
least of all jammeh who aspires to lead us at least for the next 5 years.

You again wrote:

"Gassa, the truth - which the likes of you are trying so hard to avoid - is
that the high level of corruption in the country and the misguided national
and international policies that have and are continuing to plunge the
country into poverty is turning us into an international pariah. The Gambia
is too small and weak to assume the status of a pariah state: the growing
economic constraints render us totally incapable of withstanding outright
international isolation."

Nobody advocates for The Gambia to become a pariah state or for it to be
isolated. That is in nobody's interest. As for our poverty, the government
is pursueing policies that under constant review to try to find a solution
to it. In that endevour, they are investing in the main stay of our economy
(agriculture) tourism promotion, fisheries, energy, roads,
telecommunications, education etc, etc. This is no easy task and is an
ongoing process. What Gambians should be doing is to encourage investment in
the productive sector, check our population growth rate and minimise waste.
Like I said before it will be very difficult for us to overcome this
daunting task if in a typical family two work and the rest, usually more
than seven, just consume.

You also wrote:

"Government should not overlook the possibility of the threats of sanctions
or assume that it had survived some mild forms of sanctions before by
pretending that all is calm and cozy. Rather we all should realize that
economic progress in our country is inextricably bound to the economic
progress and basic well being of the individual Gambian household as well as
the sub-region at large."

Bamba Laye, nobody is underestimating the effects sanctions may have on us.
What I am saying, and this is strickly my personal opinion only, is that the
government must have discussed it at cabinet level and took an informed
decision based on evidence that may not be in the public domain. The
government only requested for the replacement of the EU representative and
not the severance of our cordial relations. That we are part of the global
village is not lost on us least of all the government. It is said that "The
world may be your oyester, but you've got to crack the shell yourself". Let
the government crack its own shell!

"The mature handling of potentially explosive situations is required in
order not to plunge Gambia back into another round of a state of economic
desperation. We must all refuse to join the bandwagon of those who are
blindly avoiding the truth."

Whereas as I totally agree with what you've said above and the last sentence
from what follows, I totally disagree with the rest i.e that "The problems
in The Gambia today are due to the government’s failure to formulate
distinctively pragmatic, domestic and foreign policies that will be
patterned after the principles of nationalism – which they seem to adore so
much but have very understanding of in the context of the current global
economic environment. Sadly enough, both our domestic and foreign policies
have been ambiguous, to say the least, and at present it is imperceptible
which posture Gambia has adopted as a vital member of the global community.
Indeed a sad state of affairs which cannot be avoided by expelling and
threatening the expulsion of western diplomats".

For any relationship to be meaningful, it must first of all be based on the
truth and trust. When these are absent, then relationship would most
probably not last. What is happening now is perhaps more complicated than we
both know or assume. It is for this reason that am giving the benefit of the
doubt to the government until I learn more about it.

Have a good day, Gassa.
=======================================================================

There is a time in the life of evry problem when it is big enough for all to
see, yet small enough to solve - Mike Leavitt-

=======================================================================


>From: BambaLAye <[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list
><[log in to unmask]>
>To: [log in to unmask]
>Subject: Gassa>>Re: Gambian Domestic/Foreign Policy
>Date: Tue, 15 Jan 2002 09:29:39 -0500
>
>Gassa,
>I have wanted to respond to yours and everyone else’s contributions to the
>budget speech and subsequent issues but had very little time in my hands to
>do so. This will in effect serve as my response to the many issues ranging
>from the current diplomatic dilemma to the economic situation depicted by
>Famara Jatta’s budget speech.
>  Amidst the threat of such misguided policies, what every well-meaning
>citizen must do is to urge the government to explore every available avenue
>in order to avert the current situation from degenerating any further.
>


>Our domestic policies appear to be focused at creating only two major
>classes: the affluent and the impoverished. Any such policies that deprave
>the vast majority of employment and other opportunities are a recipe for
>division. We should all urge for the assurance by government to create new
>jobs for hundreds of youth that cannot find employment.
>The resilience of Gambians against the backdrop or growing economic
>mismanagement and the recalcitrant extravagant life styles of a minute
>segment of our society cannot be overemphasized. The spiraling pomposity of
>those who continue to live, conceitedly, within the arrogance and falsehood
>of supremacy and indispensability over their compatriots primarily because
>of heir ready access to nation’s wealth must be discouraged.
>>
>Abdoulie A. Jallow
>(BambaLaye)
>"Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter"
>-M.L King Jr.
>
><<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>
>
>To view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
>at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
>To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
>[log in to unmask]
>
><<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>


_________________________________________________________________
Send and receive Hotmail on your mobile device: http://mobile.msn.com

<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>

To view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]

<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>