Yusupha,
Your wake up call was timing and I hope that all attention will be focus on
this terrible incident.However I have very much enjoyed the discussions that
have been taking place since this incident took place.People have committed
them selves to do something and many are doing something.Every objective
situation demands a serious analysis to pave the way for a forward movement.I
have said here that the Gambian people are much more politically conscious and
advance than many of us could imagine,this is why the April incident took all
of us with a storm.No political party was prepared for such an event,it was
not even in their vocabulary,it shows that it is mere academic arrogance to
say that our people are not politically conscious but more correct to say that
we will never learn to listen to what the people have to say,one political
scientist said that there is nothing in the head of the most genius among us
that is not in the day to day practical life(activity) of the people.That it
is much more better to learn to listen and coordinate the experience of the
people than claiming that you need to educate them politically,they will
always be ahead of you.In so doing the umbrella organisation that is in the
marking must avoid falling in the same trap as all the other political
organisations in the Gambia,if not it will only be a place for academic
exercise.I am of the opinion that this organisation in the marking should be
more of a pressure group,that will have as a task to monitor human rights
issues,providing resources and sponsoring programmes that are meant to
coordinate and promote the activities of organisations working for a
democratic and just society in the Gambia.We can play a vital role if only we
have a concrete programme to work on,which must also be able to reflect the
fact that we are a group of people with different political believes and
leaving in different countries.
We have seen also that since this event took place people have been calling
for another form of struggle or simply saying by any means necessary.If Ebou
Colly and friends declared that Jammeh must go by all means necessary,I
personally see no reason to believe that this is a declaration of war against
.Ebou Colly and friends will never be able to put the Gambia on war foot,this
could only be possible if the Gambian people find out that the only option
they have to remove the AFPRC government is through violence.To avoid Gambians
coming to such a conclusion,is not to tremble before Ebou Colly and friends,it
is much more the responsibility of the AFPRC government to make sure that this
does not happen.If the people should be convince that it is only through
violence they can effect change in the Gambian,then this must have been born
out of their experience in dealing with the regime in power.That is to say,if
the AFPRC government wants to solve all contradictions through violence,as
they did on April 10th,then who can stop the people from thinking that it is a
question of life and dead to remove this government.When I saw that young girl
with her banner saying that they as students are prepared to die than see
injustice,then it became clear to me that the "Six feet Deep"talk by the
president is creating something in the minds of the Gambian people,and when
the students refused to dispass even after the news that some students have
been shot dead,it became more clear to me that the political situation in this
country have reach another level.I have witness student demonstration in the
Gambia but never before have I heard or seen students demonstrating their
demands in such a manner.We must never pretend that we are able to prevent a
violent solution to the problems of our country,the government in power has
the sole responsibility to make sure that the country is peaceful by resorting
to a democratic way of solving political problems,you dont create fear in the
minds of the people by telling them that they will go six feet deep or gunning
down young children because you feel that your position is in danger.If there
should be any one to learn from the declaration of Ebou Colly and friends then
it must be the government,they cannot tell our children ,brothers and sisters
that the only way out to deal with them is through violence.Ebou Colly will be
proof correct if the AFPRC regime continues to solve contradiction through
this way,to proof him wrong is for the regime to act differently by dissolving
the killing machine.
For Freedom
Saiks
It is with the utmost dismay that I and others have seen our beloved Gambia-L
dominated by a barrage of insults, allegations and counter allegations. My
concern is that we are getting side tracked from what really matters, the
brutal regime's killing of unarmed infants.
A long time ago our colonizers, the British particularly, had a policy called
divide and conquer. The goal of this policy was to make our forefathers
weaker by dividing us into tribes and class groups. If one looks at the make
up of Africa today, that policy is apparent. Even Yahya Jammeh has used the
tribalist and class card in his numerous misguided sermons on Gambian TV. For
example, he labelled the hard working residents of Fajara as thieves.
Tombong, Malafy and the numerous sympathisers of this regime are attempting to
use the same ploy and have succeeded in temporarily detracting us from our
main goals: Voicing our dissatisfaction about the regime and the slow arduous
task of removing this government from the seat of power.
Even though most of us have our firm disagreements with Tombong and Co, we
have to be ready to deal with these people objectively. We cannot afford to
hurl insults at them from the relative safety of our computer rooms, nor can
we use smear tactics against any of them. After all, what purpose does
demaning any human being serve? It is a zero sum game that no one wins. The
end result is that feelings get hurt and things that really don't matter
become part of the big picture.
It is my genuine hope that we will forget this regrettable period and continue
our task of addressing ways of avoiding the quagmire that our country is
embroiled in. Let us all focus and beat the colloborators at their own game.
By using our brains.
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