Gambia-l:

I wish to share a dream I had last night with the rest of you.
It goes like this:

I woke up in the morning of July 21, 2000 and got ready to go to work. As usual, I tuned to Radio Gambia while drinking a cup of tea. Then, a somewhat interesting programme I was listening to was abruptly interrupted by an announcement. I recall hearing this from the announcer:

"Here is an important announcement.

The repressive ... authoritarian regime of Yahya Jammeh has been toppled. And the Committee for the Restoration of Democracy (CRD) has assumed Supreme Authority in the nation's affairs pending determination of the will of the people...
The Gambian people have had enough of the APRC's butchery and thuggery. The CRD views its intervention as most unfortunate, but necessary given the ruthless nature of Jammeh and his gang of bandits.

The Committee wishes to inform the public of the following actions:
(1) The president, Secretaries of State, members of the National Assembly, and all political appointees are dismissed from office;

(2) the so-called constitution ... handcrafted by, and designed for, Yahya Jammeh is abrogated;

(3) all decrees passed by the AFPRC/APRC junta are declared null and void;

(4) the illegal restrictions on freedoms of association and expression are hereby lifted;

(5) all financial institutions are ordered closed until further notice;

(6) Banjul international airport and all other points of entry are temporarily closed;

(7) all former senior officials of the defunct AFPRC/APRC regime must report to the nearest police station immediately;

(8) a dusk-to-dawn curfew is imposed with effect from tonight;

(9) looting, vandalism, sabotage, and vigilanteism will not be tolerated; and

(10) plans will soon be formulated with maximum popular input to ensure the restoration of democracy within six months.

While the CRD guarantees that justice and humanity will guide its actions, we will crush any atempts to re-instate the Jammeh dictatorship in the Gambia.

Thank you for your attention. A subsequent announcement will dilate on the circumstances which compelled the CRD to intervene on behalf of the Gambian people. Stay tuned."


Not long after the "announcement," I woke up from my sleep. I got frustrated that it was merely a dream. I also got mad at myself for not remembering any of the names associated with staging the "humanitarian intervention." But the scary part is that I was named as a member of the CRD's Transition Team.

Enough! Back to reality. Yahya must go!

K. Hakilimah