It is very disheartening to hear of the constant firing and sometimes re- hiring of civil servants. I cannot, for the life in me, fathom why the gov't is engaged in such a wanton act. If the people who are fired were incompetent workers, I don't think any sane Gambian would have come to their defense. My hunch is that most if not all the firings are politically motivated. If these people were fired in the distant past, one could have been convinced of their incompetency, but the timing of their firing says a lot about the motive of the administration - to expunge influential opposition sympathizers from key gov't positions. The effect of firing a Gambian civil servant is not just losing a salary, but it also has a ripple effect on an entire family including little Isatou and Yahya, who may be shedding tears during the Eid celebration instead of feasting and cheering with their peers. This does not augur well for the gov't as it breeds anger, frustration, and malcontent towards the gov't. There should be a reciprocal relationship between the administration and the civil servants woven with the threads of trust and respect, without this, we are bound for a stalemate. I hope those people within the current gov't who have the ears of the leadership will let them know that the strategy being employed will do the country more harm than good. Equally, it won't be beneficial to the APRC or the president. They have a five year mandate to govern, they should do so judiciously by respecting the civil rights of all Gambians regardless of their political leanings. Every contest has an ending; there should be an end to our political squabbles as well. The political fever that infected us should have been diagnosed and cured on the 19th of October. We should all head home in hale for a new and better beginning. Once again I beg that our leadership stop the political witch hunt that is disrupting many innocent Gambian families. Happy Ramadan Mariatou <<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>> 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] <<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>//\\<<//\\>>