It was a shocking but not surprising news to hear of the killing of a journalist like Deyda . It was shocking to me because i  never thought of a drive and shooting  killing happening in the Gambia. Maybe i am too naive to think this way , I thought that shooting and killing in this way is a problem in other parts of Africa but not Gambia.

It is not surprising  because the APRC regime has created a fertile environment for these kinds of operations to happen.

 

Who would have thought that people will be kill in drive and shooting in the Gambia? This came as a shocking news to everyone who knows the Gambia. An immigration officer asked me" Have you heard of the news from the Gambia ?" on my way from Oslo,at first i thought he was going to tell me of another killing ,but he was referring to the killing of Deyda. I told him yes I heard about it,he told me he was in the Gambia 10 years ago and that things are not looking good now there. I told him "not looking good" is a nice way of describing the conditions in present day Gambia.

 

The Jammeh regime should seat back and face up to the realities in the country. They don't have the moral or political right to run the country and they should just hand over the country to the right people. They have taken Gambia back to the dark ages where people are never sure of what next will happen to them .  A president should serve his/her people , take care of the nation and  create a safe environment for its people.

 

The government have no justification or explanation to this brutal and barbaric way of eliminating Gambians,first the students,we still remember them. Deyda is a human being, a Gambian and then a journalist. This killing is not only a concern for the journalists but also Gambians and all thinking being as a whole. We should all fight against an unjust and brutal leadership. Whether the government have a hand in this killing or not , does not matter much,what really maters here is that they  created such an environment and they were breeding such human beings who can kill and go free. They need to be condemn ,they have failed the whole nation and every just thinking Gambian needs not to be reminded of this.

 

People should be able to support who ever they wish to and join what ever political party they wish to be part of but we should always remember the truth.

I hope that this will not contain the journalist. We should give our support to the progressive and patriotic journalist back home. This is the time they need our support. I hope we Gambians abroad  will take time and reflect on what we can  contribute to the struggle back home. Are we doing enough to protect the likes of  Ousman Sillah (who escaped narrowly), Deyda (who did  not ), the two sisters who are still in hospital.  It is  time to intensify our struggle  for a peaceful Gambia.This Gambia is not the Gambia i know and i believed all of you are of the same opinion. We owe it to the Gambia.  One don't need to wait until people people start carrying guns to declare our  country  a war zone,we must not wait until people start killing each other to declare our country unsafe. 

 

My deepest sympathy to the Deyda's family, the press union, to all progressive Gambians. 

 

 

 

 

The Struggle Continues!!!

Ndey Jobarteh