Amid claims and counter claims on the viability of an effective alliance
Positive Strides From The Coalitionby Momodou Gassama
In a gigantic struggle to undo with APRC political hierarchy, the alliance of the opposition coalition, has made positive strides to salvage the Gambian masses from the fringes of subjugation, degradation, intimidation and economic "backwardness" visited on Gambians in recent times, as widely claimed by many.
The coordinator of the opposition coalition, Hon. Halifa Sallah, said the alliance is thriving towards the complete liberation of the Gambian people, as its ultimate objective is to get rid of the system, and establish a democratic institution based on the conscience of the citizenry, without recourse to politics of slander, tribalism, and regionalism.
While indicating that the alliance is set to identify a potential leader, he said it is unbeatably looking for a personality that would be willing to run as a caretaker for the provisional government without being indoctrinated by chauvinism and narrow-mindedness to be prejudiced by party loyalty or personal loyalty for a period of 5 years. "That is why it is not as urgent to come to a decision on the candidature", he said, noting that the most essential thing about the whole issue is to build the foundation for the alliance.
He further indicated that the coalition "must be able to draw up the manifesto of the alliance to which all members of the parties will rely to communicate a uniform position to the electorates", as these are preconditions to avoid contradictions within the wings of the coalition.
"Thirdly, we want to put up the alliance above politics of sectionalism, tribalism, nepotism, slander, debacle assassination and insult by drafting a code of conduct, which shall be adhered to by all those who speak on the platform of the alliance", he matter-of-factly demanded. This, he added shall be done within a span of one month, as the coalition is working with speed to work out all the modalities in a moment of time including establishing branches in the villages, constituencies and all the administrative divisions.
On the Memorandum of Understanding, he said they would soon commence to circulate copies for better understanding and massive awareness, noting that there is a technical committee working on the manifesto and the memorandum. "This is an alliance which intends to be transparent and accountable to the people", he said, adding that it is one of the reasons why the manifesto would be given to all in the language of their own.
He however indicated that the interim president must lead the alliance to implement a rectification programme to be drawn-up by an alliance, citing Article 9 of the Memorandum which categorically states "the interim president of the republic under the alliance shall serve for one term (five years) in office only. He/she shall vacate his/her seat at the end of his/her term and shall neither seek nor support the candidature of any other person for the ensuring presidential election".
He further argued that the APRC leadership are bit behind the schedule as the issue is no longer APRC versus individual opposition parties, but the coalition of the opposition parties under the banner of the National Alliance for Democracy and Development (NADD), which signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the 17th January 20005 that thrive "to bring all the supportive of its member parties together under a transitional government, whose sole objective would be to establish a democratic foundation that would ensure the total empowerment of the Gambian people before the end of the 5 years term".
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NAWEC Chairman Dispels Rumours
by Ahmed Carayol
The chairman of NAWEC Board of Directors, Mr. Momodou A Jeng, dispelled rumours surrounding Kharafi/NAWEC deal, following reports that government has revoked the deal, which he boldly stated could not be verified as no announcement has been made to that effect.
To backup the argument, he said "government has not come out with any public announcement to the effect, either on the radio or television, nor in the recently ended session of the National Assembly"
In response to a fax message sent to The Independent, as to NAWEC deal with the Kuwait-born multi-millionaire Ahmed Kharafi, Mr. Jeng said he could neither confirm nor deny the veracity of the reports.
Notwithstanding, he said NAWEC is currently doing better than the previous days, when there was inconsistent supply of electricity in the country, disrupting most of the businesses, noting that the situation has been normalised with the rehabilitation of Engine No. 6.
The fax message to The Independent captioned "Well due explanation from our dear government to the public", talks on issues centring on reduced hope of power generation.
Below is the full text of the message :
Well due explanations from our dear government to the public
Just like to be informed about the reduced hope of the new generation had in the NAWEC deal with Kharafi, it’s was promising to reduce the house electrical generator need and to eliminate the frequent shortage of light and water.
The wandered children and senior citizen of the Nation would like to know the alternatives of Kharafi’s NAWEC deal, whereupon was build a good promising hope for the Nation.
We are obliged to trust that the alternatives also should be published to the public and clarify if the Kharafi really was ready to bring in the 80 Mk new Regenerator and reduce the consumer’s price of Nawec in the deal of 58 Million US dollars, or the prepared generator by Mr. M. Bazy. Was on the way of the deal with the blockage of the recent management of NAWEC for new arrangement in cooperation with the non-effected by the NO COMPREMISE OPERA TION Group.
WE HOPE TO HAVE THE UTILITIES 24/24 for 15 years at least, we still about 4 years away from Oil income.
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AU Urged To Press Gambia To Probe Into Editor’s Death
Reporters Without Borders, one of the agencies for which Deyda Hydara was a correspondent, has called for an urgent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the brutal murder of the veteran journalist on December 16, last year. Below we reproduce the press release issued by the Paris-based media watchdog:
Reporters Without Borders today called on African Union heads of state and government to tackle Gambian President Yahya Jammeh about the murder of journalist Deyda Hydara during the AU summit in the Nigerian capital of Abuja on January 30-31.
In a letter to AU commission chairman Alpha Oumar Konare and the current AU chairman, Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, Reporters Without Borders called on the African Union to "publicly condemn" Hydara’s murder, "an event of extreme gravity for journalists all over the world and a terrifying threat coming from Gambia to all African journalists."
The press freedom organization also urged them to ask President Jammeh to get the Banjul police to carry out an investigation that seriously considers the hypothesis that the murder was politically motivated, as all independent observers believe.
"The investigation is going nowhere," Reporters Without Borders said. "The only persons to have been detained had nothing to do with the murder. We are worried by the suspicious attitude of the police towards Hydara’s partner and the time being lost threatening foreign citizens. The police are basing their investigation on ridiculous assumptions."
Gunmen killed Hydara at the wheel of his car on the night of December 16, 2004, as he was taking two of his newspaper’s employees home. He had been Reporters Without Borders’ correspondent since 1994 and was one of Gambia’s most respected journalists. Co-founder and co-editor of The Point, a newspaper that appears three times a week, he was also the Agence France-Press correspondent. He was one of the most outspoken critics of two laws drastically curtailing press freedom that were approved by the national assembly two days before his murder.
Since his murder, the Gambian police have held two persons for questioning who had nothing to do with it. The first, arrested on December 24, was a Banjul resident who had publicly criticised Hydara and his partner, Pap Saine, over an article about a conflict between imams in the capital. He was released five days later without being charged.
The second was a Senegalese doctor who was detained by a plain-clothes policeman on 30 December as he was crossing Gambia to go from the north to the south of Senegal. A witness said he was arrested after publicly saying he thought the Jammeh government was "responsible for Deyda Hydara’s death." He was held for six days and then released without being charged.
A Banjul-based journalist of Nigerian origin, Sam Obi, has also been questioned for reasons indirectly related to the case. A presenter on the privately-owned radio station, City Limits, Obi was detained and questioned for six hours by the Serekunda district police after speaking on Radio France Internationale (RFI) about a march by journalists in Banjul on 22 December to protest against Hydara’s death. The police confiscated a recording of his interview and his passport, and then released him without bringing any charges.
No serious consideration has been given to the probability that the murder was politically motivated, as Reporters Without Borders argued in its report of January 6. On the contrary, four members of The Point’s staff, including Saine, have been questioned as witnesses in connection with a theory that the murder was contracted by a disgruntled supplier of the newspaper, supposedly a Nigerian businessman. A cleaning woman is said to have overheard Hydara having an agitated phone conversation with someone on the day of the murder.
The police kept Saine an entire morning at the police station and pressed him to provide them with copies of the newspaper’s bank statements, but he refused. "I told them it was a murder investigation, not a tax audit, said Saine, who pointed out that The Point’s supplier was anyway a Gambian, not a Nigerian.
In the report of its fact-finding visit, Reporters Without Borders stressed the "strong similarities in method of operation" between Hydara’s murder and a number of other unsolved cases in the past two years.
Just before issuing its report, Reporters Without Borders requested a meeting with President Jammeh with the aim of presenting its conclusions and recommendation.
The organisation has still not received any response.
Lucie Morillon
Reporters Without Borders
Washington Representative
1015 15th Street, N.W., Suite 500
Washington DC, 20005
Tel: 202 256 5613
Email: [log in to unmask]
Web: www.rsf.org
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Editorial: Arbitrary arrests versus the law
Under the Protection of Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms in Chapter Four of the constitution, it categorically states in section 19(1) "Every person shall have the right to liberty and security of person. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention. No one shall be deprived of his or her liberty except on such grounds and in accordance with such procedures as are established by law." It went further to state in sub-section (3) (b) "Upon reasonable suspicion of his or her having committed or being about to commit a criminal offence under the laws of The Gambia, and who is not released, shall be brought without undue delay before a court, in any event within seventy-two hours."
The above are in addition to several other provisions in both the constitution and other laws to ensure that the rights of individual citizens are not arbitrarily violated by those in power.
However, from what has been happening in this country in the past few years, it appears that some of these provisions are not being respected. There have been several examples of arbitrary arrests and detentions without any recourse to the proper legal procedures. We have for instance been hearing stories of people being arrested and remanded in prison for several days without any court order. The latest examples have been the arrest and continuous and incommunicado detention of the Kujabi brothers (Abdoulie, James and another brother) as well as the detention in Janjanbureh of the Imam of the Banjul International Airport Alhaiba Hydara. It is said that all these people have been detained well beyond the 72 hour limit allegedly under the orders of President Jammeh.
This is indeed quite a worrying situation because there is no where in the laws of this country that empowers the President or anyone else to order the arrest of citizens without recourse to the laid down legal procedures. Indeed this appears to violate the principles of separation of powers which are entrenched in our legal system. While the head of state has executive powers, but nothing gives him the power to order the arrest and detention of anyone. That power is only given to the police to a limited extent and the judiciary, but guided by the legal provisions. Therefore, no one has been given blanket power to arrest and detain people.
There have been some attempts to justify these arrests and detentions on the Terrorism Act and the Money Laundering Act, but certainly if any of these laws go against the letter and sprit of the constitution, as they appear to be, then they cannot be legal. Therefore, either that the Attorney General’s Chambers should revisit the provisions of those Acts or someone should think of challenging their constitutionality. In any event, this kind of situation which gives anyone the power to order the arrest and indefinite detention of people should not be allowed to continue in this country.
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SoS Janneh Heaps Praises On UK Marlborough
by Juldeh J Sowe
The Secretary of State for Information ,Communication and Technology, Scattered Janneh, has heaped praises on the UK Marlborough Link for the exchange visits with the people of Gunjur, dating back in the 80s.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr. Janneh expressed hope that the link would serve as a model to other communities around the world, noting that Africa is a non-violence continent, which has attracted the West to come and share with us, noting that there is lot of potential goodwill in our societies.
He said it is good to have the guests in our midst, since in most parts of the world there is lot of misconception surrounding Muslims linking them to be terrorists.
The Director of UK World Link Association, Dr Nick Maurice, heaped praises on the Marlborough UK link that form the nucleus of the link with the Gunjur Marlborough since 1981.
"The only reason why they visited The Gambia is to build an understanding with the people of Gunjur", he noted, adding that the project is a combination of several important agencies. "We have over fifty agencies in UK that is interested to build partnership with partners all over the world", he said, adding that for 23 years now the link has exchanged visits with the people of Gunjur.
One of the visitors, Sir Nigeh Thompson, said their mission in The Gambia is to build understanding with the people of the Gunjur.
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Donation To Brufut Lower Basic School
by Karamo Bojang
#F The Danish-Gambian Friendship Association last week donated a forty-feet container of school materials and clothing to the Brufut Lower Basic School.
The donation which was received on behalf of the school by the headmistress of the school, Mrs. Kassama, included tables, chairs, executive tables, blackboards, files, type writers, clothing, toys, shoes, and sporting materials.
Speaking to The Independent after the presentation ceremony, headmistress of the school, Mrs. Sarjo Kassama expressed heartfelt gratitude to the donors, since the donation, she said came at a time when the school is badly in need of furniture.
"The donation is timely because it has reduced the burden of furniture on the school", she said, despite the fact that more chairs are still needed for the upper grades.
She said the stuff would be used to furnish the library, the resource room and three of the newly renovated classrooms, while the clothing, toys, files and shoes will be distributed among the students, staff and a cross section of the community.
The chairman of the Parent Teachers Association, Mr. Abass Manneh, witnessed the occasion.
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Routine Security Tours Ended
The tour of military and key security installations by the security and service chiefs across the country, led by the newly appointed Chief of Staff of The Gambia Armed Forces, Assan Sarr, and a delegation comprising of the Inspector General of Police, Director General of the National Intelligence Agency, Immigration Department, Fire and Ambulance Services, Customs and exercise, Gambia National Army, Commander Gambia National Guards, Permanent Secretary Department of Defense and staff officers of the various services, last week ended after covering the most sensitive security installations in the country.
According to a release, the delegation on Wednesday 26 January 2005 visited the naval fleet of The Gambia Navy. The officer in command of The Fleet Navy Lieutenant Sillah Kujabi briefed the entourage on all aspects concerning the navy before he conducted a tour of the banal facilities.
On the second day the visit took them to the Police Intervention Unit in Banjul, where the delegation listened to a brief by the OIC ASP Lamin Manneh before interacting with personnel of the unit.
The third stop of the high-powered security delegation was at the Fajara Barracks where a detail brief touching all aspects of The Guards Battalion and the Tourism Support Unit was well presented by the commanding officer major Yankuba Drammeh.
While at the Fajara Barracks, the Gambia Armed Forces Training School was visited where a batch of Immigration Department recruits was undergoing training.
The last stop for the day was at the Police Intervention Unit at Kanifing where the delegation made similar interactions. An impressive guard of honour was mounted by the PIU for the delegation.
In all the units visited, the various security service heads shared experiences with the troops, listened to, responded to their concerns, and impacted their visions, expectations, messages and words of wisdom.
The tour aims to familiarize the new Armed Forces High Command with the forces and the practical situation obtainable on the ground and to pass their aspirations, message and expectations at first hand.
Those aspirations and messages are loud and clear. Chief among these are the following.
The security of the country is of paramount importance and therefore the collective responsibility of all the security services, thus, culminating in a need for a common goal, a collective responsibility and a joint mission. Thus, the message for the troops is to emulate their leaders and close ranks among themselves for the sake of unity, spirit-de-corp and progress.
The delegation expounded on the need for good relationship and closer cooperation between the security service and the civil populace. The security heads expressed the high command’s policy and aspiration to foster greater relationship with the people. They re-iterated that as security services, our mandate is to serve the people and there would be no forces with a people.
It is worthwhile mentioning that the initiative to embark on this tour is a direct offshoot of the national defence policy of H.E The President and Commander –In-Chief of the Gambia Armed Forces to establish a small but well-equipped Army which is highly professional and motivated security apparatus to carry out their constitutional mandate.
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Marabout Testifies Against Co-accused
by Buya Jammeh
#F Momodou Kebbeh, a marabou, who was recently found guilty of obtaining money by false pretence, and sentenced to five years term of imprisonment by the Kanifing Court presided over by Moses Richard last Tuesday testified against his co-accused Abubacarr Hydara who pleaded not guilty of the charges.
In his testimony Mr. Kebba said six of them, including Abubacarr Hydara dubbed one Hamara Trawally and took D505000 from him, following which they shared the money among themselves, though he could not exactly recalled how they took the money from the plaintiff.
He said four of them have ran away after the money was shared among them, consequent upon which they were apprehended by the police.
Mr. Kebbeh indicated that all he knew is that he had a deal with Abubacarr Hydara, during which he was found to be unfortunate and finally sentenced to the term.
During the cross-examination by the counsel for the defendant, Mr. sheriff Marie Tambedou, Mr. Kebbeh said prior to his sentence he was able to know what transpired between him and his co-accused person Abubacarr Hydara.
He further admitted that he did indeed made a statement at the police station, following which he was locked in the cells; and had mentioned six people in his statement, including Abubacarr Hydara, but the police never wrote six names.
Mr. Kebbeh earlier told the court that he is a marabou resident in the compound of the plaintiff, Hamara Trawally.
The accused person allegedly took D505000 from the plaintiff by false pretence, during which he told the plaintiff that the money would be given to a devil for washing.
After few days he told the plaintiff, Hamara Trawally that he was going to Amdalie to collect the money from the said devil, but he was no where to be found.
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Muharram - A Month Of Deep Reflection
Historical View For Dating And With Regard To The Islamic Calendar
F Asalaamu Alaikum; I send you the best of greetings and salutations. "LO! The number of the months with Allah is twelve months by Allah’s ordinance in the day he created the heavens and the earth. Four of them are sacred" (Quran 9:36).
Brothers and Sisters, history is one of the most significant aspect of a people’s identity. In fact it characterised the values, stemming itself from the events, which form important landmarks in the historical turning point in the establishment of the society’s history.
Indeed such history never negates from the memory and spirit of the people, rather it activates and stimulates their spirits and enhance the consciousness of the people’s value and heritage and as such creates a wider range of self-consciousness and increases the growth of development and progress in the sphere of human existence.
There are in the domain of Islamic history, a chain of very important historical events that every Muslim if fully aware will attach him or herself to.
There is no doubt that the birth of our master Jesus (A.S) is among the miracles of Allah, the Gracious. Allah in his divine will created Jesus and made him a messenger to the people of Israel. There is also no contradiction concerning his birth of not having a father and his being appointed by Allah as a prophet with clear argument from Allah to his people. With regards to these important events surrounding this great personality, it is worthy and deserving to be registered and followed in dates.
But, as history testifies and all prophets of Allah and their revealed scriptures testify, concerning the advent of a greater personality in whom the whole of mankind will receive guidance, and Allah the Almighty declared in the Holy Quran that he came as nothing but a mercy to the whole of mankind. Muslims are also aware that among the 124,000 prophets that were sent by Allah, only five possessed scriptures and independent teachings that are referred to in the verse:
"He has instituted the same religion for you (Muhammad) that He recommended for Noah and that we inspired in you and commended to Abraham, Moses, and Jesus", saying, "Maintain your religion and do not be divided over it " (42:13). These five are Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus and Muhammad (SAW). They brought scriptures, revealed laws and thus are called prophets of decision (Ulu’1-azm). Among these five and the others, Muhammad is the only one sent to the whole of Mankind with a universal message. The others were sent to a particular people (10:47) and thus we can deduce from these details that the Prophet Muhammad being the last and the only universal guide for the whole all of mankind, occupies a special position of Prophethood among the rest as Allah Himself says: "Muhammad is not the father of any of your men, but (he is) the Apostle of God, and the Seal of the Prophets "(33:40).
One can also assert of the unique and special prophethood of Muhammad where the Creator of all things says "Those who follow the messenger, the unlettered prophet, who they will find described in the Torah and the Gospel, which are in their possession. He will enjoin them to do what is right and forbid them what is wrong. He will make lawful for them all good things and prohibit for them only the foul, and he will relieve them of their burden and the fetters that they used to wear (7: 157).
Brothers and Sisters, one can clearly understand that Muslims by logic and reason are aware of prophet Muhammad’s supreme authority and as a matter of fact be obedient in every aspect of his person both in revelations that he received from Allah and his sayings which stem from his infallibility .In this regard, among the revelations he received from Allah is the ordinance of the number of months. And these months are to be calculated according to new moons of which Allah says: " They are fixed seasons for mankind" (2: 189). For this reason in Islamic astronomical science, the calculation of the calendar of Islam is according to the Lunar system unlike the Europeans who did theirs according to the solar system. We must however know that Allah has ordered in the Quran for Muslims to base their calendar on the moon (Lunar System) and not the sun (Solar System) as Europeans do. Allah has fixed the seasons of the moons so that their hours can be calculated in the Islamic Calendar. Indeed a brief look into the historical aspect of the Islamic calendar is of vital importance to this discourse to enable us follow the chain of development in the progress of the Muslims’ identity with regards to their dating.
In the thirteenth year of the prophet’s prophetic mission, the infidels of Makkah congregated as a national consultative assembly known as Darun Nadwah where the heads of the tribes met and took a collective decision in putting an end to the prophet’s life by attacking his house at night and cut him to pieces. This decision was unanimously endorsed, as the would- be assassins were selected from each tribe. Through the command of Allah the "Arch angel" Jibreel informed the prophet about the wicked plan of the unbelievers and asked him to migrate. The Prophet then ordered Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib, the commander of the faithful, the chief of the pious, the 3rd infallible and 1st Imam of the Household of the prophet to sleep in his bed, so that the unbelievers might not think that the Prophet had left, but rather remain under the impression that he was in the house. Ali (AS) passed through the terrible ordeal for the safety of Islam while he remained contented with remaining in the house. Allah the Almighty says in praise of A1i’s (AS) sacrifice in the holy verse: "And among mankind is he who sells himself, desiring Allah’s pleasure, and Allah is clement towards His bond-men" (2:207) (Mustadrak by Imam Al-Hakim, Vol. 3 P.4)
2.Why And How The Migration Of The Holy Prophet Became The Era Of Islamic History
Islam is the most perfect heavenly religion and adopts the religions of Musa (AS) and Jesus (AS) in a more perfect form suited to all the conditions and situations. He has brought blessings for mankind. Although Jesus and his birth are both respectable in the eyes of Muslims, yet they did not adopt his birth as the origin of their era, because they are an independent and distinguish nation and it is not appropriate that they should follow others in adopting their era. For quite sometime the ‘Year of the Elephant’, (the year in which Abraha came to Makkah with an army of elephants and wished to demolish the Kabbah) was treated by the Arabs to be the origin of history and the birth of the Prophet, which also took place in the same year. However, the Muslims did not treat it to be the first page of Islamic History. The year of Be’that (appointment to the prophetic mission) was not also treated to be the starting of the history of Muslims because there was no trace of Islam as the Islamic faith and the number of Muslims in those days did not exceed three.
However, in the first year of Migration, Islam and Muslims were blessed with great success. An independent government came into existence in Medina. The Muslims got rid of homelessness and freely gathered at a central place. On account of this very success and victory they, therefore, decided for that year to be the starting point of their history. History testifies that it was during the Caliphate of Umar Ibn Khattab, in the 16th year of migration, that the starting point of the history of the Muslims was determined. Umar wished that it should be the date of the birth of the Prophet or the date of His appointment to Prophetic mission, but A1i Ibn Abi Talib the commander of the faithful and the gate of knowledge did not endorse his views and advised that migration should be the origin of Islamic history (Tarikh-i- Ya’qubi Vol. II, P.13S). And with the advice of Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib (SA) the era of Hijra commencing with Muharram as the first month of the Islamic calendar, was adopted in the month of Rabi 1 of the same year. (Jalalu-din Suyuti in his Tarikh).
3. Why Muharram Is A Month Of Reflection?
There is no doubt, that Islamic history abounds with great and unforgettable events which in the course of religious development and progress has established a reality of spiritual and cultural significance in the history of man. There is no doubt, that in the month of Muharram as well as other months in the Islamic Calendar, important events took place which are worthy of careful and deep contemplation over their significance. However our scope of discussion in this discourse centers mainly on (the Month of) Muharram the first month of the Islamic year.
Muharram is a month of reflection as history unfolds many events that occurred such as:
On the 1st of the month of Muharram: The Prophet Idris (AS) was lifted to the heaven. He was sent as a prophet after Adam with 200 years gap.
(b) On the 3rd of this same month Muharram: Salvation of the Prophet Yusuf (AS) from the well occurred, when there came travelers who sent their water-drawer and let down their bucket and Yusuf came out together with the bucket.
(c) On the 5th of this same month Muharram: Moses (Kaleemu Allah) the Interlocutor of Allah crossed the Red Sea when it had cloven asunder for him, and Pharaoh and his army were drowned in it.
(d) On the 7th of this month: Almighty Allah spoke to his prophet Musa, son of Imran (AS) on the mountain.
(e) On the 9th of this month: Prophet Yunus (Jonah) (AS) came out from the abdomen of the whale. On this date also, Moses, Yahya and Mariam were born (peace be upon them all).
But among these historical events just to name a few that took place in the month of Muharram was the battle of Taf, which occurred in year 60AH. The battle resulted in the killing of the offspring and sweet basil of Mustafa (SAW). In the year 61AH, the chief of the youth of paradise -Imam Husain, his family and companions were also killed. May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon him. Husain (AS) is the 3rd infallible Imam of the Ahl-ul-bait the second fruit of the blessed nuptial bond of Imam Ali (AS) and the honourable daughter of the noble Prophet, Hazrat Fatima Zahra (AS) the chief lady of the women in paradise. This noble grandson of the holy Prophet whom he referred to and his brother, the 2nd infallible Imam of the Ahl-ul-bait, Hassan Ibn Ali (AS) as his sons, was brutally murdered at Karbala by Caliph Yazid, the son of Muawiyah, the son of Abu Sufyan (the long old bitterest enemy of the Holy Prophet and Islam). All historians, commentators and exegists concurred that Husain and his elder brother were deeply loved and cherished by the Prophet. Sheikh Sualyman Balkhi Hanafi in his Yanbabi’l-Mawadda from the histories of Bukhari, Baghawi, and Ibnu’s-Sikkin from Zakha’iru’l-Uqba of Imamu’l-Haram Shafi’l and Sirat-e-Mulla narrate Anas Bin from Harith Bin Bayya, said that he heard the Prophet say: "Verily my son Husain will be killed in the soil of Karbala. Everyone of you who is present at that time must help him". The report continues that Anas Bin Harith reached Karbala, and in obedience to the command of the Prophet was martyred along with Imam Husain. And in Khasa’isu’l- Kubra by Jalalu’d-din Suyuti, a number of Hadith of Ummu’l-Mu’minin Ummi Salamah, Ummu’l-Muminin A’yesha, Ummu’l-Fazl, ibn Abbas, and Anas Bin Malik etc narrated the soil of Karbala to be a place of special attention during the time of the Holy Prophet. A report says: "that Husain was sitting in the lap of his grandfather, the Holy Prophet, who had a red block of soil in his hand. The Holy Prophet was kissing the dust and weeping. I asked him what was that. The Holy Prophet said: "Gabriel has informed that my son, this Husain, will be murdered in Iraq. He has brought this earth for me from that land. I am weeping for the suffering that will befall my Husain".
Then the Holy Prophet handed the dust to Ummi Salamah and said to her: "When you see that this soil turns into blood, you will know that my Husain has been slaughtered". Ummi Salamah kept the soil in a bottle and kept watching over it until she saw on the day of Ashura, 61AH; that it turned into blood. Then she knew that Husain Ibn Ali had been martyred. The martyrdom of Imam Husain is therefore a historical event worthy of greater attention in the world of Muslims, being one among the people of the house (Ahl-ul-bait) whom Allah declared of purity and infallibility in the Quran: "Allah desires only to keep away uncleanness from you; O people of the house! And to purify you with a thorough purifying" (Quran 33:33). Of course most prominent fair minded Ulama like Muslim, Tirmidhi, Tha’labi, Sajistani, Al-Suyuti, Abu Nu ‘aim Isfahani, Abu Bakr Shirazi, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Zamakshari, ibn Athir and others have held that this verse was revealed in praise of the holy five: Muhammad (SAW), Ali Fatima, Hasan and Husain (AS) and this same Husain was also in the group of the near kins of the Holy Prophet that Allah made it obligatory to love, Quran (42:23). Besides, Husain was declared by the Holy Prophet to be among the co-equals of the Quran for the guidance of the entire Muslim Ummah in hadith al-Thaqalayn: "I leave among you two weighty things: The book of Allah the Almighty is like a rope extending from heaven to earth and my progeny (Household) are the Ahl-ul-bait. The Merciful informed me that the two will never part until they come to me at the pool (of Kawthar) in paradise. I warn you against deserting them". (Tirmidhi in his Sahih-Manaqib Ahl-ul-bait Vol. 2 P.380, Sahih-Muslim, Kitab fada’il Ali ibn Abi Talib Vol. VII P.122. Al-Imam alo-Nasa’I in his book al-khasa’is P21 Mustadrak al- Hakim Vol III P.109, Al-Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal in his Musnad Vol. 3 P .17, Kanz al-Ummal Vol. I P .154, Tafsir Ibn Kathir Vol. IV P .113, ibn al-Athir in Jami’al-usul Vol I P .187, Al-Suyuti in al-Jami al-Saghir, Vol I P.353 ibn Sai’d in Al-Tabaqat al-Kubra Vol. II P.194, Tarikh ibn Asakir Vol. 5 P.436 and many others.
With all these demonstrations both from Allah the Glorious and His noble Messenger, indicating the lofty station of Imam Husain and having been murdered by the enemies of Islam due to the love of Allah, the Almighty and obeying the command of Allah to enjoin the good and prohibit the evil and also to revolt against falsehood, oppression, tyranny and injustice perpetuated by the government of Yazid in trying to destroy the tree of La ilaha ilIa ‘allah (there is no god but Allah) which the holy Prophet has grown and nourished by his blood and the blood of the martyrs of Badr, Uhud and Hunain. Imam Husain, upon seeing this development for the religion of his grandfather entrusted to him by Allah took upon his shoulders together with his family and few companions to save the religion from destruction and thus martyrdom became the absolute sacrificial effort for the continuation of the true Islam.
This event, therefore is a turning point in the history of Islam as it culminated in the great sacrifices made by Imam Husain (AS) and for whom the angels in heaven lamented over his tragic fate for the sake of Allah and in the cause of Allah, the Almighty. It is therefore a responsibility of all Muslims, who dearly love Allah and His noble messenger, the grandfather of the chief of the Martyrs to reflect and contemplate this historic and tragic event in a demonstrative manner and understanding the true objective of such event. This is an ever-memorable event that no other event can outstrip of worthy considerations, inclination and observance in all facets of spiritual connotations and significance. It is therefore very unbecoming if such an event is to be viewed and interpreted as simple and of less historical importance replacing the stage and period of this event with that of joy, eating, drinking, parading with new clothes and merry making occasions. Instead with complete obedience to the Book of Allah which instructed and made it obligatory to love the near kins of Muhammad (SAW) and the instruction and command the Messenger also gave in respect of his progeny as the source of our guidance in hadith al-Thaqalayn, then it deserves from all indication, logic and reason to enter the 1st month of the Islamic Year which is Muharram with a heart of deep contemplation, a soul with deep inner reflection and above all a state of spiritual consciousness reviewing the event of Ashura which is the spring board for the revival of the tree of La’ilaha illa ‘allah, the exposing and distinguishing of truth from falsehood and the restoring of the pure and original Islam. God willing, we will look into the event of Ashura, its history (brief) philosophy, spiritual and cultural effects and above all its achievements in the world of Islam and in the lives of Muslims. May Allah bless you all as we usher into the month of Muharram in the year, 1426 AH which probably may coincide with the 10th of February 2005. May the peace and blessing of Allah be upon Muhammad and his holy progeny.
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Tribute To My Father
by Baba Hydara
This is my tribute to the most respectful human being I have ever known, Deyda Hydara, my beloved father and my role model.
A person who was not only a family man but also a man highly respected by many. I am honoured to say that the amount of love my father devoted to his family and the public is almost impossible to find and will never be forgotten forever. Deyda Hydara was born on 9 June 1945 in the city of Banjul in The Gambia. Since his early years, he had always been ambitious and willing to achieve the maximum out of his life and used it to help people by informing them of what is truly happening in their society.
He studied languages in school and became most proficient in French and English. After graduation he continued in his quest to become a successful journalist. In order to achieve his aim, he undertook several courses in journalism both in French and English, inside the country and abroad. He was exceptionally brave in his job and was never hiding the truth despite whose gut is being cut. He never surrendered to force and was always a voice for the voiceless, facing problems and seeking help. He was ready to make the greatest sacrifice for the cause of the poor, showing them compassion, the way forward and encouraging them to make the best use of the freedom to express themselves and make them feel as effective instruments of the society.
What I have learnt from my father as a role model of my life and a journalist for that matter is. "A good journalist should be devoted to his job. That means he must do everything within his domains to report the story, truthfully, impartially and honestly."
Since he passed away I have been reading some articles from some journalists, which I find very hypocritical and dishonest. I believe those articles are for their own individualistic interests than the purpose it deserves. These people do not deserve to call my father a colleague and certainly they do not have to address themselves as journalists.
The press is a sine qua non to the development of a country. That means a country cannot step forward without people being informed and aware of the events happening on a daily basis.
But it seems in The Gambia, the government is doing everything possible to weaken the press from freely performing their duties. My father was doing his optimum best to fight the newly passed bill whose enforcement will be detrimental to the freedom of press and expression.
We are descendants of a highly religious family called Hydara Sheriff(meaning brave). As a result, I did not expect my father to surrender to any threats from whoever source it might come from. When I heard the news, I was so devasted that up till now I have not yet recovered from the trauma, neither do any member of my entire family (my mom, my two sisters and brothers and Amy- the smallest member).
May the people responsible for this big plot realise what they are about to face in this world and the Day of Judgment. They killed an innocent man whose only crime was being honest and truthful. They used guns as their weapon against a person who uses a pen as his. I want all those people who have blood on their hands about my father’s murder to know that "EVERYONE HAS HIS DAY" and God is watching.
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FIFA Raises Percentage For Female Soccer
by Namory Trawally
The world football governing body, FIFA decided from this year, to raise the percentage from the Financial Assistance programme (FAP) to the development of female soccer in member countries.
According to the FIFA world report on football development of 2004, the world football body recognised the importance of women’s football for the development of sports. The executive committee of FIFA decided to finance special activities and allocate additional funds to women’s football. One of the measures for implementing this growth policy was the requirement, that at least four (4) percent of the FAP funds must have been spent on women’s football in the past years and in 2005 this allocated percentage will be raised to ten (10) percent.
The reports added that FIFA supports the development of women’s football and is committed to creating increased opportunities for female players, coaches, referees and administrators to participate in the game of football.
To achieve that, the world governing body drew seven-point objectives for the development of women soccer in member countries:
1.Actively promote the investment and development of women’s football in FIFA member associations;
2.Increase the participation of women and girls in grassroots, school, amateur and elite-level football;
3.Continually improve the quality, organisation and awareness of the women’s football competitions at FIFA;
4.Promote greater opportunities and participation of women technical and managerial positions in football, including refereeing, coaching and administration;
5.Organise courses to promote the development of female players, coaches, referees, doctors and administrators;
6.Establish and promote harmonised calendar of competitions;
7.Analyse and monitor the technical development of the women’s game.
Indian Community Assists Gambian Cricket
The Indian community in The Gambia and Com Afrique, an Indian based company in The Gambia, last Tuesday donated cricket equipment to The Gambian National Cricket Association.
Speaking in a colourful ceremony at the July 22nd Square in Banjul, Mr. Moham, General Manager of Com Afrique company and Consul General of India in The Gambia said that his company responded to the request of the Indian community in The Gambia to unite and help Gambian cricket.
He added that India is a well-known country with the cricket game and they think that they are the best country to assist The Gambia. Mr. Moham said, that the equipment donated, worth D360, 000 (three hundred and sixty thousand dalasis).
He emphasised that, the donated materials will be use by the school cricket teams in the forthcoming inter-schools cricket championships.
He promised that they are working on modalities to organise a cricket tournament in the future. And, that with more competitions, The Gambian cricket would be very promising.
Speaking earlier, the president of The Gambia Cricket Association (GCA) Mr. R M Rawlings said, that the Indian assistance came at the right time, as the association is preparing to stage the first-ever school cricket league.
Mr. Rawlings thanked the Indian community and Com Afrique specially Mr. Moham for coming to their aid.
Mr. Johnny Gomez, the technical director of GCA said, that the cricket league for schools would kick-off soon and they are appealing to companies and others to come together and sponsor the league.
Mr. Gomez also, stressed that participating teams would be using their physical education uniforms during the cricket league matches.
The Mayor of Banjul Pa Sallah Jeng reassured the cricket association of his council’s support for the development of the game.
He said, that the July 22nd Square would be at the disposal of the cricket association.
President Jammeh Unveils CAF U-17 Logo Tomorrow
President Yahya Jammeh is expected to unveil the CAF U-17 logo tomorrow Saturday at the Kairaba Beach Hotel.
The unveiling of the logo would make the launching of a massive fund raising campaign for a successful hosting of the CAF U-17 championship.
The launching is organise by Sub-marking committee of the National Organising
Committee of CAF 2005. The presence of President Jammeh at the launching is
to give more weight to the campaign.
According to the marketing committee, they need the support of all Gambians, especially companies to come up and support the marketing committee for a successful CAF U-17 championship.
They called on all Gambians and well wishers to be present at Kairaba Beach Hotel tomorrow to support the first ever continental football competition to be held in The Gambia.
It would be recalled that the CAF U-17 championship would be held from the 7th to the 21st May 2005.
Hawks Top The League Takes on Kaira Silo Today
The "Red Devils" of Hawks, last Saturday topped the GFA first division league after beating Sait Matty 1 – 0 in the week three.
Hawks, who lost their first game against Real de Banjul 2 – 0 managed to win their two consecutive matches against Armed Forces and Saity Matty respectively.
Hawks profited from the 1 – 1 draw between Real de Banjul and Steve Biko, who were leaders before the week three, to take the driving seat. Hawks have now 6 points in three matches.
In other week three games, last week Wednesday, Bakau United drew 1 – 1 with Kaira Silo of New Jeshwang Last Friday, GPA drew 2 – 2 with Gamtel.
The telecommunications boys took the lead twice but GPA only managed to equalise.
On Saturday, Hawks beat Sait Matty 1 – 0 through Abdoulie Coor’s goal in the 67th minute. The same day, Real de Banjul drew 1 – 1 with Steve Biko of Bakau. Real de Banjul took the lead and Steve Biko leveled up the score.
In the week four, which kick off today, Hawks F.C would take on Kaira Silo at the Serrekunda West Mini-Stadium.
On Saturday, two games are on the programme, Gamtel versus Steve Biko in Serrekunda West and Armed Forces will take on Real de Banjul in Serrekunda East. The last two games of week four would be played on Sunday. In Serrekunda West Sait Matty will play Wallidan while in Serrekunda East Bakau United line up against GPA.
Week Four
Friday 04-02-05 – Kaira Silo Vs Hawks
Saturday 05-02-05 – Gamtel Vs Steve Biko
Saturday 05-02-05 – Armed Forces Vs Real
Sunday 06-02-05 – Sait Matty Vs Wallidan
Sunday 06-02-05 – Bakau United Vs GPA
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Red House Claims Bottrop Inter-House
by Alieu Darboe
Red House, last Saturday claimed the 15th edition of the Bottrop Junior and Senior Secondary School held at the school ground.
Four houses took part in the championship namely Yellow House, Green House, Red House and Blue House.
At the end of competitions, Red House got 314 points followed by Yellow House with 294 points; Green House claimed the third position with 268 points while Blue House came fourth with 254 points.
Speaking to Independent Sports after the championship, Babun Fatty the sports and game master of the school said that the objectives of the championship are to select the school athletics team for the Inter-Schools competitions to be organise by the Gambia Secondary Schools Sports Association.
He added that this year’s competition was well contested, as they are many new talents who set records, which would help the school in the forthcoming Inter-Schools championships.
Mr. Fatty promised that his team could bring glory to Brikama in the next championship.
Commenting on the victory of Red House, Mr. Fatty said that the team has shown its supremacy for the second time in a row.
He pointed out that, Ismaila S. Konteh of Yellow House is the best male athlete in Junior School while Binta Saidy of Green House is the best female athlete in the same level. Continuing, Mr. Fatty added that Lamin S. Camara of Red House claimed the best male athlete in Senior School while Binta Badjie of Green House won the best female athlete in the Senior Secondary School.
Also speaking to Independent Sports, Lamin S. Camara said, that he was confident that his house would win the competition and hope that they would maintain their position.
Other athletes also promise to bring glory to the school in the Inter-School championship.
At the end of the day, Red House was awarded a trophy and cash prize of D1, 000 as winners while Yellow House received D800, third place winners, Green House went home with D600 and Blue House got D400.
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Article 19 Urges Jammeh Not To Assent To Media Bills
In their efforts to pressurise the government not to assent to the two bills, Article 19 has written to Mr. Andrew Ranganayi Chigovera, the African Union Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression through the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights in Banjul, urging him to appeal to President Jammeh not to sign the two bills into law.
We reproduce below the letter:
Andrew Ranganayi Chigovera
Special Rapporteur on Freedom of _Expression
African Commission on Human and People’s Rights
90, Kairaba Avenue, P. O. Box 673
Banjul, The Gambia
17th January 2005
Dear commissioner Chigovera,
ARTICLE 19 is gravely concerned by the recent adoption of the "Newspaper Amendment Act 2004" and the Criminal Code (Amendment) Bill 2004 in The Gambia.
The Newspaper Amendment Act 2004 invalidates the existing framework for registrations of media institutions in The Gambia, by requiring newspapers to re-register with the Registrar General’s office within two weeks of the coming into force of the law. In addition, all private media institutions are required to post a 500,000 Dalasis (about US$16665) bond. This represents an increase of 400% from the previous 100,000 Dalasis.
The new registration requirement and the bond imposed on media institutions are excessive and tantamount to censorship.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights has made it clear that excessive bonds imposed as a prerequisite for the registration of media institutions do not serve any legitimate aim and therefore constitute an undue restriction on the right to freedom of _expression guaranteed by Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights. It is also clear that the bond prerequisite is incompatible with other international freedom of _expression standards to which Gambia has subscribed.
We also deplore the Criminal Code (Amendment) 2004 Bill. This Bill will surely only encourage further violations of the right to freedom of _expression in the Gambia of the sort we have witnessed in recent past.
Among other things, the Bill widens the definition of libel, thereby dramatically expanding the class of actions or expressions that would attract criminal liability. It also provides for imprisonment of not less than six months, without the option of a fine, for first time offenders for "seditious and libelous" publications. In addition, subsequent offenders may be sentenced to not less than three years in jail, without the option of a fine, and any media used in the alleged seditious publication would be "forfeited to the State."
The Declaration of Principles on Freedom of _Expression in Africa adopted by the African Commission calls on African Union Members to ensure that their laws relating to defamation and the sanctions associated therewith are not so severe as to inhibit the right to freedom of _expression. The new legislative measures are unreasonable and excessive and will certainly gravely inhibit the right to freedom of _expression in the Gambia.
Many African countries, through the Constitutive Act, have renewed their commitment to good governance and respect for human rights, including the right to freedom of _expression. In contrast, the Gambia Government continues to threaten media freedom, in violation both of the Gambia Constitution and international and regional human rights norms.
We therefore urge you to call on the President of the Republic of Gambia to refrain from signing the Criminal Code (Amendment) 2004 Bill and the ‘’Newspaper Amendment Act 2004’’ and to ensure that his government respects international standards on freedom of _expression.
I await for your reply on this important matter.
Yours sincerely,
Dr. Agnčs Callamard
Executive Director
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Former Auditor General Ties The Knots
On Sunday January 23rd, there was a marriage ceremony at the Bundung Central Mosque between two unlikely partners. It was the marriage of the former Auditor General Ms. Fatoumata Jallow and Mr. Sheikh Amat Tijan Sallah, commonly known to most Gambians as Koro Sallah, a revolutionary based in Sweden.
The marriage ceremony was interesting for many respects, including the apparent differences in outlook between the partners.While Fatoumata is known to be a religious lady, who is quite reserved and easy going, Koro Sallah on the other hand is quite a hot-headed revolutionary who has been quite active in the politics of liberation. He had been the leader of the Movement for Justice in Africa (MOJA), which had been quite active in this country in the late 1970s and early 1980s until it was banned by the former PPP government. Since that time, Koro Sallah has been living in exile in Sweden.
Therefore, the likelihood of such people with such different characteristics coming together in marriage makes it even more interesting.
However, if the large turn out at the mosque on Sunday was anything to go by, the ceremony was really a success.
Speaking during the ceremony, a senior brother to Koro Sallah, Captain Baboucar Sallah expressed delight at the decision of his brother getting married to a cultured lady like Fatoumata Jallow. He said when Koro asked him to approach Fatoumata’s family on the issue, he was a bit skeptical about it. "I asked him which name I should give them, and he told me to tell them that he is Amat Tijan Sallah," Captain Sallah remarked. That he said gave him confidence that his brother has now changed and therefore ready to marry.
Several other speakers at the ceremony expressed delight in the marriage. They all spoke well about the virtues of both Fatoumata and Koro. They expressed the hope that the marriage was going to be a success.
Among those who attended the ceremony included the Imam Ratib of Banjul, Cherno Kah, Assan Musa Camara, an elder statesman and several other distinguished personalities as well as family members and friends of the couple.
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Dr. Samba Hands Over To Dr. Sambo
The outgoing WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Ebrahim Samba, handed over to his successor, Dr Luis Sambo at the weekend, and proceeded to his native Gambia on retirement.
Dr Sambo begins his five-year term as Regional Director on 1 February.
In a tribute to Dr Samba, Dr Sambo said, "I would like to recognize and thank you immensely for the work you have done in the WHO Regional Office and for the African Region as you pushed the frontiers of health for all Africans everywhere. You are leaving behind many tangible and measurable achievements."
The new Regional Director praised his predecessor for his vision, courage, openness and pragmatism as well as his strong commitment to the eradication or elimination of such public health threats as river blindness, polio and female genital mutilation.
Responding, Dr Samba thanked WHO for affording him the opportunity to serve his fellow Africans in various capacities for more than two decades, and pledged to continue to support the Organization in his new phase of life.
"Indeed, I am hereby offering to provide, during my retirement, free, non-remunerative service through WHO to help promote public health in Africa", said Dr Samba who was designated Regional Director Emeritus by the 54th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Africa.
Dr Samba had served two terms of five years each as Regional Director, but his public health career nationally, regionally and internationally spanned more than 40 years.
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