ELECTION MANIFESTO 2006 NATIONAL ALLIANCE FOR DEMOCRACY AND DEVELOPMENT GOVERNMENT BASED ON COLLECTIVE LEADERSHIP AND PARTNERSHIP WITH PEOPLE ORGANISED IN “CIVIL SOCIETY” ASSOCIATIONS PRIORITIES: § DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE § FOOD SECURITY, AFFORDABILITY AND SELF RELIANT AGRICULTURAL BASE § PROCESSING, APPROPRIATE TECHNOLOGY AND COTTAGE INDUSTRIES § HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT, EMPLOYMENT CREATION § ENERGY, MINING AND INFRASTRUCTURAL DEVELOPMENT § POVERTY ERADICATION, INCOME GENERATION AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT, (SATISFACTORY CROP FINANCE SCHEME, GOOD NUTRITION, HEALTH CARE, EDUCATION , SATISFACTORY PENSION CONDITIONS, HOUSING, RECREATION AND GENERAL WELFARE) § WOMEN, CHILDREN, THE DISABLED AND THE AGED § AFRICAN INTEGRATION AND PARTNERSHIP FOR A NEW INTERNATIONAL ORDER OF PEACE May 2006 Vision and Mission Sovereignty resides in the people. The people of the Gambia are owners of public power and authority. They have the absolute right to determine how the Gambia is governed. Leaders are mere trustees of public power and authority. They are to utilize such power and authority on behalf of the people to safeguard their economic, social, cultural, civil and political rights to ensure their collective liberty, dignity and prosperity while safeguarding their fundamental rights and freedoms. As public trustees they are required to be transparent in their exercise of public authority. They are also required to render account to the people regarding their period of stewardship of national affairs in order for the people to determine whether they are worthy of their continued trust and confidence. In this regard, the facts reveal that after 12 years of AFPRC/APRC rule the government has not lived up to its promises of transforming the Gambia “into a dynamic middle income country, a financial centre, a tourist paradise, a trading export oriented agricultural and manufacturing nation, thriving on market policies and a vibrant private sector, sustained by a well educated , trained, skilled, healthy, self reliant and enterprising population and guaranteeing a well balanced ecosystem and a decent standard of living for one and for all, under a system of government based on the consent of the citizenry” as stipulated in its strategic document, i.e. Vision 2020. Instead of being a “ dynamic middle income country” the Gambia has become a heavily indebted poor country with 69% of its population living in abject poverty. It is evident that export of agricultural produce is being jeopardized by poor marketing arrangement. Manufacturing is almost absent. The private sector is starved of investment capital thus leading to the contraction of the productive base. This has led to poor revenue earnings, escalation of internal and external borrowing to meet the requirement of both the recurrent and development budgets, insignificant growth in employment and income, skyrocketing cost of living and perpetual rise in poverty. It goes without saying that despite all evidence that the government is neither capable nor willing to empower the people to take charge of their destiny nor free them from economic mismanagement and poverty, it is making a determined effort to perpetuate itself in office indefinitely. This is why it has abrogated the power of the people to elect their district and village heads and transferred it to central authority. It has eliminated the second round of voting and replaced it with the “first past the post system”. The Executive has ascribed to itself the power to dissolve parliament and remove individual parliamentarians of the ruling party, as and when it wills. Arbitrary arrests and detention without court appearance within 72 hours have legitimized impunity. The suspension of poverty alleviation programmes alludes to the existence of chronic maladministration of financial institutions. It has therefore become absolutely clear that empowering the people to build a durable democracy that would enable them to condition leaders to focus on their needs and aspirations is the first step in a series of strategic interventions that would lead to their liberty and development. This calls for the creation of an opposition alliance transcending ideological and other differences in principles, policies and programmes as a united front designed to usher in standards of best practice in governance and democracy, consolidate a common culture of respect for fundamental rights and freedoms so as to build an unshakeable democratic foundation from which a genuine multi party contest can arise to enable the people to choose among parties by comparing their principles, policies, programmes and practices. NADD emerged to answer to the call of the Gambian people for greater National unity transcending tribe, religion, gender, place of origin, birth, disability or any other status. We do not seek change for the sake of change; we do not seek power for its sake; personality or personal interest is not the issue. The issue of interest for NADD is Gambia and her people. What is paramount is the national interest. Our duty is to change a system of governance that is increasingly centralizing the power in the hands of the executive and replace it with a system that will not allow patronage, sectionalism or self perpetuating rule to stifle the authority of the people and bar them from changing their manner of government whenever they deem it prudent to do so. NADD stands for a future that will place your country right into your sovereign hands. NADD aims to utilize the public power derived from your authority to safeguard people’s liberty, dignity and prosperity. After 41 years of Independence, the Gambia deserves nothing less. NADD stands for a dual carriageway to liberate the Gambian people from powerlessness, voicelessness and poverty. The first carriageway is the pathway to democracy. The fundamental task shall be to transform the presidency from being the citadel of power usurped by the executive from the people to become a spring for the devolution of power to the masses organized in civil societies or associations. We shall humble the presidency by eradicating autocratic method of governing and replace it with the system of collective leadership. This will be marked by involvement of civil society as partners in governance and the consolidation of a culture of respect and enforcement of fundamental rights and freedoms. We shall ensure the performance of public duties, without fear or favour, dictation or victimization. We shall nurture a culture of transparency and accountability by those who are paid from public funds to perform public duties, through safeguarding the freedom to access information by the owners of the country and the right of the media practitioners to uphold their professional responsibilities. NADD shall engineer a second carriageway, that is, the pathway to development. It shall promote investment in the productive base, instill financial discipline in the use of public wealth, boost up small scale and large scale enterprises, ensure market access and income generation, expand the revenue base to support human resource development and further consolidate social services for the eradication of poverty in particular and social development in general. NADD intends to provide a leadership that will rely on the collective intelligence of the people and their creative initiative to guide our collective destiny characterized by liberty, dignity and prosperity. This is the way forward. Political awareness is the key and unity the door to become the guardians of their own destiny. 1. DEMOCRACY AND GOOD GOVERNANCE NADD holds that sustainable development in the 21st Century is inconceivable without building an open democratic society where authority to govern is derived from the consent of the people, freely and fairly expressed in genuine elections, that are free from inducement or intimidation. It is equally convinced that any government that is entrusted with power by the people should utilize that authority to promote national unity, peace, stability, respect for human rights, adherence to the rule of law and the general welfare or prosperity of the people. NADD therefore undertakes to put in place a governance programme that will demonstrate its commitment to the core values of good governance and democracy characterized by transparency, accountability, popular participation, respect for fundamental rights and freedoms, the upholding of the rule of law and respect for political diversity and free media. The programme shall consist of: Constitutional and legal reforms through the commissioning of a Constitutional Review Commission within a month of the assumption of office by the President to ensure a nationwide sensitization and consultation with a view to making proposals to amend the constitution so as to restore the second round of voting, ensure the security of tenure of members of the Independent Electoral Commission, restore Chieftaincy and Alkaloship elections, repeal all obnoxious laws such as the Indemnity Act and conduct other legislative reforms that restrict the freedom of the press and people in general. Reform of the civil service to ensure professionalism and the performance of duty to meet the expectation of the people in an accountable, efficient and effective manner without any fear of being subjected to any discrimination, harassment, victimization or indignation. Executive reforms to make the cabinet more responsive to standards of best practice established in implementing laws, orders and policies designed to guide the operation of the various departments of state and further make it a practice for cabinet members to face the media to explain the policies of government and receive opinions on the impact they are making on the population. National Assembly reforms to amend provisions that enable the President to dissolve the National Assembly or empower a party to remove a national assembly member by virtue of party disputes. It shall strengthen parliamentary oversight, and safeguard the immunities of parliamentarians against executive encroachment. Judicial reforms to ensure that there is no executive presence or manipulation of the Judicial Service Commission. All district tribunals and adjudicating bodies shall be under the judiciary and the appointment and removal of magistrates and arbitrators in courts shall be done by a separate judicial service commission that is completely independent of the executive. Schemes of best practice shall be incorporated to ensure speedy justice. Reform of prisons to ensure that they are transformed into correctional rather than punitive institutions. Community service shall be given primacy over custodial sentences; prisons shall be organized in such a way that they serve as conducive environment to rehabilitate prisoners. Maximum security wing of prisons shall cease to be detention centres. Prison administrators shall not be subjected to any other dictate but that of the law and best practice in prison administration and rehabilitation of those who have problem with the law. Reform of police, the military and security services to promote the performance of duty on the basis of law and best practice. Measures shall be put in place to protect such personnel for non compliance with unlawful instructions especially politically motivated ones. Establishment and/or consolidation of Independent Oversight institutions like the office of Ombudsman; Commissions such as those for women and children, the disabled, pensioners and human rights. Such commissions can receive reports and conduct investigations on complaints of violation or non compliance with laws and international conventions designed to protect the rights and interests of given categories of people in society who may be more vulnerable to discrimination or marginalization. Separation of the function of Attorney General with the function of Secretary of State for Justice and Human Rights. The office of Attorney General shall serve as a state function free from any political influence so that any intervention by the Attorney General in the judicial process will be motivated by the pursuit of the interest of Justice. The Department of State for Justice and Human Rights shall oversee the incorporation of all international, continental and regional conventions into domestic laws to promote economic, social, political and cultural rights and ensure that they inform policy and practice in state administration. 10. Promote popular participation in decision making by developing partnership with civil society organizations and empower them to articulate and protect the concerns of farmers and workers, the disabled, women, children, pensioners, the elderly, youth, owners of income generating enterprises, members of the chamber of commerce, media practitioners and those living with HIV/Aids and other categories or interest groups. 11. Ensuring the protection of the media to receive and give information and hold all state organs accountable and responsible for their manner of service to the people. The state media shall be opened up to convey divergent views. The media shall be encouraged to hold all public service delivery institutions and elected officials accountable to the public. The media practitioners shall pioneer the establishment of a self regulating media commission to promote professionalism, ethical conduct and standards of best practice in journalism. 12. Promotion of the prestige and image of the country internationally by being a signatory to the Africa Peer Review Mechanism and accede to all continental and international conventions that aim to encourage the separation of powers and ensure the checks and balances in state administration that can guarantee transparency, accountability and commitment to the public interest. 2. THE ECONOMY 2.1 Finance and Investment Development is inconceivable without short term and long term investment. Investment is the engine of growth. Without growth in investment in the productive base of the economy in a sustainable way it will not grow. Income and employment will not be enhanced and poverty reduction or eradication cannot be achieved. How to promote investment into the productive base of the economy shall be NADD’s number one priority. 2.1.1 Local and Foreign Direct Investment 2.1.2 Local Investment There are three sources of investment in the country, public sector, private sector and cooperative sector. 2.1.3 Public Sector investment The government has both non tax revenue earning departments and public corporations. The current public investment policy of the government is grossly defective. This is why the volume of revenue does not match expenditure demands thus leading to deficits and heavy borrowing. In 2005 alone the government budget deficit stood at 855.4 million dalasis. To offset the deficit, the government had to borrow 488 million dollars from Domestic and 446 million dollars from external sources. The fact that the volume of borrowing is not pegged to the volume of earnings from public investment, arrears in the payment of public debt have become the order of the day. This has given rise to the public debt and high debt service ratio. The total debt of the country is over 22 billion dalasis. A sum of 1500 million dalasis is being paid in 2006 to meet our debt service obligation. This constitutes more than 30% of government expenditure and almost 40% of government revenue excluding grants. This haphazard way of making public corporations to finance social programmes that are mainly politically motivated, such as July 22nd celebrations, deprives the state of public investment capacity. In the same vein, public corporations are drawn into investment programmes that are not subjected to any feasibility studies or cost benefit analysis. A glaring example is the investment of public corporations into GAMCO to purchase groundnuts. The company was transformed into a monopoly to purchase groundnuts with public sector finance and guarantees to receive funding from banks and the result is total failure in crop financing and increase in poverty. Similarly, the state invested 45 million dalasis to purchase Mariatou Beach Hotel and 300 million dalasis to refurbish it by drawing investment capital from Social Security and Housing Finance Corporation. This is a poor judgment in investing public resources. NADD shall develop a public investment strategy that will enhance earnings from public sector investments in order to promote modernization of public corporations and further enable them to finance social services. 2.1.4 The programmes shall consist of 1. Keeping of proper records by public corporations to ensure proper auditing and quantification of profits accrued and dividends to be paid to government 2. Proper monitoring and accounting of corporate resources to ensure accurate quantification of optimum earnings on an annual basis. 3. The integration in the national budget of dividends anticipated annually from public corporations. 4. The signing of a performance contract with the management of public corporations to honour the provision of dividends anticipated or risk termination of office. 5. Safeguarding management from any termination of services by subjecting any grounds for termination, under the performance contract, to a tribunal for final decision. 6. The establishment of a policy for annual local borrowing to be linked to dividends anticipated from public corporations and revenue generated from revenue earning departments to prevent arrears in the payment of any loan. To move towards such surplus financing to release bank funds to promote private sector investments. 2.2 Private sector investment 2.2.1 Private sector finance comprises banks, insurance companies and bureaux de change. In 2008, the volume of transactions in foreign currency in the Inter-Bank market was 18.98 billion. This shows the volume of capital being currently handled in the financial market. It is estimated that remittances from Gambians working abroad rose from 509.9 million in 2004 to 856.3 million in 2005. Private remittances were projected to be the second largest source of foreign exchange after foreign direct investment which is estimated at 1.3 billion in 2005. It is also estimated that the travel trade generated an income of 2.2 billion in 2004. In short, the private sector has huge potential for investment in the productive base. This has been restricted by heavy government borrowing which provides bank with “lazy money” derived from mere taxation, mediocre investment policy and poor infrastructure such as energy, road networks and river transport. NADD shall therefore Ensure financial discipline in the management of the public purse so as to depend less on domestic debt and leave the private sector financial institutions to promote private sector investments. Give strategic boost to the energy sector and land and river transport to enhance investment potential. Engineer a comprehensive prospecting scheme to identify and create an investment plan for the development of mineral and natural resources of the country, including oil exploration. Validate programmes and institutions for investment programmes with a view to upgrading their capacity to evolve relevant and sustainable programmes. Match currency production with the volume of goods and services and the currency transaction required to back such economic activity. In this way old notes can be thrown out of the system and currency speculations that create inflationary pressures reduced. 2.2.2 Cooperative Investment The country has village savings and credit associations (VISACA) banks which belong to communities and micro financial institutions which belong to non governmental organizations and cooperative societies. There is very little study on the global impact of these institutions on investment and production and trade. NADD shall 1. Cause the undertaking of a study of the cooperative financial institutions with a view to developing a comprehensive and holistic policy on how they can enhance the productive base and promote individual earnings to reduce poverty. 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