The Olfactor, I thought that was you. Great write-up. I associate myself with you and Halifa in that No one must speak for anyone else Except when given the express permission for agency. I just don't want the last part to elude our friends and coleagues. I appreciate your admiration of value-life and your equal abhorrence of criminal life. Keep it up my brother. I think you and I can do business for Democracy's sakes. By the way Dublin is wonderful. I hope and pray that the gratuitous criminality that threatens the young peace can be suffocated sine die. Good on you my friend. Haruna. In a message dated 3/19/2009 4:39:00 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time, [log in to unmask] writes: Of Tyrants and Freedom Fighters ‘There should be no human being on this earth without a voice, what other’s can do is to amplify that voice’ (words of Halifa Sallah-launching his book in Stockholm/video courtesy of Raaki TV) History is pregnant with men and women of valour, dignity, commitment, determination to serve their fellow human human beings. Men and women whose sole existence and essence of trotting this earth is to make sure that their fellow human beings live in dignity, freedom, and prosperity. Men and women who will never bow to intimidation, treats or torture. They endure harassment, incarceration and sometimes make the ultimate sacrifice and face death if it means that others will live in freedom and prosperity. These men and women leave a legacy that no one can erase from human memory. They leave indelible marks in our collective memories and no attempt of distortion or re-writing of history by the cynic will change the truth they left us. Of these we pay tribute to the Lumumbas, Edward Smalls, Chris Hanis, C. A. Diops, Halifa Sallahs, Sidia Jattas, Sam Sarrs, OJs and many other Gambian men and women both at home and in the diaspora. History is also crowded with men and women whose sole existence is to wreck havoc, bring misery, suffering and enslavement to their fellow human beings. They put all their energies, resources, time and devotion to making other people’s lives hell on earth. All peoples, ethnicities, creeds have their good folks and their evil ones. Tyrants, despots and manifold evil human beings exist among all races and come from all regions of the globe. Examples abound. Don’t we remember the brutal Najibulallah of Afghanistan whose life ended impaled on a pole on the streets of Kabul. Where is Pinochet of Chile who was disgraced and was forced to stay in the UK against his will with the possibility of extradition to Spain. Did Saddam Hussein not end up in a rat infested hole? Don’t we remember Franco of Spain, grand old Hitler who cowardly took his life? Where are the Salazars of Portugal who were disgraced and defeated and booted out of Africa by the genius of Amilcar Cabral. We do also know about the final days of Idi Amin Dada, Ferdinand Marcos who had to abandon his hearty dinner because of a determined housewife who would not tolerate anymore humiliation of her people. How did ‘Baby Doc’ of Haiti day’s end. Did Louis of France (known to have proclaimed “l’etat ce moi’) got his head chopped off. Where are the Mengistus, the Mobutus? The last days of Nino, Doe and Conte are really pitiable. Didn’t Ian Smith and the Bothas, Voerwoerds, Smuts of the Apartheid era believed in the eternal triumph of their systems. All these evil despots believed in their invincibility, they were absorbed in self –delusion and never envisioned they will be disgraced in their final days. They shall always be associated with evil and despicability. Within our own midst we are witnessed to the two disparate phenomenons of tyrants and freedom fighters. At this very moment we have a tyrant called Professor Alaji Yahya Jammeh whose past fifteen years of existence has brought misery, poverty, fear, madness, sycophancy, corruption, and finally wrecked complete and absolute havoc to the Gambian populace in the on-going witch-hunt. In the Gambia of today elders, religious leaders, community leaders, youth leaders, educated people have been emasculated by brute, raw and perverted power wielded by one deranged and hallucinating person. People who during yesteryear were known to be intolerant to injustice and untruths have become meek and praise singers to an uncouth buffoon who believes he is God sent to develop Gambia by force. However, before one can talk about development one has to be clear with what is meant by development and how it should be carried out and done. Having few buildings here and there does not mean nothing if the basis of once existence is being undermined by undemocratic and inept policies and actions. Development cannot be forced and it is unsustainable if it does not come from within. People need to be aware and voluntarily partake in change, and this only happens if they are given space and facilitated with the appropriate tools/instruments to make the right decisions. I do not intend to digress on the conversation of tyrants and freedom fighters. As it is very obvious where tyranny exists, freedom lovers and fighters do spring up. These great and noble human beings are always a headache to tyrants. They understand there worth and duties as human beings. An outstanding fighter is Halifa Sallah. Sallah like his forerunners such as Lumumba in the quest for a dignified existence for all his fellow brothers and sisters understands that brutally, intimidation, bad treatment , torture, will not make or weaken him to asked Jammeh for mercy. As Lumumba reminded his wife in his famous letter written in December 1960 and cited by Halifa in his book there is preference in death and having his ‘head held high’, and being unflinching and unyieldingly focused in making sure Gambia is free from tyranny and authoritarian governance. Jammeh and his bunch of ventriloquist brutes should know that Halifa and for that matter a significant number of Gambians will never live in ‘submission’ and be ‘scornful to sacred principles’ of freedom, dignity and democratic governance. As Lumumba reminded the Belgian cowards, ‘history will one day have it say’ and certainly would not be according to their wishes. Mr Jammeh is obviously aware even though he will deny it that when history has its say on him, by God it will be far from his wishes. We are reminded by Halifa Sallah (launching his book in Stockholm last-video courtesy of _www.raaki.com/halifa_ (http://www.raaki.com/halifa) ) that we are living in world of crisis and there should be no one speaking for anybody. I for one, do speak for myself and I am not seeking anyone’s approval or acceptance. I am only amplifying my voice on issues of concern in Gambia where my family and relatives live. This position is not out of arrogance or anything but for the cynics amongst us to get it in their craniums that I speak for myself and for no one else. Even though I hold Halifa Sallah and OJ as among those I highly respect and wish to emulate their values and resolve, I am not seeking their approval or acknowledgement to be relevant. I am relevant regardless of who says so. History is on the side of the freedom fighters. Not on the side of tyrants. Long live Halifa Sallah all the ordinary Gambians suffering under the clutches of the cowardice tyrant Yahya Jammeh. I salute the resilience and dignity of the Gambian Momodou Olly Mboge Dublin, Republic of Ireland ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ **************Great Deals on Dell 15" Laptops - Starting at $479 (http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1220029050x1201385914/aol?redir=http:%2F%2Fad.doub leclick.net%2Fclk%3B212974460%3B34272906%3Bh) ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface at: http://listserv.icors.org/archives/gambia-l.html To Search in the Gambia-L archives, go to: http://listserv.icors.org/SCRIPTS/WA-ICORS.EXE?S1=gambia-l To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: [log in to unmask] ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤