That was a well written piece about D.A. Jawo. I wonder what has happened to the petition to reinstate him that was signed by most of the Observer employees. God Bless and peace Be Upon All Alasana Bah >From: chernob jallow <[log in to unmask]> >Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list ><[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Tribute to D.A.Jawo >Date: Tue, 22 Jun 1999 11:54:48 PDT > > D.A.Jawo: A man,a mission > > by Cherno Baba Jallow > in Detroit,USA > > "You can't run tanks on hopes. You can't riddle people's yearnings >with bullets." > --- Pres. Ronald Reagan to Chinese leaders on >Tiananmen >Square massacre. > >Such was the toughness and outspokeness enshrined in the writings of >D.A.Jawo. A journalist of calibre and timbre,a man of unassuming character >and moral uprightness,Jawo recently became the first casualty of the change >of ownership of the Daily Observer Company. He was fired without good >reasons but apparently for his acerbic opinions and beliefs and ideas,on >the >fossilization of his society. If you're looking for a prisoner of >conscience,Jawo is one. > >Well,actually,he's no prisoner,but a victim - not of his own designs - but >those of the privileged few,luxuriating in covetous courtship with the >powerful,and hell-bent on stifling intellectual growth and freedom. Jawo >may >have been driven to the edges of intellectual frustration, but the >ebullience and resilience in him,larger than imaginable,will rekindle his >hopes,put him once again,on the cusp of his mission: to speak the >unvarnished truth without fear or favour,in these days of Gambian political >insanity. And incivility. > >While at the Observer,Jawo unwittingly earned himself the custodianship of >the newspaper's traditions and precepts. He infused responsibility and >accountability in all of us - young writers,occasionally prone to youthful >immaturities and peccadilloes yet working for a credibly serious newspaper. >He knew us all by our personae,typescripts,writing styles and work ethics. >And he would dutifully point out our errors and proffer solutions,and then >leave you to defend your position. > >Jawo's writings as a reporter and columnist at the Observer had the cutting >edge of truth. He never shied away from speaking his mind even if the >scales >of public opinion were against him. That's one of the traits of a good >columnist: readiness to grapple with any issues whether controversial or >inflammatory of majoritarian tyranny. > >And Jawo was such good columnist. He wrote with verve and >enthuasism,profundity and clarity,honesty and objectivity. He combined >toughness and civility,which made his acerbic writings painfully >irresistible,instructively unputdownable. Read this: > >"The AFPRC also promised us that openness,transparency and accountability >will be the hallmarks of the regime, but it appears that there is quite a >lot left to be desired in that regard. We have witnessed the summary >dismissal of senior civil servants and other republic servants,and others >have been arrested and detained without anyone caring to tell us the >reasons >for such drastic actions." Jawo was doing a stocktaking of the AFPRC'S 100 >days in power in 1994. Five years later,his words still have a ring of >truth >about current political realities in our nation. > >But Jawo had one skill that many columnists do not have: he had ways of >telling you 'go to hell' and still have you come back to him looking for >friendship. Do you want a proof of that? Just see how he single-handedly >challenged State House Imam Abdoulie Fatty on his fanatical >rabble-rousings,which Jawo considered to be inimical to Islamic >sanity,secular unity and societal progress. In return,the Imam "threatened" >Jawo,but later denied he ever did so. He said he would be happy to meet >Jawo >and even shake hands with him. > >Imam Fatty's overt change of heart was not because he wittingly submitted >himself to self-scrutiny,but because he discovered his threats could not >frighten Jawo into silence;that Jawo was a mountain that didn't move. He >was >rock-solid in his opinions on the actions of the Imam. Jawo was not the >type >of reporter or columnist easily brow-beaten into reticence. Speak his mind >he must! > >I recall with great nostalgia my days at the Observer with Jawo. If he was >not editing news reports,he was always busy scribbling notes which he >would >later develop into a thought-provoking essay or commentary. His eyes gazing >above the rims of his lenses,adorned with his grizzled hair,Jawo would >always engage us in journalistic dialogue on issues of the day. He would >ask >probing questions and then a proliferation of ideas would follow. We never >always agreed with him,but oftentimes we listened with painstaking >attention,as he argued his points. > >My respect for Jawo increased when, out of sheer ethica values,he stood by >me during my confrontation with the then Acting Nigerian High Commissioner >Goffrey Teneilabe. The High Commissioner was incensed by an article I wrote >in my column in 1995 lambasting his propagandist diplomacy at the behest of >Sani Abacha,Nigeria's most brutal military dictator since Ironsi in 1966. > >I wrote: "Time after time,the Acting Nigerian High Commissioner,more >loquacious than profound,has put up a spirited defence in favour of the >Abacha regime. The Abuja administration is constantly proffered panegyric >stakes. And anything critical of it is viewed disdainfully." The High >Commisioner went bonkers! He threatened to sue me and the Daily Observer >Company,for libel? We wondered. > >Granted,facts and Almighty God were on my side,and I had received >tremendous >support from Nigerians in the streets,I still was visibly shaken by the >threat of a suit. Here was a young columnist taking to task a high >commissioner of the most powerful country in West Africa. I didn't want to >go through all the rigmarole of court proceedings;it was going to waste my >time and delay my efforts to pursue university education abroad,I lamented. >And I was concerned that my family,which was always opposed to my >journalism >career,would have had more genuine reasons why I needed to quit the >profession. > >But Jawo determinedly pep talked me out of my emotional distress. "You have >nothing to fear," he reassured me. "Your opinions are your opinions," he >added. He reasoned that to put me on trial for my opinions,expressed within >the ambits of the law,would be a travesty, and that the Nigerian High >Commission was simply fighting a rearguard situation. > >Up till I left The Gambia in 1996,nobody would tell me anything more about >a >lawsuit from the Nigerian High Commission. An informed source would later >tell me the suit-threat had been dropped,and the High Commissioner had >simply lodged a complaint against me at the Foreign Affairs Ministry on >Marina Parade. > >Jawo's moral support was very instrumental. It energized my zeal to pen >down >yet more groundbreaking articles. He dusted off old copies of the AfricaNow >and New African magazines from his drawers and handed them to me. His wish >was to open up my mind to the didactic writings of Peter Enahoro,Abdu >Rahman >Babu and Phillip Ochieng,three great African columnists who made great >strides on Africa's journalistic scene in the 1970s and 80s. In those >days,Jawo was already writing in the opinion pages of these magazines. His >interest in journalism is as old as the hills. > >Dismissal from the Observer will make not break Jawo. Always determined and >perceptive, he will bounce back and carry on with his mission. He is >undaunted. In the pursuit of truth he shall continue to persevere. And >survive. I think the world of Jawo. > > >_______________________________________________________________ >Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. Visit http://www.msn.com > >---------------------------------------------------------------------------- > >To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L >Web interface at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html > >---------------------------------------------------------------------------- > _______________________________________________________________ Get Free Email and Do More On The Web. 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