By Ensa A B Ceesay
As the UDP navigates through a tumultuous period marked by chaos, pandemonium, hullabaloo, and deafening noises from various interest groups within its ranks, the leadership must act expeditiously to address disagreements and tangible loopholes of arrogance and insubordination and to regroup and fall back in line, not only for the UDP’s benefit but also for the well-being of our republic.
Our young mayors and chairpersons possess the potential to become great presidents, but they must do so sequentially. Above all, they must demonstrate discipline and decorum and adhere to a formidable due process of the party’s central committee selection processes.
We previously condemned Mr Adama Barrow’s visits to KMC or WCR without consulting with Talib Ahmed Bensouda or Yankuba Darboe in their respective jurisdictions. Similarly, it is unfortunate and disturbing that UDP’s young leadership is experiencing internal conflicts, which necessitate swift resolution. This means they are not practising what they preach to Gambians.
All of them should conduct themselves excellently, and nobody desires people to come to their household to be marginalised, yet be content with it. Not even those vocal on social media would have been worse in dealing with a scenario like what was presented to us.
The most critical time for conflict resolution is as soon as possible after the conflict arises, while the issue is still relatively contained and manageable. Delaying too long can lead to escalation, rendering the conflict more challenging to resolve and potentially damaging relationships.
As a party, we must prevent escalation, preserve relationships, maintain productivity, reduce stress amongst militants and executives, allow for cooling-off, consider the context of issues, not their dictions, and avoid indefinite delay. However, while waiting can be beneficial, prolonged avoidance can be detrimental.
Ultimately, the objective is to address conflicts constructively and efficiently, aiming for a mutually agreeable resolution that strengthens relationships and fosters a positive environment.
This analysis is neither accusatory towards Chairman Yankuba Darboe nor Talib Ahmed Bensouda or Mayor Rohey Malick Lowe, but rather highlights the frustration laised by neglecting issues when they first emerged or resolving them haphazardly, thinking they will resolve themselves, resulting in Chairman Yankuba Darboe’s revelations on Mengbekering TV.
Everyone, especially UDP executives, should resolve matters swiftly, boldly, with decisive precision, and squarely rather than taking sides, which every innate being has. Let me emphasise that I am not suggesting that the executives take sides in the above trios; instead, I am making a general observation.
Moving forward, I suggest that if either Rohey Malick Lowe or Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda were to be invited by media houses, they should decline to comment on any questions that the journalists would pose, which could potentially bring further disunity, divisions, and misunderstanding amongst UDP members. Only through this approach can we ensure trust, credibility, unity within the party, and confidence from the Gambian people.
