Dialogue pulled Gambia from brink of war – Halifa

By Amadou Jadama The secretary general of the People’s Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism and National Assembly member for Serekunda, has emphasized the need for national dialogue to shape the future of The Gambia’s political, social and economic transformation. Halifa Sallah made this remark while delivering his key note address on the importance of national dialogue during International Republican Institute national conference at Ocean Bay Hotel in Bakau. The event brought together political parties and civil society organizations and it is part of activities marking the end of the IRI project. “It is important for us to sit down and articulate the situation of the country by reviewing the past in order to shape the future. The tragedy is we are not interrogating the past but casting blames that is why we are not still on the right trajectory to shape the future of our country and that is why we are having this campaign workshop, “he said. Sallah said we should face each other and ask ourselves the fundamental question on what our country needs to move forward and since no individual has the answer, that is why there must be dialogue. Honourable Sallah cited the importance of dialogue, recalling that in 2016 during the political impasse when the country was heading to war, it was through dialogue that the country did not perish. “Most Gambians were predicting violence, many people have seen that cutlasses and knives had disappeared from the markets with few people believing in the electoral system and fearing that The Gambia was definitely heading towards a civil war. “Dialogue brought these people who shared no vision or mission of the people, but necessity compelled them to sit down and put their interest behind to look at the national interest as the supreme interest and crafted a way to participate in an election on the basis of strength rather than weakness, “Mr Sallah said. Speaking further, Sallah noted. Realising that their destiny was challenged and that destiny was in their hands to take charge and they turn back and show blind destiny of hopelessness, and that dialogue is what brought about the Coalition president, election campaign and]]>