Less than two years ago, we had a common cause, almost all Gambians wanted one thin, and one thing only, to change our government and begin the arduous journey of (re)building and reforming our institutions and civil services. We came together, fought a bitter battle – in which some lost life and limb. Some lost everything they held dear just to ensure that we defenestrate that man who had hijacked our country for far too long.
While this struggle was going on, there was a section of the Gambian Society that was bent on frustrating our efforts. They wrote, spoke and met all in an effort to ensure that the status quo remained. They paraded themselves on television and radio to misinform the masses; to paint a picture that the Gambian electorate had been taken for a ride – that the result was actually cooked.
Some of these people went to the extent of declaring a state of emergency and extending their term of office, all this to find ways to subvert the will of the Gambian people. This was so intense and the fight so real that the fear of what could be, led more than a hundred thousand Gambians to be displaced and become refugees in the neighboring countries. All this has been documented in the past.
It is therefore strange to observe that some of those very people who went to these lengths to subvert our will are now hobnobbing with you. They kowtow to you and your government and want us to pretend that these things never happened. One wonders where honour is when you need it. Granted, we must reconcile as Gambians because we have one destiny; but, to see the architects of the impasse enjoying the warmth of our leaders – the stalwarts of the struggle – beats imagination.
Watching proceedings of the tour and some other forums and seeing former arch enemies of the Coalition heaping praises on Adama Barrow is indeed a wonderful Reality TV that makes most soap operas seem like jokes. How incredulous!
If we really want to reform our institutions and the civil service, we cannot – must not – cozy up to these people.
Many of them have either been invited by the Janneh Commission or are accused of something or the other. If therefore they are within the system – with some level of power – isn’t it possible that they can work from within to thwart our efforts. Isn’t it possible that some of them are just presenting a red herring so they gain proximity to you and sabotage your efforts?
There is a proverb in the Fula Language ‘Mbo sobhaaki sobhtotaako’. (He who is not suspicious will not escape). You must therefore be very mindful of those people who would have loved to see you fail a year or two ago, and now proclaim to want you to succeed. I for one, I am wary of these ‘twofacers’. They present an enigma which should be studied cautiously before being dismissed as harmless.
These and some actions reminiscent of the dictatorship – the billboards, the religious rhetoric, the youth movements – send shiver my spine that perhaps we have lost track and are groping in limbo. Are we?
Have a good day Mr President..
