Dear Editor,
With Gambians transfixed by election fever, tribalist sentiments have been annoyingly expressed by some members of the society, questioning people’s backgrounds and origins as a way of disenfranchising them.
Literally speaking, everyone came from somewhere. That’s the human nature with people moving and migrating from one place to another. How many Gambians are dual citizens? Imagine if the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, and Spain deprive Gambians of their citizenship because of their origins. Anyone who fulfills The Gambia’s citizenship criteria should obtain it, and nobody has the authority or audacity to question his or her status. The naturalised citizen must also enjoy all the privileges of a citizen without being harassed.
Nobody in their right mind would encourage foreigners to meddle in the election process. However, anyone who produces a valid national ID card should be issued a voter’s card since an ID is only given to citizens. In the same token, I am against the issuing of attestations in the run-up to elections because the process could be tampered with.
The majority, unfortunately, also tend to vote on tribal lines rather than issues that affect their lives and livelihoods—the majority vote based on sentiments rather than policies. Voting on tribal lines mostly underlie pre-election tension and post-election conflict in many African countries – Kenya in mind!
Tribalism is extremely dangerous and can set our tiny country on fire. We must call it out and condemn it in the strongest terms possible.
Basidia M Drammeh
USA
Miserable people
Dear Editor,
I’m in solidarity with Fatou Jaw Manneh. President Barrow is hopeless but everyone has the right to accept or reject a job offer. Most people pretending to be UDP supporters are doing it for the prospects of a job offer from Darboe into government.
Why criticise Fatou Jaw Manneh for accepting a job offer from President Barrow – an honorary job offer whatever that means when that’s what all your politics is about?
Those criticising Fatou Jaw Manneh are the same ridiculous characters on social media trying to silence anyone from saying what they think especially when it’s not favourable to the UDP leadership. You wonder who these people think they are!
These are the most insidious people anyone could come across in life. All that they’re interested in politics is about getting a job in government. They never have anything productive to say about the politics and economics of The Gambia.
All they understand about politics is to blow the trumpet of the person they think will offer them the job in government. They cannot see anything wrong with whatever their political patron says and does. And they don’t want anyone to mention what’s wrong with their political patron whom they think will offer them a job in government.
Can you imagine how miserable it is to live such a pathetic life! What’s wrong with Fatou Jaw Manneh offered and accepting a job offer from the President?
By the way, that’s what all your politics is about in the first place – those whinging about nothing!
One minute they are supporters of President Barrow and the next minute they are in opposition to President Barrow. The denominator is, are they are working in government or are they thrown out.? Or is their guy in government who can offer them a job?
There’s nothing about their politics that’s about the democratic and economic development of The Gambia! We are a sick and tired of these miserable people in Gambian politics. We want a government in The Gambia that will create job opportunities for every Gambian; a government that will improve the living standards of every Gambian; a government that will develop the country and make life better for everyone.
If you want a job from your political patron party leader in government, wait for the job offer and give us a break. I saw one them said that the job offer to Fatou Jaw Manneh is unconstitutional. The person made the same idiotic comment when the president appointed some other guy deputy secretary general: that the appointment was unconstitutional because it’s not written in the constitution.
That is how ignorant some of these people are: does appointing someone to certain jobs in government have to be mentioned in the constitution?
They don’t understand anything about democratic politics and economics.
And sadly, they think that they are educated and their opinions matter.
Keep your vindictive self-serving politics to yourselves and give us a break!
I want President Barrow out but I can’t stand some of the miserable people in Gambian politics. And we seem to have lots of them in our midst.
They are so ignorant and full of themselves. They think that they can tell others what to do and what to say about public life in The Gambia.
We are Gambians and will say what we think will make democratic politics and the capitalist economics better in The Gambia regardless of what you think!
Yusupha ‘Major’ Bojang
UK
