Dear editor,
Progressive Gambians all over the world are grateful to Alhassan Darboe for saying it all, in a very simple, straight forward and concise narrative. It cannot be said better. Having reminded Gambian voters and the world at large, of the existence of a Gangster Republic worst than Yahya Jammeh’s regime on the first day of Ramadan, our gracious Lord will reward him abundantly. It is unfortunate that, most African political leaders (Presidents/Prime Ministers) get very angry at the people who voted them into office because of their all out effort to exert their manipulative influence over them. Since the beginning of time, that is, sovereign satus, this has happened.
National leaders try to exert influence over their electorate, and quite often overdo it. Country tries to dominate country. To the end of time it will happen. For our subservient relations to our political leaders let us blame no opponent but ourselves. In this day and age there is no slave but the one who wills it.
“It is not in our stars but in ourselves that we are underlings.” Shakespeare. (But will English literature majors forgive the line if it is misquoted?).
There is actually no need to examine our relations with the gangster republic. What we have to examine, literally is our minds, our psychology. Independence is literally that. You are independent if you are not dependent. You are economically dependent if you are economically dependent; that is, if your economy hangs on the decision of another country/person. You are psychologically dependent if you are psychologically dependent; that is, if your actions are guided not by your own thoughts but by the actions of someone else.
Since we claim to be an independent citizenry in a sovereign state, it is important that we do the right things. It is more important that we do them for the right reasons. The suggestion that, Gambians need to stand up and protest for their rights. That, Gambians need to stand up and protest for their government to use their tax monies judiciously, to hire qualified advisers and ministers to guide the running of their government, rather than hiring so-called advisers and ministers, some of whom are barely literate, cannot communicate, who have no idea of what development policy means, who have turned the State House into a market place, created and reinforced an epoch of mediocrity; they are hanging themselves by their greed, lining their pockets with illegal money. Some of these are being documented for the future “Commission of Enquiry.”
If the government is quite sure of itself and takes and uses the tax payers money the way the normal person takes birthday presents, then it can go serenely on carrying its policies to promote and protect the interest of its citizens.
Facts about the gangster republic that were not known at the time of their incepotion are gradually being documented. This is a classical example of adage that history is written by the victors. Because there are facts – now indisputable – that we didn’t know, or were hidden from public knowledge are made available.
The failure of the Coalition government, now turned into a “party government” has failed to reform our society. This is essential to the solution of our enduring and stubborn problems of injustice, mass poverty and social equality and, since the three years have passed and five years will come and go and will neither restructure our society nor maintain what gains it originaly made, then the gangster republic must go. It is only through educated, decent and forward looking leadership that we can achieve the unity of mind, the strength of will and the joy of common effort that can move the nation forward, because only in freedom and justice are we truly men – and truly Gambians.
True citizen
