The euphoric and generous nation – Gambia!
Dear editor,
So it is; D300,000 for madam philanthropist to get closer to Gambians; D2M for the President to address the nation at the assembly; D2M for the army band to compose another “al’yero fingjang ng’heh bang”; D10M for the return date of the day we were told to be responsible of our own business aka independence celebrations; D22M for the presidential philanthropic caravan to continue, I did love to be a president too; D30M for the nation’s house at Banjul to be finally at the level of the Oval Office because it needs more maintenance.
Yes! Our coffers have been generously refilled and we can all celebrate the refilling but wait a minute, do you know that my colleagues need sponsorship to be trained as specialists in order to give our people the needed specialist care?
My former work place needs medications to ensure that her sorry visitors get a happy home return. My teachers need strong financial muscles to make their homes happy. My friends in the security services need a consideration of their daily plight. My mothers at the markets, swamps, seaside, gardens etc need a remembrance of their daily struggle. My mates in the civil and public service need lactogen for their malnourished take homes. My brothers and sisters in school need encouragement on their pursuit for the best in their academic lives. My uncles on the farms need seeds and fertilizers to dream of a better tomorrow from their produces.
Oh no mister stubborn, we are just celebrating the remarkable refilling of our emptied coffers and need not wait a minute to reconsider the many struggles we were part of yesterday.
See me, I did forget that it’s a “New Gambia” which we must cuddle like the princess of Sokoto because it’s new and we are sure of the generosity of the toubabs anytime our tanks start leaking.
Alright I will be quiet and be thankful to my MPs but I hope their “No” to anything at the assembly will remain as a “No” for the good of Jollof for they must remember that that house is the nation’s most and only important disciplinary hall for the rat racers.
Until then, enjoy the celebrations Gambia!
Muhammed Teks Tekanyi
USA
The U.S. said ‘No’
Dear editor,
The second intifada saw 1,000 Israelis murdered and 3,000 Arab terrorists killed attacking Israeli civilians. Yasser Arafat planned the intifada before going to Camp David to meet President Bill Clinton and Prime Minister Ehud Barak. Though they got everything they claimed (to the West) they wanted, Arafat feared signing an “end of conflict clause” would lead to his death, so he went home and launched his suicide bombers.
The Israelis learned, built the security barrier and can somewhat control the flow of people from the West Bank.
The Arabs riot when their leaders tell them to, when they are angry and when they are happy. Every riot is a party.
Israel had been the capital of the Jews for over 3,000 years, when King David built his temple. Jews ruled Jerusalem several times over the millennia. It has never been an Arab capital.
In the 20th century, it always had more Jews then either Christians or Muslims, until the Jordanians illegally occupied it from 1949 to 1967 and killed or forced them out.
Trump, stating the obvious, has motivated the Arabs. They have long ago stopped pretending that every inch of Israel is not occupied Palestinian territory. Now, the United States has said “No.”
The Muslim world, including the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and the Arab League, can shed the dream they will eventually “drive the Jews into the sea.” It is time for them to release their brothers they have kept in squalid refugee camps for 70 years. It is time for them to make peace and join in the economic and intellectual dynamism that is Israel.
They may dominate Europe, but they will not vanquish Israel.
Len Bennett
Ottawa, Ontario
