I want to use your medium, The Standard, to say that President Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya AJJ Jammeh’s announcement in his recent state of nation address that the national corruption commission will start operation soon is a welcome, bold and long overdue step in the war against graft in government. This could be the defining moment and action in the war against graft. The president is simply saying that henceforth if you steal public money, you will face the music. He is making it clear that those who steal from public coffers shall be held accountable. And, he is saying, public money cannot be stolen itself. Therefore, the president made a deliberate and determined decision and wants to see action taken against those who are bent on stealing public money. The president wants a clean break with the past where public money is stolen and no thief is arrested and arraigned. He is demanding a paradigm shift and new direction in fighting graft. We all know that the effect of corruption in Africa has seriously constrained development of national economies and has significantly inhibited good governance on the continent. In some of the countries, the political design is a contributing factor to the rise of corruption, which has adversely affected stability and trust and which has damaged the ethos of democratic values and principles. Although some African governments have been instrumental in systems to fight the evils of corruption, practical problems have increasingly emerged over the years. The most notable problems are: insufficient coordination of anti-corruption work within the public service and among the various sectors of society; poor information about corruption and the impact of anti-corruption measures and
agencies; and the impact of corruption on good governance. The president deserves the support of the public because he is trying to safeguard our collective interest as a country.
Muhammed Dukureh,
Tallinding
It’s time for us to save the environment
Dear editor,
I am writing to share my view on our environment and how we should protect it from destruction. In the recent years there has been a significant rise in people’s concern for the environment. We all affect the natural environment, but we are often are unaware of how much we affect it. There is no part of the earth that does not remain affected by our actions. Our actions are now threatening the health of our planet, the land we live and work on, the water supply, the ozone layer, the animal species as well as the health of our species. These are the things that make up the environment. It consists of all the things like the living and the non living things in it. It can be classified as natural environment and built environment. One can define the natural environment as something that has been in existence for long and the built is the one that has been created by man. However, the natural atmosphere is being polluted due to the unnatural factors. Humans cause more pollution than the environmental causes like a volcanic eruption. It is the reckless and the caustic human nature that is primarily responsible for the environmental pollution. Most of the people are responsible for the pollution caused to the environment for their own personal motives. It is very difficult for the humans to accept any change from the environment they are born and live in. The environment built by humans has become more noteworthy than the natural ones in today’s times. The primary reasons for issues like global warming, land degradation pollution etc are due to the great dangers faced by everyone as a result of the negligence. The impacts of these issues are severe than originally thought and this is why we have to advance measures to save the environment. It’s time for us to save the environment.
Aminata Ceesay,
Ndemban
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