Dear Editor,
I came across an open letter purportedly written by PASTEF Gambia and to say I’m disappointed will be an understatement. PASTEF Gambia starts off their letter with the subject matter: A Call for Consensus to Pass the 2024 New Constitution for National Interest!
That was my first disappointment! PASTEF plays right into the hands of Adama Barrow and his mandarins by making it seem like the conversation around a new constitution must begin with the Barrow 2024 Constitution! They either deliberately ignored the fact that there was a 2020 draft that the people of this country had a say in or they are simply being disingenuous! Either scenario is not what we expect from PASTEF Gambia.
The second disappointment is in the first paragraph of the letter. Though not explicitly stated, PASTEF Gambia addresses Mr Ousainou Darboe and President Adama Barrow as if the lack of a new constitution comes down to these two individuals and their influence within the Gambia. That is far from the reality and I would expect PASTEF Gambia to know better. Mr Ousainou Darboe, like most Gambians, has nothing whatsoever to do with the Barrow 2024 draft and PASTEF Gambia knows this! That Constitution belongs to Adama Barrow and those doing everything to see him remain in power indefinitely.
I find it hypocritical for any organisation, individual or entity that asks Gambians to compromise on the Barrow 2024 draft authoritarian treaty when they remained silent when Barrow and his enablers decided to torpedo the 2020 Draft! Why didn’t you ask Barrow and his team to compromise on the 2020 draft? Where were you when the very first complaint Barrow’s Cabinet lodged about the 2020 Draft was his inability to stay in power forever? Why couldn’t you raise your voice then and ask for a compromise?
This constitutional fight is not between Mr Ousainou Darboe and Mr Adama Barrow. It is not between the UDP and the NPP. It is between Adama Barrow and his enablers on one side and The Gambian people on the other side! Simple. Asking the UDP or Mr Ousainou Darboe to compromise on something he has zero input in is hypocritical. Asking Gambians to compromise on a document which was finalized without their input is disingenuous. Again, the issue is between Adama Barrow and the people and no one who truly cares about the people’s voice should be asking Gambians to compromise for the sake of one person hellbent on remaining in power simply because losing power is seen as an existential threat to them! I get it that for some Gambians, their livelihood is contingent upon Adama Barrow remaining in power and they’ll happily bury their heads in the dirt to find fault everywhere but where it belongs. I get that.
For PASTEF Gambia, please write your letter to Adama Barrow and tell him to respect the Gambian people’s wishes and bring back the 2020 draft constitution. If our claim that the constitution is for all Gambians, then no one should make it about their desire to remain in power. As imperfect as the 2020 draft constitution may be, it is better than this document that I was told they hired a South African to draft for them! The people deserve better than being at the mercy of one man and his enablers. PASTEF, as Barrow’s own minister of information once said, it is Barrow who “ditched” the 2020 draft constitution. I agree with him. Please tell Barrow to bring back the people’s constitution!
Alagie Saidy-Barrow
