By Mathew K Jallow (OPINION)
It is a brazen usurpation of the collective diaspora authority and an anti-thesis to everything the dissident movement so far stood for in the last two decades. Dr Abdoulaye Saine’s letter/article warning Yahya Jammeh, which appeared in several online papers, is the closest the dissident movement has come to in snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. But, Dr Saine’s article/letter was also contradictory; on the one hand, requesting dialogue with, and on the other, warning Yahya Jammeh, all in the same breadth, is not a mark of high diplomatic sensibility, nor is it a manifestation of deeper understanding of the challenges facing the dissident movement. Yahya Jammeh’s regime thrives in the chaotic environment of fear generated threats, having so often used these threats to justify the scepter of dissident invasion as rationale for the frequent mass arrests, incarcerations and murders; all in the name of maintaining national security. This has been so evident over the years that one would think the consequences of empty threats against the Yahya Jammeh regime would by now be indelibly burnt in our collective memory. The last time Sedia Bayo issued similar threats, Yahya Jammeh relished and capitalized on it to flood Senegal with NIA agents, abducted Saul Ndow and Mahawa Cham, and spent millions buying Senegalese officials and citizens’ loyalties. The massive NIA espionage in the aftermath of the Sedia Bayo debacle and Gambians’ constant fear of abductions in Dakar is the product of Mr Bayo’s threats and ill-fated power grab. Sedia Bayo can be excused for the total lack of understanding of the nuances surrounding the most disastrous events of the past two decades; but Dr Saine, not so much.
Dr Saine’s article/letter echoes a stunning defeatism that threatens to undermine the struggle’s successes and psychologically reverse Yahya Jammeh’s embattled regime by offering a life-line and an easy escape from the pressure of the local and international forces. Even Dr Saine, in his article, confirms the intense pressure Yahya Jammeh is under by citing the first time a Gambian dissident event has attracted the international media and filtered through to the corridors of power around the world; forcing Yahya Jammeh to miss the two most consequential events of the US-Africa Summit. It, therefore, seems counterintuitive to dialogue with an embattled Yahya Jammeh at a time he is most vulnerable to the combined diaspora, opposition and international pressure. This questions Dr Saine’s leadership competence, especially since he is struggling to make critical decisions on the most basic, but important, issues in a small organization of less than ten members. As a new head of one civil society organization, Dr Saine has struggled desperately over the past couple of months, and appears lost in a minefield where the currency of decision-making is thoughtfulness, determination and an independent mind. Dr Saine’s leadership model has hitherto been the tail wagging the dog, a situation that has dogged his leadership for months. Additionally, GCC recognizes every organization, even ones with three active members, but Dr Saine’s inability to acknowledge GCC as a powerful force, is part of a conspiracy to undermine GCC’s efforts. But GCC does not care, or need Dr Saine’s validation, but his denial makes him look like not living in reality. Dr Saine’s desire to common-cause with Yahya Jammeh without an agenda, is merely a stunt that speaks to a baffling amateurism and show-boating, with which he tries to nurse a tattered organization back to life and legitimacy, but he speaks for his organization, yet his constant narrative of CORDEG as Gambians’ umbrella organization, is just that; a pipe dream.
The doubling down, this week, on the ridiculous idea of dialoguing with criminal Yahya Jammeh came from a largely unknown and unrecognizable identity. But unlike Dr Saine’s use of forceful verbiage, Modou Njai somehow authorized himself to indemnity Yahya Jammeh of the heinous crimes of his regime. This arrogant display of self-righteousness and apparent miscalculation of the mood of the Gambian people, originates from subjective judgment that smacks of diabolical insensitivity to the tragedy of the past two decades. The cluelessness Dr Saine seems to exhibit contrasts Modou Njai’s bullet-point of issues with which to negotiate away Gambians’ right to hold the regime accountable for its vast crimes. Modou Njai’s moral sanctimoniousness lacks consideration for the views of Gambians affected by the long history of state sanctioned waste of human lives. Between Dr Saine’s curious lack of an agenda and Modou Njai’s bullet-points showcasing the absolution of Yahya Jammeh and his regime of heinous crimes, it is almost like Mr Dumb and Dumber come to town. The pathological indifference to the litany of crimes that oozes out of Modou Njai’s narrative, is a manifestation of how distant he is from mind torture and mental war many Gambians are struggling with on a daily basis. Gambians have struggled to restore sanity to their country, and there is a burning desire to see change, but the cost must never be over the rights of citizens. Besides, the political parties, including UDP leader Hon. Ousainou Darboe, have in the past tried cajoling Yahya Jammeh into a national round table, but that offer was rejected by Yahya Jammeh’s unresponsiveness. What more can Dr Saine and Mr Njie do that neither Ousainou Darboe nor Halifa Sallah can do?