I had a great opportunity on October 08th 2014 to officially meet the Gambian Ambassador to the U.S in charge d’affaires Mr. Sheikh Omar Faye, and Counselor to the Gambian embassy Mr. Hamba Manneh, to restart a process of reconciliation through an open dialogue for the Gambian people. Although Mr. Pierre Minteh the protocol officer was not available, he made it possible to facilitate the meeting and gave me all the assurance that the Gambian embassy is open for all. Mr. Sheikh Omar Faye and staff welcomed me like any other Gambian citizen, and we sat to discuss the way forward through reconciliation. In my opening I said that it was to restart a dialogue because according to my understanding, the President His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr. Yahya Jammeh Babili Mansa said in New York according to Samsideen Sarr, “the President said he has never closed the doors to reconcile and anyone who is sincere and means well for the Gambia, he is ready to have a dialogue with for the Gambia’s interest.” Those very same words were echoed by the charge d’affaires Ambassador Mr. Sheikh Omar Faye. I also felt that the commitment and assurance they gave me was genuine, and that they are ready to reaffirm their words with actions.
We had a lengthy discussion with the presence of the counselor to the embassy Mr. Manneh who took notes and we all spoke with mutual respect. I was not hypnotized or given anything to drink even though I declined their kind gesture for offering me something. It is God who ordained this meeting to go through peacefully and God willing something positive will come out of it. I shall not go into detail as to what we said word for word, but I made it very clearly that I am there on behalf of all Gambians that want to see peace, and have no ulterior motives to promote anyone’s agenda, but that of the interest of The Gambia we all love. I also expressed my gratitude for them welcoming me and not asking me to support their party or showed me any signs of mistrust. They were very professional and polite. We listened to each other and I shared my ideas for a better Gambia which we all have a stake in. The backing and support of the Gambian government to reconcile our differences through an open dialogue with mutual respect and understanding is a great achievement for the Gambian people. We must all join hands collectively to make sure that this lengthy process is a success. It will not be for me, or the President, but for The Gambia and the future generation.
It is a right of every citizen to express dismay and call on their government to work better for the people, but it must also be done through the right channels of diplomacy, open dialogue, and mutual respect. It is very clear that both sides feel the need to exercise restraint and show that they are on the right side of history, but it will only be to the detriment of the entire nation if we don’t build bridges to reconcile our differences and work for the sole purpose of the interest of The Gambia. It is also very clear that many wrongs have been made for no one is perfect, but we should work collectively to fix those wrongs and pave a new way forward for all Gambians. Let us put aside our political affiliations, interests, tribes, religion, egos, and work collectively to make sure that there will be reforms in place so that we can all live in peace, and work towards development. Let us also pray for the leadership of the President to make the necessary reforms as he has welcomed the reconciliation process. May we all come to the realization that we need each other and that we should be our brothers and sisters keeper. I thank God, the President His Excellency Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr. Yahya Jammeh Babili Mansa, Minister of Foreign Affairs Bala Garba Jahumpa, Gambian Ambassador to the U.S Mr. Sheikh Omar Faye, Protocol Officer Mr. Pierre Minteh, counselor to the embassy Mr. Manneh, Lamin (Quin), Opposition parties, Diaspora groups, friends, families, and all those supporters who believed in me, and made it possible for a dialogue process to restart so that we can reconcile our differences for Gambia’s sake. It will take hard work and dedication to get to our goals but all is possible if we learn to tolerate one another and have mutual respect for each other. Let us not sabotage each other but let us lift each other up and rise as one nation. As the saying goes, “united we stand, divided we fall.” I am now asking for sincere people who share the same views of peace, reconciliation, and an avenue for an open dialogue through mutual respect, to come forward and reach out so that we can collectively craft something concrete for the Gambian people. We owe it to Gambia and be rest assured that I will reach out to you as well. I thank you all and hope to bring in collectively positive results for the Gambian people through a dialogue that has being so welcoming by the Gambian administration. Peace be with you all and may we achieve our goals for The Gambia we all love.
Momodou Njai