Contrary to what has been paraded as an arm invasion and an attempt to destabilize and destroy a country, the events of December 30th 2014 exactly six months today were anything but arm banditry or an attempt to destabilize Gambia. What it was and we have evidence to back it up was an attempt to rescue a population from a mad man masquerading to be a supreme leader of an impoverished nation. It was an attempt to once again restore civility, dignity, rule of law and respect for the safety, security, life and liberty of a people. Though unsuccessful in one key front – removing the dictator; it has forever sent a clear signal that until every Gambian is guaranteed safety and security in their own country, no one including the presidency will be spared of citizen challenges to bring back normalcy in Gambia.
To brand the December 30th alleged attempt as “a few group of citizens” wanting to seize and control power is either a blatant attempt to distort the facts or a lack of understanding of the values and principles the people alleged to be involved stood for all their lives. The alleged conspirators are patriotic citizens who have a long history of promoting Democracy, rule of law and justice for all. Their activism is centered on defending the rights of every Gambian citizen to freedom of expression, participation in their national discourse and the rights to due process. If you know or even attempt to do a simple search of the values the likes of Banka Manneh, the late Njaga Jagne, Papa Faal, Alagie Barrow, Cherno Njie and others stand for, then you would not fail to come across or realized that they have all their lives stood for the principles of Democratic values, Human rights and justice for all.
What Banka Manneh believes in (watch video) is Democracy and the power of the ballot box. He has engaged from the time he left the Gambia in the late 1990s speaking against injustices, mobilized Democratic forces and opposition parties to form the National Alliance for Democracy and Development (NADD) – a historic union of all opposition parties for the first time in the history of the Gambia which was formed under his stewardship. For the late US Army Captain Njaga Jagne, Papa Faal and Alagie Barrow they have not only tasted Democracy but have lived and defended Democracy and Human Rights from Afghanistan to Iraq where they severed in brutal wars to defend the rights of women and children against political and or radical oppressive regimes. These distinguished US Gambian citizens are anything but opportunistic. They left their comfort zones, their freedom and peace in the US to try to rescue a nation from the clutches of tyranny.
For Cherno Njie the Texas Gambian Millionaire and alleged sponsor of the mission to rescue Gambia; he epitomizes the success story of every dream child. Mr. Njie like any ordinary Gambian immigrated to the US to try his dreams in living a better and more meaningful life. Success is what he has become starting from a poor community college student to becoming a multimillionaire business man in America. Despite his fortunes Mr. Njie did not forget his country; he remained in constant touch with his people both on the ground and in the Diaspora. He wanted the same opportunities he had for his people back in Gambia. Thus, stayed engaged and politically active in the background. Cherno Njie is everything but a Gambian who wants to control power. Power he has – the money and resources to live a life of dignity and happiness but he also choose to ally with his fellow citizens to rescue a nation through democratic means contrary to allegations that he wanted to control power. Other alleged State House attackers such as former State House Commander Colonel Lamin Sanneh, Modou Njie and many unnamed patriots are equally citizens who care about the political oppression in Gambia. Col. Sanneh had every incentive to stay with Jammeh and enjoy the same privileges his fellow tribes men are enjoying under Jammeh. But the quiet Sanneh fell apart with the government reportedly due to his disagreement on how things were being run in Banjul.
Thus the story of the alleged attacks on the State House in Banjul on December 30th 2014, six months today is still taking its rightful place in history. It is abundantly clear that whatever these citizens stood up for and gave up their lives and freedom is getting even worst in the Gambia. Yahya Jammeh has gone from bad to worst vindicating opponents claims that he continues to brutalize the entire Gambian nation. If anybody have ever had doubt that Yahya Jammeh and his regime are a brutal bunch of oppressors who will not stop at anything to clinch on to power, one need not look too far. The continuous arrest, detention and torture in the country continuous unabated. One would have thought that after eight attempts on his life with one coming seconds close to getting rid him, he would have learned from those lessons and begin to walk back his hard stance on doing everything to keep himself in power.
But Yahya Jammeh is not capable of learning from the lessons of history. If he was, he would have realized that there is no safe exit strategy for him on the path he is on. His long term safety and security is directly tied to collective safety and security of all Gambians. Nothing can prevent a determined people from regaining their freedom to live in freedom and dignity. The end is nearer for him than he can see with his nicked eyes. Any human being with an iota of common sense would have looked around and understand what is at stake for him and his family. Apparently, Yahya Jammeh would rather set Gambia aflame and go to sleep than care for the future of his family and his own future.
Consequently, what Gambians need to come to terms with is that their work is cut out for them as they have a leader who would set the country on flames than ease his grip on to power or leave office graciously. Yahya Jammeh’s quest to not only control power but to keep citizens out of their national discourse is a sign of a once in a generation leader who would defy all odds and history and impose his brutality on a people. This hunger for absolute power can only be equated to Hitler of Germany who wanted to wipe out generations of human races. Everything Yahya Jammeh utters from his mouth, every action he has taken, every threat he has issued for the last 20 years has demonstrated a clear signs of a mad man ready to wipe out a whole generation and the history of a nation and its people. Thus the attempt by Gambian dissidents to rescue a nation from a potential bloodbath is anything but an attempt to destabilize a nation. It was a genuine effort to stop a nation’s final revolt and carnage against a leader who will not stop at anything to get his way. These train treks Yahya Jammeh puts Gambia on must be stopped before he unleash an even greater homicide on this impoverish nation and its people. His latest attempt through the national assembly to impose the death penalty on any crime he dimmed fit in Gambia would be the final nail on the coffin for an unrestricted state sanction killings. Thus December 30th was an attempt to rescue the Gambia from this unprecedented journey of human catastrophe.