The issues of racism, tribalism and colonialism have left people of African descent dangling, walking and wandering between pillar and post as to where lies their self-assertive and preservative nature. PSCTD – Post Slavery-Colonial Traumatic Disorder, among black folks at home and abroad appears to defy cure. It makes one ask, what do black folks want? Appeasement? Apology? Do we wish by design and default an UTOPIC world which does not exist and will never exist? Have we treated each other well, especially those opportuned to have had and have power? Of the world’s 190 heads of state – prime…
Author: Gainako
Secretary General Lamin Nyabally They were supposed to be the beacon of hope for safe guarding Democracy in the tiny West African nation of the Gambia. They are not only the representatives of the people but the voice and the guardians of the Democratic future of the nation. Thus, by virtue of the importance of their historic role, they were to ensure that the Executive and the Judiciary does not abuse their power and hold them accountable in any attempts to jeopardize the Democracy and long term peace of the country. The rubber…
By Madi Jobarteh Introduction It was the Hon. Frantz Fanon who said that each generation must discover its mission, to either fulfill or betray. Right now this is the fundamental challenge facing the current generation of National Assembly Members of the Gambia as they are placed face to face with a set of electoral proposals for the good of the Gambia. For these generation of honourable men and women to fulfill or betray this most important mission that directly determines the health and strength or otherwise of the Gambian Democracy, they must be first reminded of the role and function…
The address was 64 Dobson Street, Banjul, and the laughter and screaming of children could always be heard from far away. There was lots of yelling from the adults too, as they tried to quiet us down so they could hear each other in their private conversations. The houses were in close proximity and freely accessible to all living in the compound. Our mood and the games we played were determined by the weather. The aroma of delicious cooking always filled the air in the evening as each house prepared dinner. Don’t follow your nose because you may end…
Gambian IEC Chairman in Chains to kill Democracy CHAIRMAN INDEPENDENT ELECTORAL COMMISSION BERTEL HARDING HIGHWAY, KANIFING SUBJECT: WILL THE IEC HAVE THE MORAL AUTHOITY TO PRESIDE OVER AN ELECTORAL SYSTEM WHICH INTENDS TO IMPOSE NON REFUNDABLE DEPOSITS AMOUNTING TO SEVEN MILLION DALASIS TO PARRICIPATE IN PRESIDENTIAL, PARLIAMENTARY AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS? The Elections (Amendment) Bill 2015 seeks to impose a fee amounting to 1 Million dalasis before sovereign Gambians could register a political party. It aims to impose a non refundable deposit of 1 Million Dalasis if the party aims to put up…
PRESS RELEASE ON THE 11TH May PROPOSAL AND DEMANDS OF THE OPPOSITION FOR ELECTORAL AND CONSTITUTIONAL REFORM In response to the general consensus among the opposition and election monitors of the need for electoral reform in the Gambia to promote free, fair and credible elections, six opposition parties held a series of meetings to take stock of all the constitutional, legal, procedural and administrative challenges confronting the electoral system and have on 11th May 2015 formulated a comprehensive set of demands and proposals for electoral reform, aimed at ensuring the creation of a level political architecture for holding free ,fair…
By Mathew K Jallow It almost seems surreal; like the incantation of a funereal ballad of horror which shows Gambia slowly morph as the Third Reich reborn; methodically transformed into an archetypical anarchist society. The Constitutional parameters, which limit and inhibit the excesses of state power in the Gambia, have crumbled and dissolved into nothingness. The Gambia’s Constitution, a revered social and political organizing document, has, long ago lost its force of law, the victim of Yahya Jammeh’s systemic subversion and determination to decree who lives and dies in the Gambia. Yahya Jammeh has already usurped the authority…
By D. A. Jawo The Gambian authorities have made good their promise to ban the importation, manufacture and use of all plastic bags (without any exception) with effect from 1st July. Of course it has been generally agreed that plastic bags are a big environmental hazard, especially in Africa where people do not seem to have the attitude of throwing rubbish into rubbish bins, apparently because in most places, the bins are not even available. However, implementing such a measure like the ban on the use of plastic bags required a thorough study and implementation in phases rather than…
In 2006, Gambian security forces subjected journalist Musa Saidykhan to one of the cruellest, most inhuman and degrading forms of treatment simply for exercising his right to freedom of expression. But Musa refused to let his torture break his spirit and, assisted by the Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA), he successfully sued The Gambia at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Community Court of Justice. The Court found that The Gambia had violated Musa’s human rights and awarded Musa US$200,000 in compensatory damages, which has yet to be paid. The MFWA thus joins Musa in…