It is important to engage our citizens at all times from every corner of the world so everyone or at least majority of Gambians particularly those politically conscious understand the state of our country and the political situation we are dealing with. One of the first steps is to do soul searching and self-discovery of how much we understand the Gambian political situation and what we can do to help end the strangle on our God given rights as Gambians…
If someone stops you today on the street and ask you what is your pride as a Gambia? What are you most proud of as a Gambian? What would your answer be?
Your country? Your President? Your family? Your circle of friends, your academic attainment, your career, social status or your moral conscience? What would be your first response…???
There is only one answer here that is binding us as Gambians that requires our collective efforts and sacrifice..!!!COUNTRY!!!... We can probably sustain our families alone; attain the highest academic achievement, career or social status on our own individual efforts with the help of God. But can we say the same for our country?
So why is the question of collective responsibility in ensuring that the one thing that bind us is something any level headed conscious Gambian must be aware of understand and work to protect and nurture?
We are born free and we must be free as a people and nation… Our destiny is tied together because we share love for God and country… We therefore must begin to see that Omar cannot be free until Dembo is free… that Abdou cannot be secured in his job until Binta is equally secure in her job. That Little Samba cannot excel in school until Biran has equal access and opportunity to excel as well.
We as a people must live in a country where we have a say in our governing; where we can freely discuss matters openly without fear of intimidation, arrest and harassment. We as Gambians must protect our most vulnerable in our society; young children, women, the elderly and the sick and disabled. We must respect the services our people render to our country and accord them a safer and more secure retirement. We as a people must not allow our brothers to be fired on their jobs, humiliated in front of their families and thrown in Jail without regard to their constitutional rights and human dignity. We as a people must not take up these positions which our brothers and sisters are fired from without reason or respect for their services. Knowing fully well we are the next target no matter how honest and sincere we have worked.
Fellow Gambians we have reached a point where we can no longer celebrate the hiring and firing of Mr. XYZ only for them to turn around appoint us and subsequently fire us without reason. We as Gambians must begin to reclaim our dignity and pride as a people. We must begin to realize that one man and a few groups of cruel like-minded people who cannot compete on a level playing field take our country hostage with or without our consent. We can only live one life and once we lose our self-worth and conscience to please one person, there is no reason to live anymore. As Dr. King said “A man who won’t die for something is not fit to live.”. If we as Gambians cannot put fear behind us and stand up for what is morally right for our country, then we would have no one to blame but ourselves. Every conscious Gambian must begin to question their moral obligation to society and to each other. Until we say together we must go up or down together; our pride as a people and nation must be in question. Therefore we must continue to soul search our own moral conscience and come to the realization that we must put a stop to everybody but one man rule. Our collective responsibility is the salvation of our nation and we must live up to this moral obligation else we continue to be oppressed by one callous individual who owe everything and his life to us as a people… “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter”.