Gainako Newspaper

The history of Serrekunda like any other village, town or city or any other place always
spring from the long cherished desire to establish settlements for the sole objective of
protecting societies from the scourge of the heat of the sun. Not only the heat of the sun but
also the scourge of nature such as the storm, whirlwind, rain as well as protection from wild
animals and other dangerous creatures that roam the planet earth.

As a result, the history of a place invariably must link to a person or a group of people and in
the case of Serrekunda; it happened to be linked to one personality by the name of Serr
Jobe, not much by design but by accident.

Serr Jobe who was said to be a religious tribesman from the kingdom of Wallo in what is presently
part of the Republic of Senegal, was said to be from a royal family. According to narration, leadership
was said to be transferred from generation to generation based a complicated system of customary
hierarchy. According to legend, Serr Jobe's father was at the helm of state at a period which
coincided with the late 17th century; that tradition had it that the first son of the first wife of the king
should inherit him should he died or become infirmed in body or mind.

So according to narration Serr Jobe was the first son of his mother who incidentally was the first wife
of his father, the king of Wallo. But for one reason or another, his brothers some of whom were older
than him connived to betray the tradition on the pretext that he was too young to handle the affairs of
the kingdom of Wallo. But as the rightful heir to the throne somehow managed to maintain some
loyalties. And so the cousin brothers of Serr who refused to accept his leadership waged what can be
considered in modern day politics as a coup detat ended up creating enmity to the point of in-fighting
amongst them. His father, the king whose name has not been captured by my narrators had begot
many sons with many women before the birth of Serr.

So reading the situation by Serr's soothsayers and advisers, Serr decided to emigrate to the west side
of Wallo as advised by his admirers to prevent blood from being shed for the sake of power alone
and so on. However, it was also believed by some that the young natural heir to the throne was
secretly advised to retreat away from his dangerous brothers for tactical reasons since much attention
and suspicion would be focused on him. It is natural and logical that such a person who has been
betrayed as he was, would not sit idly by and wait for eventualities. So to avoid the wrath of his
greedy and power hungry cousins, Serr agreed to set off for the west side of Wallo in the very early
hours of the morning on a day set aside by the marabouts for such a retreat. It was also told that the
young man was warned to move further away from the borders of his father's kingdom. And so he
was said to have spent several days and nights before he could reach a certain river. That river is said
to be the river Gambia. Narration has it that Serr and his people continued to move along the river and
as they move from West to East, the river became wider and wider as they got closer to its mouth
where it enjoins the Atlantic Ocean.

It is logical as it was sensible that Serr and his fellow travelers must have sought permission from the
king of Niumi as tradition demanded for it before they could cross at the mouth of the river with such a
large crowd to enter Banjul.

The delegation which was described as substantial included Serr Jobe's mother, Ndamba Mbaye,
slaves who were of Bambara and Serahule origin. He was said to have originally settled with his
followers at an area now considered 44 and 48 Buckle Street in Banjul.

According to research, Serr Jobe had a short stay in Banjul, and it did not take long for him to come
in contact with the people of Sabiji or Sukuta who eventually promised him a more durable place
where he could be properly settled. He later left Banjul for Sabiji who allocated land for him in the
area now called Tallinding.Remember that land was not a problem for the people of Kombo if they
were sure that you were not a threat to their culture and traditions.

But the king of Kombo known as Ebrima Touray alias Foday Sillah of Kombo as he was fondly
called had a long standing plan to wage a Holy War (Jihad) against the people considered as
unbelievers or infidels.

According to legend, the King of Kombo who was searching for a wife of royal blood as prophesized
by his marabouts had now found out that Serr had an unmarried sister who obviously was of royal
blood like Serr himself. So he sent message through influential elders to approach Serr who has now
matured as a big marabout, and asked for his sister's hand in marriage.

According to his offsprings, this was a difficult decision for Serr who initially rejected the idea because
of the fact that his plan was only meant for a tactical retreat and not a permanent stay. So it was
conceived by him that to start intermarriage with the king and the people of Kombo would put him in a
funny position and make it difficult for him to go and finally claim his right as the legitimate heir to his
father's kingdom.

So to make a long story short, Foday Sillah who had held long conceived ambition to wage a Jihad
against unbelievers, was told by his soothsayers that if he wanted to succeed, he must marry a woman
from a royal blood before commencing his onslaught on the unbelievers. This long held belief made
Foday Sillah to become obsessed and adamant, in which he employed not force of coercion but
appeasement and prayers. He was said to have utilized the logic of the Quran and appeased in the
name of Islam on the basis that all Muslims are the same no matter where they are and that the
purpose of waging a Holy war was for the sake of Islam and not for the sake of obtaining power for
its sake but to spread the word of the Quran which was the objective of believers including Serr Jobe.

To this end, it was said that Serr who has by now become a great marabout was made humbled by
the words of the king's messengers that he decided to endorse the marriage between Foday Sillah and
his sister, albeit reluctantly

The couple were blessed with three sons, Mustapha alias Sitafa, Kutubo and Alpha Touray.This
period which was said to have coincided with the establishment of Banjul and the Kombo St Mary's
as a colony by the British, had naturally pitted him against the colonizers since it was seen as a direct
challenge to their authority and their grand design to establish a colonial state. Colonialism was
diametrically opposed to any semblance of authority order than the British crown. The colonialists
were also most suspicious of the Jihadists knowing fully well that they were followers of the Book.

To make a long story short, Foday Sillah was eventually defeated by the British settlers who exiled
him to Senegal leaving his sons, wife and uncle, Serr Jobe behind. It was Serr Jobe and Foday Sillah;s
first son, Sitafa Touray who eventually went to Senegal to secure his release after years of
incarceration.

Long before this however, the people of Sukuta ceded the Tallinding area to Serr Jobe and his family
and slaves. Serr Jobe had several children at Tallinding such as Alasan Nyonko Jobe and his brothers.
Serr Jobe passed away in the year 1896 and was interned at the Serrekunda cemetery near the
primary school as remembered by his offsprings, the Kontehs, who are still the Alkalo of Bundungka
Kunda. Alasan Jobe then became the Alkalo of the settlement by the early 1900s. And so business
was said to have flourished between Sabiji and Serr Jobes' people.

Oral history has it that shortly before his death; Serr Jobe had transferred all his business to his first
son Ali Jobe. It was observed that not only was Ali Jobe his first son but also much closer to him than
any of his sons and relatives. He has also inherited his slaves as well.

As tradition or customary law ascribed it, Ali was to handle the business not for him but for all the
family including slaves. With a large number of slaves and endless farmland under his trusteeship, the
Jobes continued to expand their settlement.

According to research, Serr Jobe had Bambaras and Serahule ethnicities as his slaves. These two
groups became rivals and were always at loggerheads with each other; that the Serahules accused the
Bambaras as unbelievers whilst the Bambaras blamed the Serahules of laziness who shurned work.

When Ali Jobe took over the mantle of leadership after his father's demise, he took the initiative to
separate the two ethnic slave groups by sharing the farmlands between them.

Since then, the Bambaras were relocated to the East, i.e. Bundung area and incidentally were
accorded the biggest farm lands. The Serahules on the other hand were allocated the Western part
which is presently called Dippa Kunda.

Ali Jobe also took the initiative to free his slaves and asked them to own the farmlands they had earlier
on been allocated.

The original settlement of Serrekunda remained at the centre until the upsurge of people with the
rural-urban drift after colonial rule. These farmlands ultimately turned into residential areas eventually
building into one big metropolitan settlement we now called Serrekunda.

Offsprings of Serr Jobe and even the so-called slaves of the family can be visibly seen strategically
settled at the centre of town. The two adjacent settlements of Dippa Kunda and Bundung are still
relatively dominated by the two ethnic groups.

However, the Bambaras who include the Trawalleys, Kontehs and Konatehs etc do not speak the
Bambara dialect as of now but instead the dialect of Kombo Mandinka which influenced their tongue..

Serrekunda is now considered a city by African standards because it is now considered the biggest
metropolitan city in the Gambia. It is also considered as a city that is home to both the poorest and the
richest people in the country. One would not be accused of exaggeration if one calls Serrekunda the
home of all the Gambians.

.......................................POEM
...........NOSTALGIA
...........................By Abdoul Aziz Jiggo....................July 11th, 2008
My Endearment of nature is encrypted in America
I cannot hear the rhythmic drums after our escapades
Oh! What about the beautiful horizon of the seashore
Children plunging themselves naked in freedom

What? The Fear of Columbinism again!
What? The trauma of child molestation!
What? Profiled because of my ascribed status!
What? The faking smiles of the rhesus monkeys!
What? I will tell you more of modern Slavocracy.

I am eviscerated from my haunt of bliss to abyss
The esoteric system takes forever to be mastered
Reneging with the honeymoon of Affirmative Action
Co-existence is what is preached in congress and not practiced
Do you know the way I am feeling?

Oh! Mother Africa I missed the Muezzin's invitation for prayers
I never heard of the melodius neighs behind my ranch
Missing the greetings of the heart and not the teeth
My bone-deep feeling lies on your beautiful vegetation,
But that inherited virtue is giving birth to chaos.

Africa! Africa! Africa! My respite is spiritual discipline
The silence I kept for the votary of truth
Begging you on my knees for your next pregnancy
To give birth to a child call Peace
Then only the siblings can voluntarily go home

Abdul Aziz Jigo

.............................................NEWS
LITTLE SCANDAL ABOUT TO EXPLODE
AT GRTS; PRESIDENT JAMMEH MAY HEAR IT?
.........................By Solo, Banjul correspondent��..July 10th, 2008
The light torching on the GRTS, Gambia's only television services
is not showing good pictures. The camera lights are a different photo
not the Kanilai farms but one of dissatisfaction within the low paid
workers and greed within the high ranking officials.

Reports reaching this paper spoke of complaints by the junior staff
of two Directors ie. Modou Sanyang and Modou Joof at the GRTS
of nepotism and favoritism at the aforesaid institution.Sources at the
TV has it that Sanyang and Joof are incessantly focusing cameras
on president Jammeh's farm at Kanilai only to divert attention from
the own sinister 'activities of allocating to themselves a loan of two
hundred thousand dalasi each from the GRTS funds. This reporter is further informed that the two
directors have also paid themselves fat and unjustified responsibility allowances of 29 months from
GRTS funds. The aggrieved staffs are grumbling that these people tried to justify their deeds by relying
on the so-called GRTS service rules.

This whole information came out when a GRTS driver whose house was said to have been burnt by
fire applied for loan but his application was rejected by the management. Sources have it that the
junior staff organized and mobilized themselves after they realized that Joof and Sanyang allocated
themselves the above mentioned loans and allowances from the company's funds. Sources further
have it that the information leaked to the staff after the senior staff failed to give one of the staff who
knew about it the same privileges.

Angered by what they considered as a selfish and greedy move by the management, the junior staff
organised themselves and met the management, who of course fearing a potential backlash, tried to
appease them so that the president of the Republic does not hear or come to know of it. The junior
staff who feel that they should all enjoy the same privileges since the funds belong to the GRTS also
feel that the driver whose house was ravaged by fire should be given priority to get a simple loan of
only D25 000 Dalasi from the loan facility.

Reliable and impeccable sources finally told Gainako that the junior staff was supposed to meet again
to resolve the internal and confidential impasse but warned further that the president of the Republic
may come to hear it should the senior staff want to drag their feet over what they termed as "this
simple arithmetical calculation".

A READER'S REACTION TO EBRIMA CONTENTS VIEWS
........................................................July 9th, 2008
Dear Editor,
Kindly allow me space to share some views commented by Mr. Conteh,who is attacking our
oppositions parties in The Gambia .These opposition parties are trying by all means to survived and
opposed a government who gave no respect, chance or recognition for the oppositions. The
oppositions millitants in our country are under 24 hours surveillance everyday by the N.I.A and they
can be killed any minute if they are suspected.

I will be very happy if Mr. Conteh returns to the Gambia and start working on his ideas and help the
opposition parties, from there then he will be able to experience and know what the oppositions are
going through in the country.

To challenge the APRC regime democratically as he is calling for, I think is not possible. If he Conteh
was an active opposition member on the ground during the last elections then he will know what type
of government we are dealing with.You are right Conteh by saying that we Gambians voted for
APRC, but the voter apathy on the last elections speaks a lot.

The people you spoke to about the developments in the country are afraid to tell you the truth or their
feelings because they might think that you are one of the NIA or people working for Jammeh, because
in today's Gambia peoples did not trust each other especially when is time to talk about the
government.Whether building elephant projects is development is something to be debated by peoples
who know what developments is really about,

On the service of the keyboard, I think the people working with the keyboard will be able to reponse
to you ,because most of the editors of the online newspapers has a very bad experience with the
APRC government of Yahya Jammeh. Most of the online editors were once arrested,detained or and
even torture.We Gambians are very happy with the online newpapers, they are speaking for the
voiceless and defenceless Gambians. Right now the government is more concern and worried by the
online newspapers which is doing a great job for Gambia. If you are a regular reader of local
newspapers in the country then you will understand the reason why we have so many onlines
newspaper now. The local newspaper are afraid of writing the countrys problem or criticise the
government of the day, by just avoiding to be arrest or killed.

Long Live the On-Line Newspapers.

Thanks
Lamin Dampha

.............................................OPINION
" Do Not Take Them Seriously For They Them
Self Are Not Serious " By Ebrima Conteh.........July 9th, 2008
I know I will get an earful from my brothers and sisters for daring
this far, but who cares? After facing and surviving Educated Bullets
I am numb to insults. I believe the current political situation in the
Gambia can be attributed to many reasons, chief among which are
lack of active participation in politics, the Diaspora's lack of action,
a dormant opposition, an unexplainable lack of seriousness and
finally as a people we lack the fortitude to speak the truth. As
Koto Laama Jallow once said "In this historic and epic battle currently
raging on-line between the many different and sometimes diametrically
opposing views, the Truth has become the first casualty" Jaraama Koto
Alamaa Emay lang N'yaato.

In two months APRC will mark the third anniversary of its resounding victory and the beginning of a
one party system in the Gambia. Up till now no serious action has been taken by the opposition and its
sympathizers to unite, provide ideas, and make concerted effort to abate the unchecked power and
the massive political capital of the APRC Government.

Like it or not it is Gambians, our very brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, uncles and aunts who voted
the APRC government into power. So insulting APRC will not bring any changes, the only way to
change the tide in the Gambia is through a serious democratic movement. The people have to be
ready for change and the way to show that is through unity. The ultimate goal of every regime is
survival and nothing will change in the Gambia unless and until the opposition and its sympathizers
challenge the APRC r�gime democratically.

Many have said democracy cannot work under the current environment but this noble course of action
has yet to be tried. Please do not mention the previous elections for the opposition was bankrupt,
lacked the leadership and financial support required to challenge an incumbent African government.

Mark the words of this crazy soldier! Unless and until the opposition produces is an Odinga or a
Morgan Tsvangirai and seek support from a serious Diaspora nothing will change in the Gambia. It is
all talk and a big waste of time and resources. Without action we will see another unstoppable life time
presidency in African. No keyboard service can avert what is heading our way.

Please do not let anyone fool you, the APRC regime managed to stay in power because they have
succeeded where PPP failed. I am making this comment because I have seen at first hand the new
developments and I have spoken to different people in different parts of the country. This is the story;
when PPP was in power we did not have electricity, we did not have these roads and we did not have
these hospitals. It is the APRC Government that brought these changes. When given a choice between
a divided, weak and an under funded opposition and a government that has managed to bring changes
the average Gambian voter will choose the government over the opposition. No one seems to have
the fortitude to accept the fact that APRC is a credible force to be reckoned with.

While it true that one cannot compare loss of civil liberties to developments the opposition and its
sympathizers ought to accept this is as a factor in the equation. The rapid development that the APRC
administration boasts of is one of the main reason they enjoy so much support. No one and no blind
criticism can change that reality.

What the Diaspora is doing is waste of time because politics is a full contact sport, mare criticism and
yelling insults far across the Atlantic will has not a will not achieve anything. If the goal of the Gambian
Diaspora is changes it is not going to come cheap. The Diaspora has to be willing to put its resources
where their keyboards are. The Diaspora's financial recourses couple with a commitment to embark
on development projects through an NGO and an Odinga or a Morgan Tsvangirai at the helm is the
only way to counter and or compete with the ruling party. It will be nearly impossible to stop a united
opposition that is funded by a united Diaspora. But the people have to want and be ready for change.

Are Gambians ready for this undertaking? Are Gambians capable of this undertaking? Target me with
a 50 cal if you feel offended but I am going to say this at all cost. Gambia's opposition and its
sympathizers are not serious and should not be taken seriously. Who said "do not take them seriously
for they themselves are not serious?"

Keyboard service is not going to solve the political challenges in the Gambia. It seems to be as a
people we are stuck on criticizing and not focus on exchanging ideas. The opposition and its
sympathizers should have started a dialogue right after the September 2005 elections. It is not too late
to start a dialogue and an exchange of ideas. Upon exchanging ideas and adopting the best possible
formula the opposition should turn these ideas into concrete action on the ground. This I believe
should be the way forward. This unending criticism has not worked in the past and I doubt it will work
in the future.

Part of the problem is there is tool little ideas and suggestions but ample critics; it seems no one is
thinking about how to challenge the APRC government. In fact it is almost impossible to get fellow
citizens to focus on brain storming. Any effort to encourage brainstorming gets hijacked by
partisanship. This has forced me to believe Gambians as a people are not ready to unseat the APRC
administration.

Unlike this broken down soldier whose only qualification is jumping from perfectly working airplanes
and barely graduating Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning Georgia, I know there are enough
educated, talented and creative Gambians to start an unending free flow of ideas that can move the
country forward.

If Gambian opposition and its sympathizers are realistic enough to take the time to sit and question the
current effort to bring political change, one cannot fail to realize Barack Obama's call to America "we
are the ones we have been waiting for". God will not land in Banjul to solve our problems he has
already done his part by giving us brains, the same brain that he gave Francis Small, George
Washington and Nelson Mandela.

When great nations are faced with challenges its people respond with creativity, are Gambians not
creative enough? Are our problems not dire enough to deserve unity? Do Gambians truly care? Is the
Diaspora going to keep proving keyboard service to our beloved motherland?

When South Africa faced the horrors of Apartheid, her decent citizens all over the world mounted a
very successful resistance that took down the brutal regime. When the Americans were became tired
of British rule they decided to fight for independence. Are Gambians not capable of following these
examples?

First of all I need you to believe in yourselves. Redirect your energy and get serious.

"Duty, Honor, Country: Those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what
you can be, what you will be. They are your rallying points: to build courage when courage seems to
fail; to regain faith when there seems to be little cause for faith; to create hope when hope becomes
forlorn." - General Douglas MacArthur.

.........PLEA BARGAINING AT THE DRUG SQUAD
.............................................July 9th, 2008
Mr. Editor,
I read with utter dismay about what is happening at the National Drug Enforcement
Agency NDEA. This wanton and excessive corruption initially started at this Agency
with the appointment of Buns Sanneh as head of this unit. For Gods sake, everyone
knows that such a position should be for a trained, experience police officer with high
intergrity. Bun convinced the authority to get this plea-bargaining legalize.

Let me tell you how this plea-bargain works and how Bun's and his co-horts are manipulating it to
their advantage. If you are well to do person, you are a target and if arrested even with a crack, or
any other flimsy excuse related to drugs, they would threaten you that your car will be confiscated or
your property including your house. The law is that any thing to be confiscated must be from the
proceeds of drug related and it is purchased by the trafficker. Now for Bun the plea-bargaining works
like this. If you are caught even if it one stroke, you will not be granted bail, and Bun and his co-horts
will apply veil threats and other intimidating tactics. Then the next day another Police criminal Sembeh
will invite to his office offering you the plea-bargaining and he would be talking to you like a trained
lawyer citing sections of the law you violated and the potential punishments you faced. For only one
stroke, the minimum is D75, 000.00 which 75% goes to the NDEA and 25% to Judiciary. The
judiciary on their part will give you receipt while Bun's NDEA will not issue you a receipt. That is if
the matter reaches the courts.

However if the deal is done in Bun's office you will not get any receipt to avoid potential incrimination
thus hiding traces of their criminal enterprise and maybe if you own a car you will surrendered it to
them and any other expensive accessories. This way the matter will be put under wraps. You will
perhaps walk free of the charges while Bun Sanneh and his co-horts enriched themselves at the
expense of the state. Investigate so many of their cars and you will find out that only few were
confiscated legally through court orders. This trend if it continues, Bun and some of the big guns will
soon be richer than President Jammeh.

The promotion aspect in this department, is such that as an officer of this agency if you think legally,
and want to apply the rule of Law to any drug related case they will first black list you , then brand
you an opposition or an informant to the media. In effect destroy your career. This is the sad state of
affairs in the Gambia.

Mariama
A Concerned Citizen

.PURE NEPOTISM AT THE DRUG SQUAD!
.................................................July 8th, 2008
Dear Editor,
May I bring to the attention of our beloved nation the form of pure nepotism and classic
bullying and corruption currently taking place at the National Drug Enforcement Agency
in Banjul. This unacceptable behaviour and action is taking place under the leadership
of Bun Sanneh who is not only violating the code of conduct of the Agency but also
blatantly trying to deceive the authorities and other hard working officers.

Mr Sanneh unlawfully helped to secure employment of more than ten members of his family in the
Agency without the normal procedures or even vetting them prior to gaining employment in this
important office. One of his employed family members is even an ex-convict who has no place in the
force. Most of these employees are also family members of his two wives and currently they are
treating the Agency as a family property.

Most annoyingly, alleged criminals who decided to enter plea bargain with the Agency has drugs and
cash seized from them misused instead of putting them into government coffers. What a disservice to
the tax-payer's money! Our complaints are received with deaf ears and clearly this is emotionally and
psychologically affecting hard working staff whose self-confidence are now very low at this moment.
Again Mr Sanneh's son is now studying in the United Kingdom with full salary since more than five
months ago even though the other officers on study leave like his son are denied any pay or form of
support to pursue their studies. What an unfair mess!

At this moment Mr Sanneh has engaged on a bogus promotion exercise within the Agency leaving
hard working staff angry and disgruntled. He is boasting to be a close associate of President Jammeh
and hence the authority to do whatever he wishes.

We are really suffering from this menace of nepotism and bias and calling on President Jammeh,
Interior Minister, the new Inspector General of Police and the media to help us expose this
unacceptable behaviour and conduct and an independent inquiry into the activities of Mr Sanneh and
his associates.

Thank you for your excellent job............................................................

,,,,,,,..,,,Rama Yade
..AA source of inspiration for Senegambian girls living abroad
..............................By Alieu Khan ............................July 8th, 2008
Marian Anderson was undoubtedly America's first black
internationally recognized musician. This was during the
days of segregation in the US, but with her unique singing
voice she succeeded in uniting many hearts.

When Marian was denied the opportunity to perform at the
Constitution Hall, America's most prestigious hall in those
days, it sparked a huge controversy and one of her white
fans, who was the US Interior Secretary Harold L. Ickes
said:-"Genius draws no colour line"

This saying reminds me of Rama Yade, Senegambia's most popular in the European political scene.
She is becoming another Condoleeza Rice, just less than 14 months in office as France's Under
Secretary for European Affairs and Human Rights.

Rama was born in Dakar on December 13, 1976. She moved to France when she about 12 years to
live with her mum. For her, living in Europe is not an excuse to fool around. She was very much
committed to her studies and won the admiration of many. She has been a victim of racism many
times, as indicated in her book noirs de france.

In 2000 the Senegambian born diplomat completed her studies at the French Institute of Political
Studies. She started working at the Paris Town Hall and later moved to the French National
Assembly. She became a popular figure when she took over as the administrator at the French
Senate.

Rama was out all to succeed in the French political struggle. Despite her young age and race in 2005
she joined the Union for a Popular Movement Political Party. Her intelligence seemingly delighted
every one in the party. She was made the National Secretary in charge of Francophone Affairs in
2006.

In June 2007, she was appointed by Sarkozy as his Under Secretary for European Affairs and Human
Rights. She is currently the youngest in the French cabinet. Rama has been traveling a lot to promote
peace in conflict areas. She has been to Congo, Haiti, Sudan, Palestine, Sri Lanka etc and has also
represented France at many international gatherings.

Her current position in the French government will obviously offer some respect and recognition to the
immigrant community in France.

When I accidentally tumble across Rama Yade on the internet, I seemingly appreciated every thing
about her except her strong liking for the French leader. During Sarkozy's candidacy inauguration, she
was offered the chance to speak and according to her the left have given the minorities "mercy instead
of respect". She is with the strong hope that with the current leadership her fellow immigrants will
enjoy respect and dignity.

Despite my support and appreciation for Rama I don't think the huge immigrant population in France
has any reason to expect greater changes with Sarkozy at the helm.

He was once quoted saying:- "If some people are bothered by France, they shouldn't hesitate to
leave a country they don't love"

It was Sarkozy who drafted a bill imposing tougher conditions on unskilled and low income
immigrants. "There is generosity and there is irresponsibility. Why is France the only country in
the world that doesn't have the right to choose its immigrants?" He said again.

Coming back to Rama, I think she should serve as a source of inspiration to the many Senegambian
girls currently resident in Europe and the USA. If the immigrant community continues to be unskilled
and low paid, it will only increase the issue of xenophobia and racism.

Marian Anderson was a black singer at a time when blacks were not accepted in the American
society. This was before and during the Civil Rights Movement. She was good in what she was doing
and understood very well the how and why of what she was doing. Despite being black, she enjoyed
great respect and was invited to the White House on several occasions.

Rama's achievement and that of Nyamko Sabuni, Sweden's only black female minister is enough to
convince our sisters in the Diaspora that there is no short cut to success. Every body needs a
thoroughly reliable foundation to win the admiration of the people.

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