Your Mandela moment, or Madiba Moment has arrived!
Our Dear and Brave resistance and opposition,
By the opposition, I mean everyone, ( UDP’s Ousaninou Dabo, PPP’s OJ Jallow GMC’s Mai Fatty), but, except the traitorous and treacherous Hamat Bah of the NRP! As Nelson Mandela’s passing is still fresh in our minds, we need to remember that our narcissistic Dictator, Yaya Jammeh, dashed from France to bask in Madiba’s glory, only to be put in his place, while he endured a tongue lashing from President Obama on human and political rights of his subjects. Also, the Dictator, was reduced to sitting with the ‘regular’ guests, away from the more dignified and respected leaders of the world. The Dictator and Butcher of Kanilai wants to celebrate Mandela’s glory but he does not know his story (history) , or shall we say, he wants to ignores it.
The recent opposition unity rally is a game changer, because for the first time in many years you have taken the fight out in the streets to openly attack Jammeh’s disastrous record on human rights and the economy. There is no relenting now. As you know, the Dictator only allowed the rallies to take place (so far! ), due to the massive international pressure and scrutiny. We are so excited both home and abroad to hear OJ’s fiery and unapologetic voice again. We are also proud that Dabo is making his ‘argument’ in the case, Gambian People vs. Dictator Jammeh. This is not going to be easy, and you can be rest assured that the Dictator will strike back ( oh, he has already started – Amadou Sanneh, Lasama Jobarteh & co), as the Gambian people are woken up to the stark reality before them. This revolution will be televised and recorded , but Gambian people alone cannot be relied upon to lead it. The Gambian people look beaten with fear and poverty. Infact, historically, the poor have not lead revolutions, on their own; they are too busy trying to survive to the next day, and continue to endure hardship in silence! Many Gambians have resorted to be fatalistic about their situation by accepting it, or try to pray it away!
In the struggle for freedom against Apartheid, Mandela also reached a cross-road when the regime escalated its brutality following the Sharpeville Massacre of 1960. He was torn between setting up a armed struggle ( Umkhonto we Sizwe), or continue to hope that the Apartheid regime will come to the table to negotiate voluntary surrender of power, and extending the franchise to the black Africans. He decided against the latter and the ANC formed the armed wing and te leadership went underground. One thing was clear to Mandela was that, the oppressor will never voluntarily surrender power to the people. So te ANC and Mandela also escalated the fight to motivate and mobilize the people to stand up and resist unjust laws. The ANC representatives across the world embarked on a sensitization campaign to educate the world on what was really happening on the ground. Mandela was subsequently arrested and imprisoned, but he never backed down or denounced the ANC’s armed strategy to defeat Apartheid. Once the South African people appeared on the streets to challenge the staus quo, the world latched on, and the rest, is history!
So, when the Johny-Just-Come ( JJC= YJJammeh) showed up at Mandela’s struggle, he was fooling no one that he represented the oppressor, the Dictator in our struggle for freedom in The Gambia. Dictator Jammeh is the oppressor of Gambian people and needs to be defeated because he will never surrender power to the people. He has turned Gambia into a police state, with ubiquitous checkpoints. He has silenced the press, including Foroyaa, hell, they were even afraid to report on a major event such as an opposition rally! He has reduced the media to reporting on sports and naming ceremonies or obituaries, praise-singing. He has brought the economy to its knees, and destroyed the cottage industry, of people engaging in petty trading and the like. Public officials are trying to outdo each in singing praises to him to show their loyalty. The Dictator has illusions of grandeur, therefore he wanted to be associated with glory, with gjants like Mandela, and no one dare tell him he looks Quixotic! He imitates Sekou Toure in his appearance, dressed in layers of white Boubou’s like an onion, but fails to understand that, despite Toure’s famed stand against colonialism, he was a brutal dictator. The best evidence of this is the large migrant Guinean population in the sub-region, including Gambia. The man is an intellectual light weight, no wonder he is oblivious to both history and reality! The imprisonment of Njogou Bah and co is the most recent example of professional and political naivety! Thinking that they could change the Dictator, as if he was redeemable, while benefitting financially! I shed crocodile tears for them …..
So dear opposition unity rally, …and to all Gambians, especially those in the Diaspora, this is our Mandela moment! We must not let 2016 be another disaster. The opposition rally needs to keep hammering the same points into the head of the lethargic Gambia people, to wake them up from their long slumber. For people in the Daispora, and those with the means, we must put our money where our mouths are! Talk is cheap, but the opposition cannot do it on a prayer alone, period! Prayer is great, please don’t get me wrong, but prayer alone is no substitute for preparation, in this case, resources, money! Also remember that salvation is a group experience, it cannot be achieved in isolation. We salute you, the opposition unity rally, especially Dabo and OJ, GMC, your strong wives, and the countless names behind the scenes. Thank you
Sincerely
Kaba Sallah