Elsewhere around the world, economic and political repressions are met with persistent protests and condemnations by the oppressed. In some instances, protestors set themselves alight to register their profound determination to stamp out oppression. In sad contrast, Gambians in the Gambia horrifically endure President Jammeh, the world’s most celebrated and ruthless dictator, with hair-splitting tolerance. It is distressingly nagging to see the Gambia now than ever before on the brink of destruction. Everywhere one faces are litters of deadened souls which leave the hair at the back of the neck stand like spikes. But what is more tormenting is the lurking hunger for freedom graphically radiated in the eyes of each Gambian particularly those Gambians who flirt with the elusive assurance that they are refreshingly safe with President Jammeh the monster. At one point I felt my head needed checking up. My thoughts gyrated in circle as I endeavoured to grasp why Gambians permit President Jammeh to continually continue to abuse them. Tears of sorrow, confusion and the pulsating desire to change the lives of my country men and women for the better from afar trickled like gales on my laps. When I felt the warm moist on my laps, I realized I was crying. Crying for my people. My people caught in a complete horror in an ordinary situation. By seer of coincidence, I heard a distance voice say in Mandika: moo naala niiboo contongo foo asaa doomoo. “Wait a minute”, I reproached myself, “How can you settled for such a condescending notion about your own people’s unspeakable circumstance.” Of course there is more to it than just having to eat a lunch dished for you. In order to sieve the chaff from the grain, I opted to take a step back a look at the situation holistically. As I objectively examine and re-examine the Gambian situation, it dawned on me that it is more complex than most of us would admit. It comprises deep rooted sedimentary layers of carefully solidified factors laid on top of each other: the political case, the military case, the economic case, the religious case, the social case, and the educational case.
Politically, President Jammeh has prostituted the Gambian constitution to his own personal advantage that there is no chance the opposition will ever win elections under the prevailing political climate. The current electoral law, for instance, stipulates that election is won by majority. In other words, President Jammeh will only need two or even one vote over his runner-up opposition leader to win a presidential election. Under such a law, even if all the electoral process is free of all malpractices, Jammeh will still win presidential elections freely and fairly. The only way to stop President Jammeh wallowing in this unfair political advantage, the electoral process law must be changed from a simple majority to a percentage of the total votes registered and casted. For example, for any presidential candidate to be declared a winner of the election, he or she must have at least 60% of the total votes registered and/or cast. In that case, even if the candidates leads all the others by a certain margin but fails to acquire the stipulated percentage, there should be a second round of voting to determine the final winner. Suffice it to say, it is during such situations that the major opposition party solicits the support of smaller parties to win incumbent leaders and form coalition government as was with Senegal. To effect such a change, opposition leaders must unite to lobby for it by negotiating with all stakeholders and government parties to ensure that the Jammeh regime is forced to accept the amendment of the electoral law. Parliamentarians must also understand that they are accountable to those who elected them but not their party leaders. Hence, the interest of the constituency and the national should always come before theirs or their party leaders. Others will argue that the opposition leaders are not doing much to keep president Jammeh in check. The fact of the matter is their efforts are being constantly frustrated by Jammeh’s systematic meddling with the constitution to his advantage. There are also some who would cherish to see the opposition leaders leading Gambians in the streets expressing their dissatisfaction with the Jammeh makeshift government’s excesses. Assuming all things being equal and the opposition leaders take to the streets, will they be treated like citizens by both the Jammeh’s brutal regime and his mercenaries? What about the judicial system? Is it fair and balance? Will the police presume them innocent until proven guilty in a court of law? How about the NIA? How will their statements be obtained? Will they be informed of the reason for their arrest and detention?
Like the political case, the military factor is another distressing enabler of President Jammeh’s tyranny. Under normal circumstances, the military is entrusted with the internal and external security of its territory. A professional and elite military will also serve as a moderator between a ruthless government and its people as manifested by the Egyptian army. However, in the Gambia what we are blessed with is an army whose men, women and officers serve as herdsmen, farmers, street vendors and terrorists with arms paid by Gambian taxpayers for the President. One would have expected since the Gambia’s security forces are under-utilized apart from going on peace keeping mission here and there, their specialists such as engineers, mechanics, plumbers, builders etc. will be used to generate funds for the army. As a case in point, instead of contracting the CSE to construct roads, the army engineers will be. The funds generated from such contracts will be used to augment the army in terms of further training and paying of their salaries. Sadly, in our streets we see soldiers heavily armed mixing with civilians. Worse still, you will see a soldier with his loaded AK47 queuing in a bank full to it brim with civilians waiting to collect his salary or an overdraft. What will happen if such a riffle’s safety lock is mistakenly unlock during that desperate moment of waiting? Such is the professionalism of the Gambian army. Recently, it was reported that President Jammeh had some of the state guard officers strip naked by a so-call woman marabou to ascertain their loyalty to him. Which army in the world apart from the Gambian will allow its head of state blatantly humiliate it like Jammeh does to them? To add insult to their already injured ego, he insults and hits them like children. Any right minded Gambian will not rely on such an army to effect any change of government. In a nutshell, the Gambian army is bad energy for Gambian civilians. Furthermore, before anyone can liberate another, he must first be liberated. Instead the army can only be an enabling tool for Jammeh but not a liberator of the Gambian people who pay their salaries. As a result, Jammeh has recruited mercenaries to serve as his immediate body guards rather than the good for nothing Gambian soldiers. It further illustrates that President Jammeh is not the least worried about a military takeover. Honestly speaking, President Jammeh is more mindful of the Gambian diaspora media houses and activists than all the state security forces put together. They know that he knows they are nothing but a handy toilet paper at his disposal ready to be used any time the need arises.
Economically the Gambia government is bankrupt and Jammeh’s Allah’s bank has been insolvent. Consequently, the Gambia is now opened to financial sharks, corruption, drugs and arms trafficking. The greater Banjul is at the mercy of drug barons and arms traffickers. The scenes that unfold in these areas were only seen on gangster movie: expensive state of the earth cars, blings, guns, drugs and beautiful young women. The uncontrolled Gambian border intensifies the economic flame devouring it by a mass influx of criminals escaping prosecution elsewhere. It provides a safe heaven for these criminals who will do anything within their means to exploit the economic weakness of the Jammeh regime. Moreover, more than 90% of Gambians now live under the poverty line. Some families are barely struggling to have one meal a day. Owing to this state of abject poverty and acute need to survive the economic odds, most Gambians particularly the police and civil servants are forced to accept bribes to keep their heads above water. Greed, selfishness and disloyalty have eaten deep into many Gambians at home that they no long worry about Jammeh atrocities. All they are after is filling their pockets. Get rich quick even if it means selling your own son and daughter to Jammeh. Change for such sedated souls is meaningless without riches. Their minds are dead, their hearts cold and pride tattered.
Equally disturbing is the religious case in the Gambian complete horror in an ordinary situation. Most Gambians are God-fearing people. Religion is fundamental bedrock in their lives: the choices they make, their way of life, thoughts and believes. Even the family unit is centred on religious believes. Politics and governance are also guised under religious pretext. It is often common to hear remarks : It is Allah that made him the president so it is only Allah that will remove him from the presidency, everything has a time when his time is up he will go and let us keep praying to Allah so that He helps us remove Jammeh. However, we fail to remind ourselves that it is the same Allah who said in His Glorious Quran that He will only change the condition of a people if they change themselves. This now leaves us with a million dollar question; have we changed ourselves? There is no point going over and over again that the religious leaders we generally look up to for safe guarding the truth have descended from grace to amazing disgrace with the exception of a few.
The social fabrics of the Gambia have disintegrated. Family units have fallen apart. Neighborhood is in shambles. It has not escaped my attention that behind every cloud is a silver lining. Despite the entire suffocating odour oozing from the rotten Gambian social fabrics, there is still hope of rejuvenating it. Albeit the task is herculean, it is refreshing to note that it is achievable. What we need is strong civil societies which will invest time, energy and resources on its members. To further illustrate its feasibility, let us take GAMCOTRAP as an example. It primary focus will be empowering women and stamp out FGM. For the organization to achieve its goal, it first has to enlighten its members. Once they become aware how their own believes have suppressed and enslaved them, they will find possible ways and means to free themselves from their mental imprisonment. Then they will identify factors that hold them bondage in poverty. Subsequently, they will realise that power belongs to them and their leaders are answerable to them. Such a group will not succumb to oppression.
Sulayman Jeng, UK