Allow me to extend my unreserved congratulation to you for taking the bold step in unconditionally releasing Imam Baba Mutarr Leigh. This noble gesture has not only uplifted the unimaginable horror, pain, sense of lost and endless sleepless nightmares for the imam’s family but also a step in the right direction. In my last letter to you captioned “IS YOUR CONSCIENCE STILL ALIVE? I opined: “As my train of thoughts gathered momentum, I could not help but flirt with the feeling that you will soon emerge from your compartment of self-denial and gather that you have already inflicted enough havoc on Gambians and the Gambia.
Equipped with a sense of guilt and remorse, you will trek the path of national reconciliation by taking full responsibility of all the crimes committed under your administration. Despite this gesture is not good enough to heal the wounds made by you and your accomplices; it will go a long way in soothing them.”Almost all Gambians are thrilled and touched by Baba Leigh’s unconditional released. Suffice it to say it has also laid to rest the worrisome speculation that the imam died in your torture chambers.
Mr President it is human to err but willfully trampling and fringing on the rights of others is barbaric and detestable. Furthermore, I admonished you a while ago that:” Mistakes, missed opportunities and omissions result in catastrophic loss of life, wealth, credibility and the eroding of democratic institutions…Yes, it is an indisputable fact that there is no rehearsal in running a state but mistakes and errors can be retracted and rectified”Your Excellency, even though some will argue that the unconditional release of the outspoken Imam Leigh and your recent bringing together your defeated mayoral candidate and the independent winner Mayor Bah under the same platform as insignificant positive contributions by your government as contrasted with the galaxy of atrocities you inflicted on Gambians, I still believe you deserve a tap on the back. The fundamental question which remains now is where do we go from here?
Mr President, it disheartening to see fiction peddled for facts. Am I wrong to assert that you have now come to terms with the fact that the face is too wide for the finger to hide? I challenged you in one of my letters to you that: “you are on record that you will live for Gambians and die for them too. To buttress it further, you promised us that you will do whatever we Gambians want and ask you to do. If you are the man of your words who not only talks the talk but also walks the walk too, we ask you in the name of Allah, humanity, justice, peace and stability to release imam Baba Leigh, Mambury Njie and all those political detainees languishing in detention immediately without strings” I am really glad that you have release Imam Baba Leigh without strings but you need to go further and release all those who are detained without charge as well as those whose detentions are politically motivated. I also put it to you that “You categorically underscored that you are not a monster but a human being. Once again I challenge that if you are really a human being and not a monster release these vulnerable and harmless innocent citizens from your torture chambers.” I do not have the slightest iota of doubt that you can do it Mr President. Please do not let your pride stop you from doing the right thing for your own peace and that of all Gambians. Those who have been murdered by your elite assassins, unfortunately, cannot be brought back to life but you can relief their families off the daily unabated agonies and uncertainties of whether to mourn or not to mourn their loved ones. Knowing the truth about their loved ones will go a long way in soothing their indelible scares.
That should be followed by re-inviting the EU to a negotiating table. Frankly speaking they are not interested in recolonizing the Gambia. In case you do not know Mr President Colonialism is now of yester-years. There is no way any country in this day and age can colonize another country. All they want to see is you respecting the constitution your swore to defend, protect and uphold without fear, favor and ill-will. I am sure that is not too much to ask for Your Excellency. If you want to safe face by not making a move to invite them, you can tell your council of elder to plea with you to reconsider the EU demand. Please, please Mr President now that you have taken the first step in the right direction do not mess it up. That is the only way peace and tranquility will return the Gambia.
While counting on the hope that you will listen to voice of reason, I remain in the service of the Gambia.
Yours true son of the Gambia,
Sulayman Jeng, UK