The political philosophy of most nations were officially determined after the bombs were silent, tanks immobile, aircrafts grounded, victors and vanquishes determined with Europe down in rubbles and ashes of WWII. The USA and her Western European allies came out with democracy anchored on capitalism. More importantly they were very determined to protect the Western hemisphere and as well expand the frontiers of democracy and human freedom to distant lands. This stemmed on believes that freedom is a gift of God to humankind and capitalism and trade for prosperity. The Russian Empire and her allies went with communism based on socialism. In between are few theologically based nations.
Almost ¾ of a century later we now know those true to those official labels and those not. During these period significant political transformations happened such as the crumbling of the Russian Empire along with the fall of the Berlin Wall. In 1986 Mikhail Gorbachev (President of USSR) lunched perestroika (economic and political reforms within the Communist party) that encouraged many factors leading basically to his overthrow by Boris Yeltsin – he created more confusion and eventual disintegration of the union. The lesson here for Gambia is that most nations with long period of dictatorial rule found transition to democracy more painful and/or even impossible than staying under the dictator – Russia, Egypt, Iraq, Libya, etc. Most or all of Eastern Europe switched over to democracy because of its promised freedom of the individual, prosperity and enhanced standard of livings. Black Africa largely got stuck in between abandonment of cultures/traditions and never reaching the desired chosen political philosophy. North Africans are not different either – they battled to date with Arab Class Social traditions/cultures to religion to modern dictates of governance.
Western European democracies found a balance between their aristocratic past to the new people centered governance. Most nations maintained the aristocrats (Kings/Queens or Royalties) as symbolic figureheads with little or no decision-making authority. Despite sidelining aristocracy these historic legacies featured in their democratic governance set-ups. European governments assumed more authority and provider role compared to the New World’s government. Jeffersonian democracy has an inherent fear of government and view it as a necessary evil to be given limited authority. The main role of government envisioned by Jeffersonian democracy is national defense and protection of people against one and another. The rest is left to people and/or their local representatives to determine how they want to live their lives. Certainly current USA government has over the years outgrown some these limits by using gaps in the US Constitution, namely taxing and inter-state commerce regulating powers supported by Supreme Court interpretations. The Constitutional limitations placed on government in US is no accident but derived from their experiences with aristocratic rules of their European origins.
The Gambia is officially a democratic nation. Beyond that official label we have to examine what makes a nation a practicing democracy? Noticed that both Jawara/PPP and Yahya/A(F)PRC claimed their rule is democratic. To many Gambians the two are different not only the manner through which they ascended to power but also how they preside over power. If we (Gambians) are right that these two men are fundamentally different then either both are wrong on their claim of been/being democratic and/or at the least one is.
I’ve being arguing for a need to determined/defined the problem of our struggle, analyse the environment the problem exist and come up with ‘A Strategic National Vision’. One reason behind this argument is that it will clearly spell out the purpose of the struggle and reduces ambiguity of its purpose. It would not mean everyone will agree but it provides the necessary guide to stay on track with our search for answers. Without one chance are many undertakings may/may not necessarily help the purpose.
I also expressed my suspicion that it appears some are in the struggle to remove and replace Yahya, while others may be content with the return of Jawara’s Gambia. The wanting of ‘A Functioning Institutional Democracy’ maybe implied but not enough out right demonstrated. Ousting Yahya doesn’t necessarily mean democracy nor does it guarantee one. Jawara’s Gambia is anything but democracy. I was flagged for coming across dismissive of others’ efforts. Far from it and my only motive is to stay true seeking the ultimate goal of ‘A Democratic Republic of The Gambia’.
History taught us every successful national struggle has a clearly defined purpose (vision) based on an articulated problem(s) and a ‘face’ of the struggle. South Africa has ANC although Zulus did not agree with their agenda. The Palestinians has PLO, now the Palestinian Authority yet you have very many other groups with different strategies. Even the Civil Rights struggle in USA only came to fruition when MLK Jr. organized the struggle, give it a face and set goals.
Recently I followed an exchange between Gambians over PPP/Jawara’s Gambia was democratic. This debate partly makes my point of a need for a definition and vision of the struggle. The argument that Gambia was democratic and a flourishing economy was that PPP has a functioning judiciary and they have created/established Central Bank, Gamtel, GPTC, SSHFC, GPA, GUC, Independent Stadium….you name all the parastatals. This was said to be the (a) measure of our level of democracy and development in comparison to our humble beginning when doubts exist whether we can make it on our own due to our size and basically lack of productivity resources.
Lets use the same argument in favor of Yahya and his A(F)PRC supporters. They claimed to built roads, Airport, Schools, Hospitals, Expand Electricity Coverage, Banjul Arch….you name the rest of that list. Isn’t this true? Yes it is! They even take pride as to democratically elected government and we do know what is wrong with elections in The Gambia.
Clearly both sides are making a claim but using wrong indicators as prove. More importantly they counter claim each other not democratic. “Wow, charcoal calling kettle – black’. They used development projects as measure of democracy. Whatever they claimed to have done never account for the amount of tax money our parents paid and entrusted them to better manage it. They never account for loans contracted on our names and too they failed to account for gifts/grants received in our name. The question is what was done against the total resources under their management? They’re not providers but managers of our resources. Whatever was done is with our money. There cannot be bragging about Gamtel and/or Arch when we should have been vacationing at the International Space Station. It’s sad that we see these men as providers and not managers. Probably that’s not what we meant but that’s how it comes across. I don’t know who is the better of the two but I can claim without doubt both failed to maximize the employment of our resources. A nation that started with 200 – 300 thousand people (predominantly farm-families) in about 11,300 square Kilometers with mainly fresh water surface of about 1,300 square kilometers. River Gambia being the main geographic feature is fresh water except the last month or two of the dry season when the Atlantic Ocean dumps saltwater all the way to Farafenni/Kaur. The river is navigable with ocean bound vessels all the way to Kaur/Janjanbureh). The arid subtropical climate, coarse/fine upland soils and sparse savannah vegetation plus average annual rainfall of 836 mm is suitable for peanut farming and animal husbandry. The low-lying banks of the river can produce more than enough tonnage of rice to feed the nation. A properly management tidal flow schemes can account for almost half of that tonnage. Yet by late 70s to the start of the 80s our nation went hungry under the greed, gross incompetent and abusive management of Jawara administration. IMF/WB had to step in with aid/help contingent on reforms – ERP and the follow-up PSD. Honestly our nation was never found on gold and/or oil but with the resources mentioned above in relation to the number of people we had to care any good (not even great one’s) CEO/Managing Director should not only breakeven but also regenerate profits with 10 years or else get a boot from shareholders.
Instead were drove into grinding poverty with life expectancy reported at 58.5 (WHO, April 2011). The Lady Wright Boat is gone. The river basically used for nothing and not even maximal tourism uses. GPMB looted to the ground by Gaba Jallow and company. Sea Gull evaporates under OB Conateh and cliques just to own it on their name as National Partnership Enterprise. Kuntaur Rice Mills grounded. Years and billions of dollars of investments in agriculture in Sapu were looted to death. Jahally Pacharr gone. Foreign aid rained over Gambia after the attempted 1981 coup was syphoned into personal use by Mr. Taal and PPP. The late 70s and early 80s saw Gambians faced with basic food storage – rice purchased by shopkeepers rationed with permits issued at Commissioner’s Offices. Taxi drivers and other vehicle owners line out for gasoline at Gas Stations for days just for less than 10 gallons at a purchase. Even schoolteachers could not get paid on time. The Lowland Agricultural Development Program (LADEP) among the last money dumps into Gambia by African Development Fund washed down the drain with big Nissan SUVs and Dell Computers on each table in every office, while in the field there is no visible evidence of an increase in hectares reclaimed from salt or improved productive per unit area. Yundum the heart of agriculture and agricultural research is death before transformed into military installations. Mixed Farming Project and the USAID Forest support program gone – no need to talk about the potential ecological imbalance caused by removing the natural vegetation for Gmelina at Nyambai but important to state that agricultural production is down all over the nation. Who knows what would happen to those institutions (parastatals) should PPP continued for a decade beyond July 22, 1994.
The small size of Gambia is in reality both an advantage and disadvantage, yet every opportunity exist to repel the disadvantages and capitalize on the advantages. The institutions some are bragging about were hardly deliberate Jawara planned but impositions by IMF/WB and/or accident of time. But even if they were – it is our money, hence we are not too concern we with what we have but what was lost and squandered. More importantly the establishment and/or creation of those organizations is no measure of the level of democracy that may or may not exist.
There is no need to talk about Yahya. Even if one is an ostrich with head buried in sand you see/know what’s not right anytime you choose to lift your head. I hammered hard on Jawara and avoid Yahya not because he is better or I favored him or scared he will harm me but only because his wrong doings are current – you must have seen, heard and/or witness them happen. Before attempting to state some of the features of a practicing democracy let me throw in few stupid analogies to further brush aside this notion that Gamtel and/or Banjul Arch is a measure of level of democracy in The Gambia.
Saudi Arabia is both officially and in practice an Islamic theology – yet they have roads, buildings, TVs, phones, electricity than many practicing democracies. Hence democracy is not defined by modern infrastructure and/or technology.
People’s Republic of China is officially and in practice a communist state, yet they will soon surpass (or have surpassed) USA with modern infrastructure. Another explanation that road lengths and hand held computing devices do not define democracy.
Iran is officially an Islamic and practicing theology – they’re said to be building a nuclear bomb of their own. Highly educated people, technological sophisticated and economically somewhere yet it is not a democracy
North Korea is communist state. They make and sell bombs to other nations. Parts of the nation are hungry while the founder’s Independent Square cannot be compared to anything in The Gambia.
Palestine – not yet an internationally recognized nation has more roads, electricity and buildings than Gambia – proportionally.
Who knows what was Gaddafi’s Libya yet he planted and water trees in the desert sand; Saddam Hussein’s Iraq not only have growing modern infrastructure but also a vibrant economy; Cuba aided Gambia with medical doctors yet these are anything buy democracy.
I hope that drive my point home.
How is/are the level of practicing democracy of a nation measured? Here are some and they do exist in varying degrees but the higher the better the democracy. Lower degrees of some and/or many indicates no democracy and/or in a very compromised form.
1. A Culture of Openness and Equality at State: The more open a people of a democratic nation in their views, their actions and thought the better democratic beings they become. Equally the more citizens consider one and another in reality equals as far as state is concern the more democracy breeds. Deep in our cultures these 2 are not always the case – we hide our feelings, timid on our thoughts and unsure of our actions. Equality is compromised were some considered to have birthrights to rule and/or should be given certain privilege for been who they are. I once wrote that the fighting’s at ‘Public Water Tapes, the stampeding at GPTC bus stops and/or at bread bakeries during Ramadan seem inconsequential traits but speaks to the bigger picture of who we are as relate to our ability to live a life of democracy.
2. An Equal Opportunity and Not Equal Outcome Society: Democracies cultivate a society where each and every member has an equal opportunity to the state regardless of origin, knowledge, religion and other social distinctions. Functioning democracies employ instruments and safeguards to ensure minorities and other challenged communities and/or individuals are afforded equal opportunity as the rest. Unlike communism/socialism democracy does not attempt to equalize outcome. The outcome is left to individuals and how they apply themselves.
3. Governed by Authority Vested Through The People: government of the people, by the people and for the people. A government hired by the people to administer their affairs based on their Constitution. Lawmakers who make laws that conform to the Constitution and as well only serve the interest of the governed. Government protects and preserves the rights of the people, defend them against external harm, and fairly and impartially regulate their affairs based on laws of the land. At such government one do not dish out the people’s resources base on who voted the ways s/he wanted or not nor do people are disparage based on their political differences.
4. Spread/Distribute and Decentralized Power and Authority: Democracy recognizes that power/authority concentrated at one place and/or with one or few are a source of corruptions, abuses and other human vices. In fact democracy is conceptualized on everybody’s input. That starts with each citizen casting a vote to elect public officials to run the common affairs. The creation of 3-arms of government is no accident in a democracy, it is deliberate. The legislature make laws that can be thrown out by the courts if found unconstitutional. This means lawmakers do not have an unchecked authority in their job. The Executive can also veto lawmakers’ work. Equally both the courts and lawmakers can stop acts of the executive if found not serving interests of their constituents and/or do not support the laws, morality and ethics of the people. There are of course other breaks down of power and authority coming down the governance ladder.
5. Judicious use of Police powers: The power vested in state by her people to regulate behaviors for public good, maintained order and security. The judicious use of these authorizes are checked by both numerated/un-numerated set of rights of the individual that are uphold even in times of serious public distress. In few instances such restrictions maybe temporary compromised for public safety and/or something close but under very highly restrictive and measured conditions. Individuals in turn have legal standing to challenge any and all governmental oversteps. The nation of Gambia was placed under state of emergency for more than a year after the 1981 abortive coup and today there are numerous seductive charges in courts of Gambia. These were/are oversteps of authority vested in government by citizens of The Gambia.
6. Level and Ability of Citizen’s Freely Express and Associate as Wish: This is another corner of stone of democracy. People choose the ways and manners they want to relate and/or associate one and another. They express themselves in manners they so choose so long as they do not warm others. They worship God(s) of their choosing. They politic as they wish. They freely move without unnecessary governmental intrusion such as the 100s of checkpoints all across Gambia. More important component is the ability and level of political freedom and expression, religious and as well sexual choices. Some considered a Free Press the fourth arm of government thereby an institution of democracy.
Consider points 3, 4 and 5 as the ‘Institutions of Democracy’ and not the Gamtel’s, GUC’s, etc. Certainly it will be a stretch to claim these democratic features not at all exist in The Gambia but the issue is the degree and/or functionality at which they did/do. That level is so low under both administrations that Gambia cannot be considered a truly practicing democracy. The amount of modern infrastructural development, level of technology, military hardware and computing devices are no measure of democracy – yes they may suggest degrees in standard of living.
Lets attempt to measure them (Jawara and Yahya) against democracy during their tenure. We will not compare the two because that not going to get us far. However should you do that it will probably be safe to assume most will choose Jawara not because he’s democratic but because of his laser-faire attitude and allowing people to loot national resources at will.
Both men denied Gambians jobs (hire/fire) based on party politics, both used national resources to advance their personal political interest, both looted national coffers, both played nepotism and tribalism and/or demonstrate gross incompetent and negligence. To be honest Jawara is not tribal but he uses it whenever some political interest is served.
Both men vehemently suppressed political opposition in the most brutal ways. They also induced supposed enemies/opponents with public resources. I would say Yahya put steroid on Jawara tactics. Jawara uses Propaganda Secretaries and Divisional Commissioner’s. Jawara softly allowed a more open political environment than Yahya but made sure he closes everything that will create a level playing field. Both arrested and detained people for their political affiliation under the pretext of seduction against state. Jawara used State of emergency powers to fill up Bakau Primary School and Field Force Depot with our citizens even those who supposedly wave as Kukoi’s motorcade passes by. Yahya has the green boys/girls running the length and breath of our nation intimidating everybody. He is the feeder, provider, builder, buyer, seller, etc. In a free and democratic nation leaders help create opportunities and citizens harness them through their skills and abilities and not act like a Godly provider.
Both men controlled the election processes from their office. Jawara used his politically appointed Divisional Commissioner’s as Returning Officers of which he was a candidate. Yahya created the so-called IEC that he hire/fire the Commissioners and all the rest as he wishes.
Both men structurally maintained the 3-arms of government yet it is the executive that run over the other two. The National Assembly rubber-stamps the wishes of the executive under the pretext of lawmaking. The judiciary is at the mercy of the executive for their very survival. From Regional Governors to Village Heads, Yahya hires and fires at will. The Press that some considered ad 4th arm of government wasn’t free and independent under both men. Radio Gambia used to praise-sing Jawara as GRTS does for Yahya today. As stated before Yahya easily applied deadly force to achieve his desires while Jawara is softer but even more effective. Both failed to create and maintained basic social data/statistic such as birth registers, death register, passport, immigrants, automotive, agricultural production data, etc. necessary for decision-making. Both failed abysmally to educate citizens on the nation, government and history out of fear of the power of people with requisite human capacity to live a life of democracy.
Both men seriously abused the police powers vested in state by the people of the Gambia. They sanction arrests; extended detentions, pardon lawbreakers without due processes of courts and laws of the land. Power is concentrated at the center with the executive. That order came from above is the common phrase at Police Post when people are searching for disappeared love one’s and yet no one seem to know who that above is – Jawara in the past and/or now Yahya. Frankly besides the act of coup there is nothing new in Gambia, the only difference is the magnitude.
Both failed to introduce and mainstream culture of a lifestyle of democracy. With the changing world environment and certain deficiencies of our cultures we have largely abandon some of our basic cultures/traditions but unable to arrive at our dream destination because of bad, greedy and incompetent leaders.
Recently I posted ‘A Plan’ through the online news outlets. If you haven’t read please try do so and/or contact me for a copy.
Finally I wish to remind you we will be having a Teleconference on the political problems, possible solutions and appropriate vehicles for the solutions. You are invited to participate – we have room for 40 participants. Below is the conference number and access code:
Hope you can make time. If you are as passionate about these matters as I do please come share your thoughts. It’s about time we reduce talking and shift into appropriate actions.
Saturday
July 20, 2013
5:00-7:00 pm EST
Conference Call # and Code: (605) 475-5900 & 416 565 6#
God Bless The Gambia!
Involvement, Comments, Questions, Contributions
Burama FL Jammeh
Facebook.com/burama.jammeh
Twitter.com/bfljammeh
[email protected]
810 844 6040/810 772 1628