The other side of a common dictator

The professor of deception

The other day I was discussing with a friend of mine, our discussion centered on the many missed opportunities that abound for citizens of the Senegambia region, which remains far out of reach as a result of the mostly abrasive relationship between the two countries. Or is it the countries or merely the leaderships? Like my friend who hasa dual Gambian and Senegalese citizenship put it: ‘‘the common people are barely aware of their (the leaders) trivial personal problems, yet the implications are felt by us.’’
Just a couple of days or so later, I bumped onto a well authored article giving an academic view of this very same subject. I felt impressed. But it left me immersed in bemusement as to what would limit so much needed understanding and cooperation between the two leaders of what are arguably the two most identical countries in the world. It soon downed on me that there are more to the situation surrounding Gambia and Senegal than some of us might care to know.
Not so long after, on October 20, President Yahya Jammeh made headlines, calling on an imaginary audience of belligerents to halt fighting in the Southern Senegalese Region of Casamance and to resort to the discussion table. An official presidential statement from State House in Banjul aired on the Gambia Radio and Television Services (GRTS), quoted the president as saying, ‘‘both parties to the conflict should know that the solution to the problem of Casamance is not a military one. The Gambia, as a peace loving country, cannot be indifferent to the escalating violence in Casamance…’
This statement by the Gambian leader was met with a strong force of dismissal from so many quarters, not least from among his own compatriots, all of whom appeared unanimous in their belief that despite portraying himself as some kind of a mediator, Jammeh is in fact a part and parcel of the problem in the Casamance region.
Because of some unwarranted behaviors of Yahya Jammeh towards his Senegalese counterpart, I am inclined to believe that there is some truth in all these allegations against him regarding his role in the Casamance affairs and his status as an impediment to potential integration of the two people. Take a look at this headline story: ‘IMF scandal rocks Senegal…Wade’s reputation discredited.’ It appeared on the Daily Observer, a paper owned by Yahya Jammeh. But the fact that he owned this paper is not the issue here; the issue is that it is him who passed the directive that this article be published, as a way, I guess, of amplifying Wade’s political woes. This news item apparently hits the headlines towards the end of October. The Daily Observer is only publishing now, after Jammeh apparently came across it.
Earlier on February 8, 2009, the same paper published another article ‘‘‘I am not a Freemason anymore’’ - President Wade’, again at the directive of Yahya Jammeh. I was there then. He ordered that we search for the news and publish it. What for? - was the question that then lingered in the minds of everyone there. Even some people who portray themselves as arch supporters of his criticize this rather baffling attitude of his.
In May 2007, a similar scenario occurred which cost some innocent NIA officials their job, thanks to the hurtful nature of a conceited president. An article had been published on the Daily Observer the previous day, which could only have set out to set alight the two countries. That incriminating article had been penned by Yahya Jammeh himself in his office, on his table at State House, and given to the then editor-in-chief for onward submission to Dr Taal, the then MD of the Daily Observer, for publication. The order was that the article be published verbatim. And so it was.
Taken aback by the move, and knowing very well the relationship between the Daily Observer and the Gambia government, and what the article will mean for the relationship between his country and Gambia, the Senegalese ambassador in Banjul apparently became convinced that this was not fitting. He contacted some one highly placed within the Gambian security establishment. Eventually some foolish senior NIA official ordered a couple of his men to take up the issue with the Daily Observer. Just like it had been published on Freedom on its May 18th 2007 edition. Both Dr Taal and the editor-in-chief, as well as the senior news editors at the Observer then knew very well that the article was from the desk of the president, yet they would not tell the innocent investigating NIAs who were there on assignment, only to find out how the story came about. Eventually the information reached the president. He ordered that all the NIA officers and their superior who assigned them be sacked ‘‘for daring to investigating the president.’’
How on earth could these people have known that they were investigating the almighty, vindictive president? As a matter of fact, those junior NIAs never got to know the reason for their sacking. They were innocent, executing an assignment they had been tasked to do, in the interest of safeguarding regional peace, a peace that had been put at risk by the head of state.
This is how many people, very many people in the Yahya Jammeh government since 1994 to date, have had their jobs terminated. And the impression we get is that these sacked people are the bad ones. No!
The special interest Jammeh shows in these kind stories demonstrates his wily and vile feeling for Wade and the rest of the Senegalese people. You can not hate an innocent leader and you claim to like its people.
Now if you were in the place of the Senegalese president, who is old enough to be his father, how would you treat such a person who is supposedly a brother to you? I do not know if Wade is doing something similar to Yahya Jammeh, or if he is aware of this irrational behavior of someone who portrays himself as the ‘champion’ of piece in the world, but I am quite certain that the political maturity in Senegal would not allow Wade to indulge in such, and beside, the Senegalese president has got far more important issues to deal with than to indulge in this kind of nonsense.
This sort of mortifying small-mindedness is the distasteful side of Yahya Jammeh his supporters do not seem to know about. Or are they just ignoring it?
I believe President Wade, like every other human being, feels just as bad as Yahya does when something of this nature is highlighted about him. Nonetheless such are a frequent occurrence in the Senegalese press, and despite occasional outcry by members of the press, the situation is far above 100% better than what you can find in Gambia. Gambians do not even have the right to what the constitution guarantees, let alone matters on the person of the president. This explains the level of proliferation of Gambian owned online papers abroad.
But the point I am trying to make here is that Yahya Jammeh is fund of preaching decency, yet it turns out that he very much subscribes to this sort of unethical behavior. In Gambia the media is wrong only when it focuses negatively on Yahya Jammeh. The narrow minded president himself uses the media to blast at his opponents or insults the whole, and sometimes the whole world, and he does not see anything wrong about libel or deformation until he becomes the victim.
For those of us who have been around long enough to know some little about this man, his dishonest preaching for peace in the rest of the world is typical of him, despite his global condemnation as an epitome of a repressive Africa. Paradoxically, the words ‘peace and stability’ have become permanently part of his vocabulary, yet all his dealings from the dawn of the day to sunset are full of contradictions of threats of torture and killing. How can you claim to want to bring peace to someone else’s country when yours is in disarray in the first place? Isn’t that hypocrisy in the highest form?

A word for Surata Marong and co

This is intended to be a precise and simple response to Surata Marong’s letter, published on Freedom Newspaper, November 7 2009. I have resolved not to serve as a reason for any political scavenger to attract Yahya Jammeh’s attention by provoking my engaging them on whether I should be writing about the man or not. I have gotten a couple of similar missed placed pieces that I preferred not to respond to, because they do not worth wasting my time for. It’s that Surata raised some fundamental issues that made me feel obliged to put him through what he obviously does not know about the man he calls a ‘blessing’ to Gambians. In fact, he knows nothing about Yahya Jammeh other than what he sees written or hear about him. Whether he is blessing or not, let’s leave that for posterity to judge.

I believe all of those who clamor about Yahya Jammeh and how his rule lay on the line the future of Gambia have legitimate reasons one way or the other to do so, but those who criticize him based on their experiences have an even solid raison d'être to do so. That is the club I belong to. I assure you, Surata, that the best you can do is to listen and then make a fair judgment. This is not to say support or sympathize with me or any other aggrieved person over Yahya Jammeh’s misrule. What I mean is learn to appreciate the reality of things, however unpleasant they might be for your liking.

I have never argued on the basis that Yahya Jammeh can or cannot develop the country more than Dubai, as he seems to fantasize at any given opportunity. Every single individual who is distressed about the status quo in Gambia today has a unique reason. Ask anyone of them and they will tell you. You might be right to say that ‘‘When it comes to getting things done in the Gambia, we need fewer architects and more bricklayers.’’ However, architects are what we lack in the country today, because they are all being chased out as a result of innate hate been perpetuated by Momodou Sanyang and the likes. What kind of democracy is this that we are talking about?

When I joined the Daily Observer, I did so because I wanted to be a journalist not a politician. However, I recognized the fact very well that I was bound by an editorial policy which I respected fully. But even that would not save me from being accused of receiving critical information about Yahya Jammeh. If a leader thinks he has nothing to hide, he has nothing to worry about what people write. I have come to believe now that this is not like Yahya Jammeh.

Yes, we rejoice seeing our leaders being bold, but I hope you are not taking pleasure from saying this of Yahya Jammeh who takes such awkward decisions, backing them by the constitution. What is bold in sacking innocent people after they have been falsely reported to be opposed to your ideologies? If he really wants to sack people who are not working, there are many of them serving at all levels of government. All they do is misuse tax payers’ money.

I find it interesting that you would understand the fact that ‘‘Thrust is just like a virgin, once you lost it you can never regain it,’’ yet you can’t appreciate the fact that people like me who criticize Yahya Jammeh today are doing so based on a lost trust. It was you who recognized that in my interview on Freedom that I was polite and very specific of what I wanted. I guess that was because I tried to speak the Freedom editor out of frequent personality attacks and verbal assault on the president. Please, do distinguish personal attack from issues. You can not discuss political issues on Gambia today and don’t have to mention Yahya Jammeh. He forcefully dominates everything. Is it anybody’s fault that he is being discussed? I precisely attempted to speak Pa N’dery out of verbal assault of the president, not against attacking his egocentric tendencies.

You might be right that something about me has changed. You are not the only one who has said so of late. However, contrary to what you feel, I did not pass any specific ransom demand as such. I expected that when people make such serious allegations against people close to you, if you really are what you claim to be you ought to find out and not be arrogantly dismissing them. Jammeh’s statement, as published on Freedom, when he came to the US, left me disappointed, and if you have been following my writings well you will realize that it was after then that I started going the way I have been going. Such statement tantamount to endorsement of the lethargic and anti-progressive advice he is getting from Momodou Sanyang and his likes. Have you asked yourself what could cause me to accuse Momodou Sanyang, some one of my father’s age?

You sounded as though you were not expecting me to say anything after my interview with Freedom. I am afraid; you are making a big mistake. The only full time job I have known and love is journalism. Now tell me, if I do not write on Gambian affairs what do you expect me to write on? Gordon Brown and British politics I guess. I tell you what; some other people might get carried away by your praises for Yahya Jammeh, but certainly not me. I lived in that for close to two years working at the Daily Observer. I got the opportunity to see both his good side and his bad side. While you can play your game well with the hope that some day on return to Gambia you will get compensated, I do not need a job from Yahya Jammeh. Get that right. So, I will write my mind out regardless of how either you, Yahya Jammeh or whoever it is thinks.

Internal politics, like you put it, might be everywhere in the world, including where you are in the UK. But between you and God, you know that they do not report people on the ridiculous false allegation of receiving information critical of a leader whom the whole world knows can not stand divergent views. Do you know what that means to the reprehensible NIA of the Gambia? That was what Pa Malick Faye and Momodou Sanyang did to me. Pa Malick had his own agenda, and as far as I am concerned, he is not an issue to me except to say that he did that, just like he and the rest of the satanic trio, which includes himself, Sanyang and Dr Saja Taal, sacrificed Chief Manneh. I only make mention of Pa Malick when I talk about the Issue of Chief Manneh, because he was part of the cause of his disappearance. Those who think it is because of grievance that I am talking certainly do not know that I was not sacked, I ran away for my life. And you probably might want to know that I could have remained editor-in-chief of the Daily Observer up until now, but only at the expense of my conscience. Momodou Sanyang tried to lure me into that. By the way, is it correct to say this is internal politics when it involves Sanyang who doesn’t work there?

I think you deserve my advice, not the other way round. Since it is obvious that you do not know anything about me, please do find something else to say.

I am of the firm conviction that what I have contributed to Yahya Jammeh and the APRC government, you Surata Marong hasn’t done half of it. So if I change, it behooves you to fine out why I have changed. That way you can make an informed decision on your wasted time of support for Yahya Jammeh and his dictatorial tendencies. And like you and some other distraught guy in Raleigh North Carolina in the US, Pa Malick is not going to get mentioned by me only to have Yahya Jammeh appoints you people. If you want that go to Gambia and strive by yourself. That way you will get a better idea of what it is like living in that kind of situation. Wa Salam!

A popular revolt or the court of God

Let’s talk politics when it is time for politicking, and let’s talk seriousness when issues of significance are brought forward. While there has never been any doubt that Yahya Jammeh’s government, as a matter of fact Yahya Jammeh himself, is directly responsible for the killing of Dayda Hydara and the many murderous acts in Gambia, this latest revelation, implicating his must trusted body guard, Alhagie Martin, must not by any means be treated lightly.

Of course it is an allegation, like the editor at Freedom said. But what are allegations for? The whistleblower knows very well that just by naming Alhagie Marting, the accused is not just going to be handcuffed and sent to jail. He knows Yahya Jammeh will not sanction the accused because he (Jammeh) sent him, according to the report. This is certainly only meant to be a very valuable piece of information that could kick starts an investigation into the matter. They say that every allegation comes with some degree of truth. If Martin is not directly responsible, he certainly has an idea about the whole thing.

As for me since the day I became irreversibly convinced that Gambia government, through agents Momodou, Dr Saja Taal and Pa Malick Faye, was responsible for the continued disappearance of Chief Manneh, in spite of Yahya Jammeh’s categorical denial on GRTS earlier, with his infamous bead and mysterious book in hand, I lost confidence in the man and all what he says. Of course before that I had had reasons to believe that many things, very many things, were amiss in that country. But I had always gone with the feeling that he was largely innocent of them, and I do not think I am alone in that. What I experienced within my last days in Gambia confirms that all what these agents of death are doing are being done in his name. Otherwise the least he can do is to question them like the way he orders the questioning of suspects of anti-APRC feelings. When allegations are made against his cronies, Yahya Jammeh does not question them. Why?

The first thing that comes to my mind now is Jammeh’s immediate next move after this startling revelation. My fear is that Colonel Martin might go the same path as the blood thirsty duo (who were poisoned to death after serving as Yahya Jammeh’s executioners, effectively effacing valuable evidences) whom the whole of Gambia knows where behind the tortures and extra judicial killings that took place between 1994 and the time of their own ignominious demise.

Let’s say all this is all speculation. But it is certainly a case that has been forwarded. If the free world is really serious about bringing Dayda’s killers to book, and effectively putting to an end, once and for all, this madness that is going on in Gambia, this issue should be taken up seriously. Martin should be questioned and investigations commenced to that effect.

Before 1994, cold-blooded murder was relatively unheard of in what was a relatively peaceful Gambia. Potential criminals have over the years become spirited and encouraged by government sponsored acts of terrorism. Yes, terrorism!

If after the heartless acts of murdering an innocent and harmless journalist – if this latest allegation is true - Martin could go ahead and attempt to take the life of another person in the form of a harmless lawyer, he should be stopped by all means immediately. I am not an authority in Psychology, but the basic knowledge I have in it let me know that people like Martin, having been used to spilling blood, are prone to the urge of committing such sickening crimes. And since Yahya Jammeh has used you, he has an edge over you, which he uses as a bargaining tool. In this case since Martin can not escape punishment if he is found guilty, he certainly will not come forward to tell the truth by himself. And Yahya Jammeh will continue to have him do anything he desires.

No wonder the guy is constantly distressed. Someone who used to be closed to the system presently at the Daily Observer once remarked that Martin suffers from some Psychological trauma. According to this person, Martin has engaged in a lot of ‘‘dangerous operations.’’ I am now trying to make a link. These are not my words; that are those of some one who knows how the system operates.

Some deadly drunken and obviously ignorant security personnel told me in Kanilai, ‘‘we do not care what anybody else thinks, all we care about is what the ‘Oga’ (meaning Yahya Jammeh) wants.’’ I was unfortunate to exchange words with that brut of a beast as I negotiated the release of a journalist friend of mine from one of the independent papers, who had smuggled himself, as it were, into Kanilai. I was speaking of course as a student leader having led a group of students to the president’s farm. Imagine this guy was in Kanilai to cover activities of the president’s agricultural venture which are supposedly aimed at uplifting Gambians from poverty. But as far as the Jammeh government is concerned, according to that military man, the Daily Observer and GRTS are the only media that reports well about the president, his party and his government, and therefore these are the only media they would consider.

This guy threatened to ensure that this particular media house got into some trouble, bragging that it would just take him seconds of call and the house of that paper would be ransacked by the NIA. I talked him out of that, with the detained journalist friend of mine my priority.

‘‘Imagine the number of young Gambians who would lose their job if you do that,’’ I appealed. He had promised that he would make sure that the boy was transferred to the NIA, saying to me, ‘‘you know what will happen if he gets there.’’

The threatening calls I got from Momodou Sanyang, the closest murderous agent of Yahya Jammeh today, is another topic of discussion.

All these go to show the degree of treachery that characterizes the consciences of the people who claim to love the Gambia more than the people who supposedly installed them into power. This madness must stop!

And I want to observe the fact that this revelation, given its time of emergence, when members of the security forces in Gambia are clearly the most disgruntled and uncertain …. must have come from some one within who knows exactly what happened. The sheer preciseness and simplicity of the letter also explains a lot.

One way Gambians in the Diaspora can exert pressure on these murderers bunch and discourage them from their act could be to engage foreign diplomats to adopt the same policy they have been adopting in countries like Zimbabwe and Kenya – travel ban and if possible freezing of assets. These people prey on Gambians and make money out of it only to go abroad and buy properties with blood money. This madness must stop!

In conclusion, I just want to say that one day all these people will face justice; if not in the court of the people in a popular revolt, then obviously in the court of the Almighty God. The ignoble role they are playing in the Gambian scheme of things will never go unnoticed.

Enduring legacies are left to be noticed by sincere God fearing humankind, and, that is measured by posterity. Where are theirs?

This is just the beginning. The day you will find yourselves behind bars, with your cronies testifying against you, then you will realize that God really exists.