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I was thinking of expressing my views in support of adopting the Tactical Alliance approach, when I heard that the Coalition members held a meeting to decide on the way forward. The majority voted for taking the “tactical alliance approach”; thus, matter resolved – case closed!

Before we proceed, let me share with you the statement issued to journalists at the UDP-NRP-GMC press conference held on Sunday 5^th March. It follows, and please read it carefully, and with an open mind:

The United Democratic Party (UDP), the National Reconciliation Party (NRP) and the Gambia Moral Congress (GMC), have jointly proposed a Tactical Alliance approach within the framework of the Coalition. The purpose of the Tactical Alliance is to achieve Coalition victory in the upcoming National Assembly elections scheduled for April, 2017.

These parties strongly believe that the proposed Tactical Alliance would be the most effective approach for the consolidation of power by President Adama Barrow to enable him and his team to fulfill their mandate for reform and reconstruction in The Gambia.

 In the past few years, the UDP, NRP and GMC have proposed or participated in various initiatives aimed at forming a coalition to defeat the repressive APRC government. These initiatives included:

–          The “Gambians United for Change” rallies in 2013/2014.

–          The 2016 UDP Congress resolution mandated the party leadership to     negotiate with all opposition parties on the formation of a united front that would sponsor a single candidate to contest the presidential election.

–          The formation in 2015 of the inter-party Youth Forum initiated by Honourable Samba Jallow, the Minority Leader, comprising several opposition parties.

–       In March, GMC hosted a multi-party meeting at Taibatu, URR, with a view to facilitating the formation of a united front for the 2016 elections, and paving the way for a single candidate for the 2016 presidential election.

In furtherance of the efforts for political unity, the UDP, NRP and the GMC hereby call on all members of the Coalition to join them in implementing a Tactical Alliance strategy in the forthcoming elections. 

 Coalition 2016 was formed for the sole purpose of selecting a unified opposition candidate to unseat the former President. The Coalition agreement dated October 17, 2016, dealt with the election of the presidential candidate. The agreement did not cover matters concerning the National Assembly elections. No agreement was reached on how the Coalition partners should cooperate in the sponsorship and selection of candidates for the forthcoming National Assembly election.

However, in the spirit of continuing and maintaining the Coalition, the UDP, NRP and GMC have proposed a tactical alliance strategy among all the Coalition partners. This entails choosing a candidate whose party is strongest in a particular constituency or one who is markedly qualified to represent the Coalition in the said constituency. Under the UDP/NRP/GMC proposal, no member of the Coalition will sponsor a candidate in any constituency where the tactical alliance has selected a candidate.

This approach will preserve and protect the Coalition spirit, as well as the parties and their ideological positions within the Coalition. With this approach, a party will sponsor candidates in areas where it commands the highest support and its Coalition partners would give support and vice versa in the name of the Coalition.

All National Assembly Members elected within the framework of the Tactical Alliance will owe allegiance to their various parties and will support the President and his transition government, in the Coalition spirit.

 In addition to the above, the UDP/NRP/GMC strongly believes that the proposed tactical alliance will engender benefits, including the following: 

1. Maintain and promote multi-party democracy;
2. Enhance electoral success for the Coalition;
3. Promote coordination and harmonization of Coalition legislative programmes and agenda;
4. Promote collegiality among Coalition 2016 legislators
5. Allow the various Coalition partners to maintain their political visibility and competitiveness, and
6. Allow all the Coalition partners to support President Adama Barrow’s legislative agenda, while maintaining their political identities

 The proposal of having 53 Independent National Assembly members representing the Coalition is neither wise nor feasible because of various reasons, including the following:

1. The legislative agenda for the development of the country must be based on the collective (partisan) ideological plans and programmes developed by all the parties over the past 22 years. This cannot and must not be thrown away. To entrust the Nation’s legislative agenda to 53 independent representatives who do not have a common platform is recipe for chaos, confusion, inefficiency, constant stalemates and lack of direction.
2. It would also create a disconnect between the well-developed programmes of some of the political parties and the legislative activities of the elected members of the National Assembly.
3. Each party has a right and duty to continue to assess the political realities and socio-economic needs of the country and to formulate legislative actions consistent with the party’s philosophy and vision. This would be lost if there is no party representation in the National Assembly.
4. Legislators always caucus and form voting blocs based on political ideology and vision. This is an integral part of the legislative process in any democracy to achieve the development programmes of all political parties. The Tactical Alliance being proposed by the UDP, NRP and GMC will allow the Coalition National Assembly members to present a united front based on a common platform, as opposed to creating a chaotic situation whereby 53 National Assembly Members proceed on their own individual paths.
5. The Tactical Alliance will promote accountability. The public will be able to judge the performance of the various parties based on their achievements in the National Assembly. The UDP, NRP and GMC are opposed to the proposal of having 53 independent candidates because, in part, it prevents the Gambian citizens from being able to assign credit or blame for their legislative successes and failures.

Finally, the UDP/NRP/GMC would like to reiterate that as founding members of the Coalition 2016 which removed Yahya Jammeh from power through the ballot box; their parties will continue to commit their support to the Coalition government of President Adama Barrow.

Any rumour that these parties are not agreeing to an independent party platform and, therefore, have intentions of breaking or destroying the Coalition that they fought so hard to create, is not only false and deliberately misleading, but utterly dishonest.

 The UDP/NRP/GMC wish to assure our Coalition partners and, indeed, the entire Gambian population that they will never relent from playing their part in the Coalition in the interest and well-being of the Gambian Nation.

 Long Live the Coalition! Long Live the Gambia!

United Democratic Party – National Reconciliation Party – Gambia Moral Congress

Now, during my reflection on this matter, I decided and now I’m firmly convinced, after reading the shared statement above, that the position of the three parties was very sound, and is the best way to proceed.

An alternative “experiment” in which so-called “independent” candidates of the Coalition contest in the National Assembly election, would produce a legislature where the government relies on the support of lawmakers who are “Independents” and were not candidates of any of the constituent political parties of the Coalition.

Under the country’s Elections Law, there is no political party registered as the “Coalition”. This was the reason for the “independent candidate” tag! Which label Barrow, sponsored by the UDP in the primary which selected the Coalition’s presidential candidate, was compelled to take so as to qualify, under the law, to participate in the election, which he won; an event which has transformed the political landscape of this country for good!

In any case, the explanation for not agreeing to “an independent party platform”, given above by the UND-NRP-GDC tactical alliance promoters, and the declaration that it “is neither wise nor feasible because of various reasons”, is acceptable to any right-thinking person with a sound mind.

We may want to copy the arrangement under the Benno Bokk Yakaar coalition backing the government of Macky Sall in Senegal, as they prepare to contest in their forthcoming legislative elections in July 2017.

This may well be the model inspiring the alternative approach which we described as the “experiment”, and which was being promoted by some backers of the Coalition government of the Adama Barrow.

However, in Senegal it is the Alliance for the Republic (APR) party of President Macky Sall which is definitely the “ruling party”.

Moreover, it is felt in some quarters that the “experiment” will stifle diversity and competition, which are essential for the success of any democratic dispensation.

Related to the foregoing, we recall that when UN under-secretary general … visited Gambia recently, and addressed a news conference, he spoke of Gambians living under a “one party government”, referring to the past 22 years of rule by only the APRC governments under Yahya Jammeh.

Under the constitution, what you have is a Cabinet comprising all Barrow appointees; a Judiciary of all government appointees (with Barrow appointing the Chief Justice and all superior courts judges); the head of the Civil Service and all senior public servants also all of them Barrow appointees; and the High Command of the military and security establishment, etc., all required to kowtow to President Barrow – to whom they all owe their positions and jobs.

The advocates of the “experiment” we referred to above want us to have a legislature, where all the so-called “Independents” are beholden to Barrow, and not to any political party which is a member of the Coalition. Does such a system exist anywhere in the world?

We are all aware that all the conditions, as highlighted above, are still there for the re-emergence of a one-person and or one party/single party rule, and should the “Independent National Assembly members representing the Coalition” secure a majority in the National Assembly, as the outcome of the “experiment”, it buttresses the power of a monolithic Coalition government.

What is clear is that it is preferable to have a National Assembly with members who will serve the national interest, not lawmakers there to advance their party agenda or personal interest, and definitely not MPs who will be dictated to by the President.

Certainly, we must not go back to the way Yahya Jammeh controlled the National Assembly – where the speaker, deputy speaker, majority leader and even the Clerk of the House (a civil servant!) were all card-carrying members of the ruling APRC party.

A National Assembly where every bill or motion was declared as “non-controversial”, including, just to cite a few, the IEC bill which amended the Elections Law and increased the fees for candidates; as well as the bill amending the Information Act 2009, which provided for 15 years imprisonment and a fine of D3 million for conviction for a “crime” of expression on the Internet and social media!

To return to such a political situation would be the opposite of what we are campaigning for under NAM – the Never Again Movement – which we launched to create mass awareness so that Gambians must Never Again tolerate the emergence of a leader like Yahya Jammeh in this country!

Indeed, with members of the executive (the vice president and all ministers), judiciary (the chief justice) and legislature (speaker) all beholden to President Barrow; all having sworn to the oath of allegiance to the Republic, yet required to declare loyalty to the President and the commander-in-chief – if Gambians are not vigilant, and Barrow is not careful about all that power going into his head, we could end up with a government like that of Yahya Jammeh.

Thus, it is our view that since it is risky to embark on “an uncontrolled experiment”, we should go with a feasible option, which conforms to the constitution and Elections Law – especially,  remembering the debacle of the failed NADD coalition experiment, when the opposition made an embarrassing blunder, and Gambians were compelled to go back and hold avoidable bye-elections in Serrekunda and the provinces.

We are aware of the Tahawal Banjul initiative. We understand, from a press release that the “primary objective…is to put in place a system that will allow political parties to select competent and committed candidates…through a primary…”

Such an approach is consistent with the majority voted decision taken by Coalition members to have a “tactical alliance” for the April 2017 National Assembly election.

In as much as we are committed to the goal of evolving a democratic system in Gambia which is second to none in the world, we also know that one needs to work on it, and that it is going to be a process and will take time.

Definitely, one must be patient and wait for the objective conditions to arise, and not rush, lest we undo all the progress we have achieved so far, and in the process confuse, alienate and lose the goodwill of the Gambian electorate.

 

 PRESS RELEASE

Call to join the Never Again! Movement, NAM

 

We announce the launching of a mass movement which is asking Gambians to stand up and make sure there will “Never Again!” be a leader like Yahya Jammeh in this country!

NAM will be a people’s movement whose participants will be vigilant to prevent the emergence of another Gambian leader like Yahya Jammeh in this country!

 

Yahya Jammeh’s misrule in The Gambia, the way he abused office; abused power is being documented and will continue to be documented – and the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission will unearth the crimes his governments for all to see.

We hereby call on all to support this initiative, whose sole purpose is to work to uphold and defend the sovereignty of the people of The Gambia, as required by the Constitution.

 

Chapter 1 section 2 of the Constitution states: “The Sovereignty of The Gambia resides in the people of The Gambia from whom all organs of government derive their authority and in whose name and for whose welfare and prosperity the powers of government are to be exercised in accordance with this Constitution.”

 

Chapter 2 section 6 (Defence of the Constitution) sub section 2 states: “All citizens of The Gambia have the right and the duty at all times to defend this Constitution…”

 

For practical reasons and to facilitate the activities of the movement, I shall serve as Coordinator of NAM. There will be coordinators or focal points in other parts of the world, as Gambians in the Diaspora have an important part to play in the activities of this movement.

Participation is open to all Gambians in the country and Gambians residing outside The Gambia; participation is open to non-Gambians in the country and all citizens of the world who want to see that Genuine Democracy prevails everywhere and at all times.

All are invited to participate in sharing and exchange information, ideas and knowledge through the internet and other media of mass communication, including the news media, to promote the sovereignty of the people of The Gambia and elsewhere.

My contact address is as follows: Mr Alieu Famara Sagnia mobile phones: 00220 99 888 71 / 00220 79 888 20 / 00220 353 1909 / Email address: alfsoninke@yahoo.co.uk / facebook:

 

THINKING ALOUD

The debate must be joined, to let ideas sprout and views exchanged, so that humanity benefits from the knowledge and wisdom spread.

 

Gambia must Never Again produce another Yahya Jammeh!

Lawyer Ousainou Darboe delivered a most pertinent statement, after being sworn in as the country’s new foreign minister and top diplomat, at the 1^st January 2017 Kairaba Beach Hotel ceremony presided over by President Adama Barrow, who has called Darboe his “mentor”.

Darboe explained the meaning of the solemn oaths – oath of allegiance to the REPUBLIC, oath of office to execute their duties without fear or favour, affection or ill-will, and the oath of secrecy which Darboe described as protective of the state and, by extension, the President.

The oath of allegiance, he said, enjoins the new cabinet ministers not to build around the President a “personality cult”, but to be faithful to the Republic of The Gambia and to help Barrow in shaping the destiny of the nation faithfully. In other words, they have sworn allegiance to the Republic, and to serve the Gambian people faithfully. We hope the new President Barrow and his cabinet colleagues will imbibe well these words of wisdom.

Darboe’s advice rhymes well with the thinking which underpins our launching of the Never Again Movement (NAM), which we are promoting, and whose raison d’etre is to organize and campaign for the Gambian masses to stand up and make sure that there will “Never Again!” be a leader like Yahya Jammeh in this country!

NAM will campaign and ask the people to be vigilant to prevent the emergence of another Gambian leader like Yahya Jammeh!

This is why we will lend our support to the setting up of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as soon as possible, which will exposed and record the myriad crimes committed by, including the unforgettable abuses and indignities Gambians were subjected to, by the governments of Yahya Jammeh, between July 1994 and January 2017.

It will show how Jammeh was not motivated by altruism (as he claimed) but self-gain, and how in the past 22 years Jammeh managed to hoodwink some Gambians into thinking he is a saint, while he perfected his abuse of office and abuse of power as he worked to realise his misguided ambition of self-perpetuating misrule.

Related to the foregoing; in passing, we want to recommend to our readers the opinion piece entitled: “The End of an Era!!” by Baaba mu Sabel (see The Point newspaper edition dated Monday January 30, 2017), which provides a good insight into the personality of Yahya Jammeh. Indeed, Baaba Sillah has set the right tone in his piece, which shows what must be done now to document the era of misrule under Jammeh’s Gambia.

No amnesty for Jammeh and co

This is why one must concur with the views of Mo Ibrahim, on the issue of not granting amnesty to Jammeh and his cronies.

In a 23 January message congratulating the Gambian people “for the successful conclusion of a difficult electoral process” (carried in local newspapers), he said:

“We hope that The Gambia will find the space to put in place an authentic process for its people to reconcile themselves within a framework of national unity. However, this demarche should not in any way condone impunity for violations, atrocities and abuses that are related to the 22 years of authoritarian rule.”

We may not need to look far to ensure due process in making Jammeh answer for any crimes committed against the Gambian people, as there are already laws in our statute books such as laws for economic crimes, the recent anti-corruption legislation, sedition, treason, etc., which Jammeh used against people and political opponents, in the name of “rule of law”, and which can now be used to try him and his associates for any wrongdoing.

In any case, Never Again must Gambians allow themselves to be taken for a ride! Never Again must Gambians be rendered helpless and taken advantage of by an unscrupulous leader like Yahya Jammeh! Never Again must Gambians allow their leader to manipulate and to work the system, so as to use the state machinery to serve his/her selfish ends; indeed, to use resources belonging to the nation to enrich himself/herself and his cronies and associates, the way Yahya Jammeh did!

Never Again must they allow a leader to act with such impunity; indeed, to have his way in everything! Never Again must Gambians allow their leader to abuse his/her office; abuse his/her power, in the way the unbearably arrogant Yahya Jammeh did!

To be a paragon – yes, we can

Indeed, , this is our opportunity to create a state whose democratic governance super-structure would be a paragon, and could be said to outshine – as Halifa Sallah has been saying for decades – even what obtains in the world’s so-called most advanced democracies. It is possible; yes, we can do it; and this is our chance!

Again, we want to remind ourselves of what former U.S. president Obama said: “…what we need is not strongmen, but strong institutions,” in Africa. Obama was talking about African leaders who see themselves as “indispensable”, such as Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Uganda’s Museveni.

The creation of strong institutions must be the focus of the Barrow Administration! This is our firm conviction! Actually, the Barrow Administration is an interregnum; it is a good pause to enable us re-examine ourselves, then take action to correct and re-direct our path to get us to a better and brighter future.

This must be done in such a way that, come 2020, when Barrow’s term ends, his administration will bequeath to Gambians a model of good government in Africa. This should be the priority focus of Barrow’s transitional government!

Remember, we had a two-year Transition to civilian rule, under the AFPRC, which led to Yahya Jammeh’s Gambia of the past 22 years. We recall that the AFPRC used this Transition Period to embark on so-called development projects, which they then presented to Gambians and the world as evidence of what Jammeh can do, if given a chance, which led to the first election of Yahya Jammeh as the president of this country. We all know what that has led to, how it turned out and how it all ended by 21^st January 2017, when Jammeh was forced into exile.

Gambians must be vigilant this time round, so that now under Adama Barrow, the three-year Transition Period truly leads to the emergence of a New Gambia.

We hope all goes as envisioned, and that we do not find ourselves in the same scenario all over again, as happened in 1996 and post-AFPRC junta.

Again, this must be ensured through Gambians being very vigilant, and making sure that Barrow’s Administration is truly transitional to a New Gambia – and not a revival of the old or even worst – and please don’t say “No Way!”, as we have seen this happening all over Africa – in Sierra Leone and Guinea, for example.

Way Forward

It is our strong belief that Barrow’s Transitional Administration is not supposed to work to bring about “development”. Of course, any government, at the barest minimum, must work to address the basic needs of the population, including vital infrastructure.

Indeed, in our view, the three-year Transitional Administration should be a period to focus on rectification of the derailment of ship of state under the Yahya Jammeh era. This means giving priority to implementing constitutional/legal reforms to correct everything Jammeh did to subvert the state, by making the legislature, judiciary, national economic institutions, national security apparatus etc., subservient and to serve his personal interest.

If the Barrow Administration succeeds in doing this, then it would have built and bequeathed to Gambians the strong foundation which Lawyer Ousainou Darboe alluded to in his statement referred to at the very beginning of this opinion piece.

We strongly believe this is the Way Forward!

 

 

Opinion piece: Time to get involved

By Alieu F. Sagnia

In the 1990s, when I as a journalist worked and reported for the State-owned The Gambia Daily newspaper, I started a column entitled “Thinking Aloud”. Our work then (as a reporter and then as the Editor/Publisher of The Gambia Daily is on record – as is the nature of the written word/newspapers, and is available for scrutiny to see how we upheld professionalism, despite the fact that we worked for the government.

Yahya Jammeh’s Gambia – which as aptly stated by Gambian historian Hassoum Ceesay in a recent piece published in the papers – was a period of “one-man rule”. After that era, perhaps it is now propitious to revive the “Thinking Aloud” column.

And this is the purpose of this write-up: To announce the revival of the column – which, put simply, is for expressing my thoughts, ideas and views (anchored on my worldview) on events and happenings in The Gambia and beyond.

The objective of the column is to serve as a platform or forum for public education and awareness creation in members of the generations coming after us, and the millennials.

I intend to have it published in the newspapers, local and foreign, and online. So watch out!

For long in the Gambia, the real professionals, intellectuals, experts have ceded the public space for the exchange of knowledge, ideas and debate to all manner of commentators – most of them hacks, charlatans or shameless barefaced opportunists etc.

Indeed, it is time for those of us who have been courageous enough to stick to and live by our principles, all these past years and decades, to reclaim our place in the public domain and not leave it to them entirely, as times have changed and now the issues and problems have become too important to keep quiet, or to watch from the sidelines.

Thus, our re-launching opinion pieces will be on the following topics:

1. About launching the Never Again! Movement – Again, Hassoum Ceesay did hit the nail right on the head, when he concluded his opinion piece on Yahya Jammeh’s misrule entitled “The Gambia’s 40 days of terror!” (See The Point newspaper No. 022 dated Monday January 23, 2017) with the call to arms: “Never Again! Never Again! Never Again!”

 

We intend to launch a movement which will ask Gambian to stand up and make sure there will “Never Again!” be a leader like Yahya Jammeh in this country!

I want to explain that it was my intention to announce the launching of the Never Again Movement, and was procrastinating at the time Hassoum made his “Never Again” declaration.

I hereby call on all who know me, my friends, colleagues past and present, to support this initiative, whose sole purpose is to work to uphold and defend the sovereignty of the people of The Gambia, as required by the Constitution.

2. Our views on ASSED, which the new government intends to launch as the new national vision. Are we going back to adopting and promoting the same old ideas – as espoused in Vision 2020, PAGE etc. – championed by the West and UN, which have been tried and tested – and have failed to bring about real prosperity to our people and meaningful development to our nations in Africa?

Or are we asking our so-called intellectuals to ditch the ideas underlying Vision 2020, PAGE etc., and come up with a vision for national advancement, which will draw inspiration from past worldviews which may be deemed contrary to the trending global consensus, but which are in fact needed right now, more than ever before, to confront and address the realities of today’s world.

As was happening in The Gambia of the 1960s, 70s and 80s when there was a real intellectual atmosphere in the country, this is a debate which we want to revive, and see come to the fore!

3. A piece on why, in our opinion, the political impasse was best resolved through negotiations, and why the Gambia armed forces should not and did not get involved – this is not to say that ECOMIG should not get involved – indeed, ECOMIG was necessary after Yahya Jammeh had resorted to blatant abuse of incumbency (a hallmark of all his governments) by using questionable and unconstitutional methods to stay in power.

Alieu F Sagnia, a veteran Gambian journalist, lives and works in the country, where he has been a media practitioner for nearly 40 years.