Three weeks after he had unilaterally declared The Gambia an Islamic State, President Yahya Jammeh is at last defending his decision.
Gambian leader declare the constitutionally recognised secular nation an Islamic republic.
“Recently, I pronounced The Gambia as an Islamic State and Republic on the basis that the majority of Gambians are Muslims and the need to uphold the country’s Islamic identity and faith in an environment of true Islam where the rights of all citizens would be safeguarded and respected,” President said in his New Year’s message. “In this respect, I call on both Muslims and Christians to continue living together peacefully and work in harmony for the common good of the country regardless of our ethnolinguistic differences.”
President Jammeh said Muslims and Christians “should radicate tribalism in The Gambia because it is shunned by Allah (SWT) and all His Prophets and (Messengers). The Almighty Allah says in the Holy Qur’an that He will change a nation for the better only if the people (the nation) change what is within themselves for the better. SO, clearly, fellow Gambians, and humanity at large, let us cleanse our hearts and wish others the good we wish for ourselves. Let us live as one strong and united family and be each other’s keeper; be devout Muslims and patriotic citizens as well.”
Mr. Jammeh would not wrap up his speech without revisiting his old rhetoric. “Let me also reassure those who advocate and sponsor violence in whatever forms that they will fail sooner rather than later because their actions and plans are against the will of the Almighty Allah-the Greatest Planner, who has power over all things.”
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