President Yahya Jammeh last week moved Ebrima Jawara to the Office of the President at State House without providing details.
He is replaced by Ousman Jammeh, the Director General of the Agriculture Ministry.
Until his redeployment, Mr. Jawara was the Permanent Secretary at the Agriculture Ministry. He had earlier worked at the Office of President where he started his witch-hunt monitoring and evaluation team.
Mr. Jawara’s new job has to do with overseeing President Jammeh’s so-called 2016 activities, aimed at declaring the Gambia hungry-free. “It’s here that Ebrima set up the monitoring team,” our source said.
Kairo News sources have been trailing Mr. Jawara and will not therefore leave any stone unturned in our efforts to extract the chaff from the wind.
Mr. Jawara is reported to have harassed and threatened a team of police and NIA investigators that exonerated indicted Agriculture Ministry officials. This is contained in a report the government has been hiding from the public, our sources said. The security report is a far cry from the bogus one Ebrima Jawara had been writing to President Jammeh. “His reports were honoured by President Jammeh without question,” State House source said.
Our sources said Mr. Jawara’s impromptu and unexplained deployment was exacerbated by a story
Kairo News carried last week. “President Jammeh wants Mr. Jawara to come close to him so he can use him before the duo falls apart,” a source alleged. “Jawara is likely going back to his witch hunt exercise.”
Before his deployment, the son of former President Dawda Jawara is reported to have casued a lot of problems for his co-workers. He is accused of assigning unqualified people to be in charge of some projects, much to the anger of donors.
Ends
With Jammeh , you never know , he is unpredictable and am very cautious about his relationship with former president’s son . I want to put in place two theories which I think why he has mr JAWARA in his government .
One – to use him for his political gain since he knows lot of peope still admire the old man . In the process , mr Jawara may become his victim .
Two – Jammeh might groom him as possible successor thereby creating harmonious relationship between the two . Remember , Jammeh gave total amnesty to old man alone when JAWARA cabinet ministers are still in exile . This may sound crazy to some , but Jammeh , his personal interest is always in the forefront .
So let be careful of this young JAWARA . He is playing his card well . One of the problem in the gambian politics is political naivety and this is why we still have Jammeh . So I will not be surprise to see the former president’s Son to become next president of The Gambia .
I mean former president’s son to be next president of The Gambia .
Smart, smart, smart THINKING. Maxs!
Wistful thinking!
The professor will never do such a daft thing. No professor of his kind has ever done anything similar.
This nonentity is a complete idiot.
Thank you luntango . I think even Jammeh was underestimated and never seriously looked into until he became president when it was too late . Jammeh is very smart and learned how a majority Gambians think . This is why even without university degree , Jammeh can used highly educated gambians or non gambians to his advantage and jailed them . There is difference between acquiring highest university degree and political awareness. The Political awareness is lacking in our intellectual community and greater society . Jammeh has been closed to power decade before he became military leader and has been to almost all parts of the country with former president , he knew very well the Ganbian people . The culture and societal perception of leader is very instrumental in democratic change of government . Those who continue to underestimate Jammeh , maybe surprise how he might end up but I know he is unpredictable , arrogant and stubborn .
With stubbornness and arrogance that can lead to his capture or death through military intervention .
Just my thought .
Max, we can’t have Ebrima Jawara as president. I think the suited persons among jawara’s children will be David, fatoumatta and Kawsu. His nephew, kaba Jawara, is also a suited one.
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Mr Lafia Touray, I think you underestimated Ebrima JAWARA, the guy is well experience and permanent secretary already and now he is senior staff at state house. Who in The Gambia saw Yaya Jammeh coming to power when he was closed personal protection officer to Jawara? Come on guys, let think outside the box and assume anything can be possible. There are lot of things happening in the gambia which we never thought of happening. You can called my theories wishful thinking mr kemo-Ba, you have seen a lot surprises in politics throughout the world. A classic example is election of obama. I remembered in early days of his primary in Iowa, lot of people underestimated and counted him out because he was black and lack usual experience or he didn’t fit the pattern of usual presidential candidate. At work I was the only one who thought of him as very good candidate after listening to his speeches and actions, today the rest is history. A closed observation and pattern of Jammeh history, I saw unpredictability and boldness to do anything though he is arrogant and stubborn.
Mr Manneh, you went straight to our Gambian mentality of calling people names and you do not know anything about me. Thanks for calling me nonentity and idiot. Most of successful peoples in the world are once called idiot or cynist will call them stupid. This is mentality why we still have Jammeh as president because some are against him not because of his policies or brutality but because of his tribal affiliation or society background. So try to be open-minded and always think outside the box.
Demonic murderous kanilai beast yaya jammeh can surprise us million times but handing power or grooming the destructive-Ebrima Jawara for one, isn’t one of the kanilai devil’s sinister tricks at play…. Yaya NEVER pardon Sir Dawda it never had any tangible evidence to prosecute the old man… With its heinous crimes against humanity & corrupt embezzlement evil yaya Jammeh will cling to power at all COST & will either be captured or liquidated because it knows what will befall it outside incumbency NO matter whoever is in charge next… With this move into the idol worshipping kanilai predator’s closet, it’s just matter of time but I for one see Ebrima’s foot or both feet in the grave after being used…. Evil yaya Jammeh WILL sacrifice his own mother, wife & children to its idols to stay in power for life if they foretell so…. Our destructive-Ebrima has fallen for evil AIDs-professor’s bait & seems to swallow both line & sink but he needs to learn fast from others before him…. Pa Bojang is a blood relation to the kanilai satanic murderer, that never saved him from the brunt… It was God’s intervention only that saved him to escape the poison infested jaws of the satanic professor of murdering, deceit, corruption & embezzlement….
Max, Lafia does not understand he will have no vote to decide who will be the next President … It is the “financiers”, the guys with the gun, Uncle Sam and IMF (LoL – calm down Lafia! It’s a fact – don’t resort to violent tongue-lashing now!)
Yes, Max the clues are there for the wise to see.
Chai Maxs….. am your student keep posting bro, everthing you write is educative and proffessional.
Max, I do not underestate Ebriama Jawara. I know him since his days in Marina School. He can do anything to make a name for himself. But I am sorry, his is not suited for the presidency.
You should have met fatoumatta, David, Kawsu and Kaba Jawara and you will see the Almamy Jawara, their grandfather, that has been described to me by elders in all of them; honourable, dignified, respectful and worthy of everybody’s respect.
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Maxs it was not you i referred to as nonentity and idiot but the pompous, sly and arrogant jawara boy. The Gambia needs someone quite new and not connected to either the monster jammeh or the failed jawara.
Max, Max, Max, wise-up Bro! Your fellow country-men want to hear what they WANT to happen – they don’t want to hear what is LIKELY to happen. You gonna get PNG’ed like Luntango soon (LoL)
Ah! Dida luntango, you are mistaken.
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Mr BaJaw, president Jammeh has given total amnesty to sir Dawda and even worked with national assembly to provide him monthly allowance for him to stay in The Gambia. If Yaya wanted he would have prosecuted him by fabricating evidence aganist him just like he did to others. In fact where was the report of alkali commission ? This commission was purely politically motivated and meant to distain old regime in eye of Gambian population. This was why every evening Gambians would be glued to their small radio to brainwashed them. The rest is history now. Pardoning Jawara was an excellent political move on his part. That has created division and distrust between old man and his royal supporters which resulted to insignificancy of PPP in our Gambian politics. I have never supported Jammeh since day one but I know he is capable of doing anything to get what he want. This is why I theorized that it is a possibility to groom Ebrima JAWARA as his successor. We do not have to like Ebrima just like we don’t lisupportersut with Jammeh interest at stake, and with his power, less influence of current opposition parties in his decision making process, there is a possibility for him to choose Ebrima as a unifying factor that will bring national reconciliation among Gambians especially between old PPP supporters and current opposition supporters as well as Jammeh current supporters . With president Jammeh, his interest is always supreme and he played his cards well. This is why he used and dumped every smart Gambians you think of. I for one, do not underestimate him and I know he always made bold decisions with strong unpredictability. This is Jammeh for you . Our opposition parties are just reactional parties sometimes without any significant game plan to counter Jammeh. In fact mr president is not worry about them at all and he see them as no threat at all.
Lafia Touray, if you talk to any Gambians in 1994 , they would said Jammeh was never dream of, social and intellectual not suited for presidency. He was downtrodden and was completely out of equation, and is the same way Nigerians think of mr goodluck by the way I love his name (lol ) and is the same way Americans think of Obama especially republicans. So political process is dynamic and changes from generation to generation. Who would have thought Jammeh of all people to be president for 20 years and we still counting ? Come on, expect unexpected things to happen. Just saying .
Sorry for typo or lack of spacing in the middle part . I meant to say we do not have to like Ebrima just like we don’t like Jammeh , but with Jammeh interest at stake , his power , less influence of current opposition parties in his decision making process , there is a possibility of grooming Ebrima as his successor as unifying factor to bring about national reconciliation .
“Lafia Touray, if you talk to any Gambians in 1994 , they would said Jammeh was never dream of, social and intellectual not suited for presidency.” Max
Max, that’s only because nobody knows Jammeh or his family background before 1994. He is a bit of an obscure one unlike Ebrima Jawara.
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Suntou, now that Prof Maxs has taken residence, I can retire confident that my professorial chair has a fitting occupant.
Lafia Touray, everyone counted Jammeh out as nobody while he studied the very system he protected at the time. This is because in our system we usually think there are some people who are entitled to leadership position or those we think are capable while others are not, without any significant justification. When Jammeh came in he stated that on his watch anyone can be fired from his ministerial position because he has more than one million people to choose anyone for replacement. The underestimation of some individuals even within the same family or different families and those we usually think they didn’t fit in our usual pattern of leadership Due to their family names or social standing is a consequences of our societal and cultural setup or legacy of colonization (that is only some families in each administrative area were considered leaders). This was why in those days the idea of “do you know who you are talking to” will quickly come up in any conversation.
My main point here is to highlight that we should not discount or underestimate any individual in terms of political dispensation especially in the era of president Jammeh. Your perception about Ebrima Jawara compare to his other siblings I think was based on cultural dimension of how we see some individuals. The reason why people don’t know Jammeh’s background is simply because he didn’t have that family name recognition just like Ebrima Jawara has.This was exactly what happened to Obama himself when he started his primary. Even in the black community they were not supporting him initially because of lack of family name recognition. The idea of family dynasty is common in many countries but was very prevalent during the colonial days and much of Jawara regime in The Gambia. So there could be even more surprises in the next republic.
Luntango , you are dean of this forum . Lol
Maxs, you are right on the “naive” perception of our society before but I’m inclined that is either changed or changing with the advent of an illegal murderous tyrant’s illegitimate usurpation of power from the people… I for one, from a peasant background, NEVER underestimate or underrate anyone… True, Ebrima may ascend to the helm of our affairs of state BUT NOT through the theorem being under discussion here. With its pungent stinky murderous record & other human atrocities committed, please be rest assured that the evil professor of murdering doesn’t contemplate grooming, much more handing over to even its son Mohammed, much more to our destructive-Ebrima. Evil yaya jammeh is never ever interested in national reconciliation… The kanilai devil’s plans ARE to die in incumbency if not captured, for a very terrible ordeal awaits it outside incumbency… When our innocent demonstrating students were butchered in April 2000, the beast was shaken, in its cynical pick on fellow evil cohorts’ mind, hinted on “handing over” to one of them for national reconciliation…; Kabba Bajo opted to take over but the devil renegaded, knowing what awaits it out of power… Sacked & outcasted Kabba outside the evil closet for even contemplating, much more suggesting for wanting to takeover his personal “property”…. Kabba endured all sorts of ridicule by following APRC rallies anywhere to massage the devil’s ego for forgiveness without being acknowledged & sometimes disgraced & turned away for showing up…. Kabba was only recycled when the devil required him for some of its evil use… From Sir Dawda’s own mouth, on his interview with Malick Jones on GRTS he refuted the devil’s acclaimed LIES that he was pardoned, for he said had done nothing wrong… Sir Dawda is only being remunerated by state for his DUE entitlement as an elder statesman… Please ask our noble journalists to get you the rest of the information on this interview.. Thank you.
Agree Max. Why should the children, riding from Koina on their bicycles in the morning cold to learn at Fatoto Senior School, have LESS right to rule The Gambia than those whose parents clog the traffic at Marina School with their 4x4s dropping the Little Darlings off?
Max, Like I said above, Jammeh is an obscure one. He was not known neither was his family background and thus, counting him out was not something that presented itself as an opportunity to grab. His is a fluke that we must ensure doesn’t happen again.
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Luntango , your question was very important and that is why today , Jammeh despite his brutality , he is able to eradicate that sense of entitlement in Gambian politics . A lot of his appointees who are qualify do not have family name recognition which is essentially can be considered equal opportunity for all by his supporters, however Jammeh also appointed some who are not qualify because of nepotism and royalty.
Mr Touray , the opportunity was there because he worked at statehouse but our focus was on Jawara’s cabinet ministers such as mr Darboe and Sabally as possible successor . We can expect the same possibility in the case of Jammeh . I am 100 percent confident that none of current opposition leader will be president in The Gambia .
Max’s: I took sides for the first time in Gambian politics around 1998 when Lawyer Darboe described Jammeh as “a man who did not even have a bed to sleep on in Bakau Barracks”! Jammeh’s response was “My children will never be poor” – which is really up to God and not Jammeh. I think it was Lafia who explained here that Lawyer Darboe was brought up by PS Njie – and therefore has entitlement to rule. Someone said The Halifa too was brought up by his important father to believe that he is entitled to rule. Over in Kenya, Uhuru and Raila think they are entitled to rule – while Jammehlike outsider Ruto is biding his time. On the streets of Nairobi, the dis-entitled and excluded have taken over and are at war with “The Elite”.
To conclude, I agree with you: the idea of “entitlement to rule” because of your name is misguided. And I agree with you also that there are probably a thousand bare-foot recruits joining the Gambian Army who may consider the idea of “Elite Entitlement” preposterous.
That is not to argue that Lawyer Darboe will not make a good President. I think he would – if he left Fajara and became a farmer up in the countryiside!
Well said Bajaw, it looks like our professor and his adjutant are missing the point.Yaya jammeh will never hand over power to anyone , upon his dead body. A month after jammeh took over power, he began to realise the kind of power he’s got and how he can abuse it .He learnt the basics from the sighateh brothers and then began to, and still systematically killing our fathers, brothers, uncles, mothers and the list goes on.He has been and is still getting drunk with power everyday.He can never get sober unless we take him to a safe house which will be Gambia’s Mile 2 prison very soon.We need to take him off the road of leadership.
Kemo, surely will get the kanilai devil either dead or alive… The kanilai predatory butcher with all its rhetoric on the TV & in public gatherings is a shameless coward…. It has to hire some mercenary escorts from Chad to be able to fly back to Gambia after the attempt of our comrades. Even with that it had to be hidden like a smelly sheep it is, in the convoy on their way to Banjul after that for fear of its life… I still believe some, if not all of those mercenaries, are still on his guard today because it can’t be man enough to face the truth & the bitter end… We will get it captured or liquidated at all cost by ALL means necessary…. Whichever way, is better for Gambia… God help Gambia & bless us in our endeavours to reclaim our suffering motherland from a murderous tyrannical devil; Ameen.
Luntango , you made an excellent point about the idea of entittlement . The two factors such as entitlement and underestimation of some less privileged individuals has resulted to their enlistment to the Gambian military . Example Is Jammeh . According to him , he wanted to come USA to study but couldn’t afford it , then decided to join military . This was the reason why in those days less privilege individuals or sometimes people we described as not smart in school , will join the military. By the end of JAWARA regime , these so called not smart people or not entittled formed the majority in the military while those who are privileged or those who we considered the entitttilement are in the offices and western capitals . As a result, the coup was supported by majority simply because people related to their backgrounds and political talking points . Jammeh continue to use these people even today by enlisting them in the military and provide them excellent benefits for his personal security . This is why in the military you will see a private officer answerable to and have direct access to Jammeh . The consequence of underestimation or entittlement is the result of what we have today . The important of military in any political process cannot be over emphasized . This was a colossal mistake Jawara’s regime made , they should have emphasize the important of national military service for all citizens but it was essentially a dumping ground for less privilege , those without family name recognition , not smart people and underestimated individuals . It is in fact in our national interest to have best and brightest in the military because such individuals have critical mind to analyze any situation and execute their duties without grave consequences. This is why in the west , the top scientists , doctors , policy makers , engineers and so on were once in military .
Kemo and bajaw , I shared your frustration and understood your points very well in terms of Jammeh’s brutality . I am talking about the possibility and what is likely to happen . You cannot ruled that possibility out because politics is dynamic process and changes constantly .
Okay Maxs, you are entitled to your opinion on the possibility theorem…. I’m talking about established facts…. It’s foolhardy to believe murderous yaya Jammeh will ever go for national reconciliation willingly condemning itself to the gallows that awaits it in the process…. Evil yaya Jammeh has no interest or place in this process in that it will literally send our professor of murdering to the gallows…. The good that people do, live after them…the evil that are done follows one all the way in life & beyond down to the grave…. The day the kanilai predatory butcher hands over power will be the end of the world for itself, its thieving concubine & its children & its mother…. It’s in the dictates of life that whatever goes round comes back around…. You can have your theory but the facts speak for themselves… Thank you.
Indeed Maxs. Just to add that Idi Amin and Sgt Doe were also the EXTREMELY poor non-entitled who overthrew the Ruling Elite and created war and havoc in their countries. At least Jammeh was smart and CO-OPTED the Gambian Elite into His System – this keeping the country generally peaceful to enable him to rule much longer than the above nut-cases.
I think bros Bajaw and Kemo are frustrated because Jammeh continues to out-wit his enemies and might end ruling for as long as Jawara – when he was originally given only SIX MONTHS at most!
Dida, apart from regretful despising the innocent lives being butchered by the kanilai predator, I’m far from being frustrated as contrary to what both of you assumed…. There’s NO struggle ever won on silver plata…. Just like all & any other struggle, Gambians are determined to the very bitter end; for whichever way, it’s in Gambia’s favour… I’m as patient & 110% sure we will get there in the end; & SOONER than most of us assume or believe…. God help Gambia; Ameen.
Luntango , in American politics , there is an opposition research in which you get to know your opponents well . This is what we failed to do on jammeh because we took him
for granted and thought that he can’t rule beyond six months . Jammeh’s enemies didn’t want to know him well because they simply underestimated him .that is the main point . Jammeh is underestimated even at international level that is why he continue to play his game well and they never took him seriously until recently . How can Jammeh became the biggest player in the subregion in terms of its regional geopolitical situation and out-manuovered every president especially those of senegal which he knew they don’t like him since day one . The answer is simply because they underestimated him and think that is not capable . Jammeh is using the same tactics , that is he is unpredictable and sometimes made bold decision for his personal interest . Example he was first to disown his mentor former Lybian leader Gaddafie when the pressure started on him . Jammeh became the first leader to boldly send threatening messeges to Bissau and later became involved in that country peace effort , all this is done to boost up his image and international recognition. Even today Jammeh has excellent relationship with that country.
At the national , jammeh continue to be unpredictable and always make sure that those who are closed to him can’t predict him .
Yaya Jammeh can handover power just like jj Rawlings did . Rawlings killed a lot of his opponents in Ghana but he was able to handover power . When Jammeh handover power , I believe he should be held accountable for whatever crimes he committed but that depends on his successor and collective responsibility of Gambian people . In fact his handover would be in the best interests of the country compare to my own emotional belief to get him death or arrested . This will give the new leader an opportunity to call for national reconciliation and building of democratic institutions which he completely destroyed . Without vibrant democratic institutions and strong participation of informed citizens , removal or resign of Jammeh is zero .
Mr bajaw , I fully agreed with you on atrocities and brutality committed by Jammeh and his regime but in this write up , my emphasis is about the probability of grooming Ebrima which I believe is not zero considering all the factors highlighted in previous postings .
Maxs, your probability or possibility theory is entirely your opinion which I have no problem with but I articulate on established facts which I’m equally entitled to…. Jerry Rawlings had killed but I never heard of him ever arrested or incarcerated people’s mothers, wives, children & other family members who got nothing to do with their acts or whatever offences committed unless those family members are directly involved or connived in the act….??? Whoever comes in next after the kanilai predatory professor of murdering, including your invented theorem of our destructive-Ebrima, will NOT be able to save the kanilai devil & family from justified redressing of the crimes committed… I for one, apart from the unique Gambian family fraternity being affected, which we all belongs collectively, I’m YET to have a direct family member incarcerated or killed by the kanilai predatory butcher…. I’m pretty sure, you won’t be theorizing the devil’s escape, scorch free, if your family members & or love ones have been murdered…
Yes Maxs, Rawlings the butcher is now an African Elder Statesman!
Mr bajaw , in last posting , I stated that ” when Jammeh handover power , I believe he should be held accountable for whatever crimes he committed but that depend on his successor and collective responsibility of Gambian people ” . So I am not advocating for jammeh’ s escapes or Scott free as you assumed . I strongly believe in personal responsibility for his actions or deeds . I do not have any familiy member in the government because they are business oriented people who care less about the government position but as Gambian family we are all affected in many ways . let’s us also remember that , whatever is going on in terms of human rights abuses , killings and others artrocities , they are thousand of gambians who participated in those crimes and each of those people should also be held accountable . Gambians made Jammeh who he is and his illegal activities are carried out by them though majority of the Blame will be placed on him . This is why it is evil to have such a dictatorial and corrupt system in our country . I empathize with those whose family members are the victim of Jammeh’s misrule and his despotic nature . they should have justices for their loved ones . This is why since the early days of the coup I was totally aganist it simply because it bring lawlessness and human rights abuses. The question is what happened in our history which led to the creation of jammeh in the first place ? My answer is simply , the creation of jammeh has to do with societal and cultural dimensions of underestimation , sense of entitlement and willingful negligence of previous government in building strong democratic institutions where informed citizens will participate in national affairs equally.
looking at the history of bad and evil leadership in some countries example Nigeria , the current presidential candidate was one time a military leader who was accused of human rights abuses and killings .
Luntango , your are right that Rawlings is an elder statesman who is now enjoying full protection and benefits of Ghanaian state despite his brutality . The same possibility can apply to Jammeh if he play his card well . If Jammeh resign today and call for national reconciliation, it will be best political move for our country and the subregion. I know we are all after his head especially those of us who are victims of his misrule but if he call for reconciliation and apologize for his role , then we are must likely going to accept . But if he continues his arrogance , stubbornness , brutality and unwillingness to handover power, he is likely to face the same fate as his mentor Gaddafie.
There you are Maxs; in Gambia since 1994 one doesn’t have to be directly involved in civil or other services to be framed, persecuted or kidnapped…. NO matter of apologies or apologising will let the brutal kanilai predatory devil off the hook of atrocities committed… Every single day there are more newer crimes committed against the people & the state… Surely that’s no sign or signal for any change for better under the predatory kanilai devil worshipping bandit… Whoever aid-abetted, local, native & or foreigner, moreover participated direct or indirectly in the atrocities committed will ALL be accounted for their various degrees of participation…. Evil yaya Jammeh knows there is no blanket-immunity national reconciliation which will let him live on free, without accounting for the heinous crimes committed… I believe we have now exhausted this topic… Time to move on… God bless Gambia; Ameen.
I must tell you my professor, and his assistant Max, frustration is building in i cannot lie, 20 years of harsh brutality against his own peoples to whom he fakely swore to protect at all cost.The Gambian peoples in the first place never gave jammeh the mandate to rule.He forced himself into our hands, and at the same time disguised himself as a wolf in a sheep’s clothing.I see no reason why the world would cry foul when we too tried and are still trying to force him out of our hands BUT to no avail YET.What I don’t understand now is the whole world is able to see this lone wolf in the midst of us.He continues to terrorize the whole country by kidnapping, killing anyone he thinks has different view with him.The Gambia is not an imiginary country, she is real, her sons and daughters are are real save ONE. Professor Luntaango, you sometimes sends chills into my head for saying jammeh has out-witted all of us.That is the naked truth I must admit, but when did you see the light? He didn’t spare you too sir.WE MUST BURN THE FOREST … Pat.Pat. Pat Fire..in order for new and vibrant trees to grow.The show of fire must go on and the process will hurt because it is fire but the end will SURELY justify the means.It has happened before so many times and it will happen again, our historian including professor can attest to that.
Mr bajaw , thank you very much for your wonderful contributions in this discussion. As I stated earlier, you and I agreed on brutality and atrocities committed by Jammeh and his regime . However , my immediate concern is not about Jammeh himself when he is remove or resign from power , I am concern about the future of our beloved country. what democratic institutions , societal and cultural transformational policies we are going to put in place so that history don’t repeat itself , that is we don’t have another dictator again . I believe we can achieve that when we all evaluate ourselves and also when the next government recognize that sovereign power reside with the people. The next government should respect the rights of every citizens irrespective of their social background , tribal affiliation, political ideology , sexual orientation and religious belief .
It is important not to underestimate any individual in this era of political dispensation and to recognize that the idea of entittlement is obsolete and discriminatory concept which needs to be totally eradicated in our political discourse . Politics is all about compromise that is why I believe if Jammeh groom an individual like Ebrima JAWARA , we will compromise and try to save our country from revenge and civil war. In solving any given problem, we need to look into the root cause of problem , diagnose the problem and try to come up with best possible interventions to solve it . I hope we should focus on the roots cause of why Jammeh came in the first place rather than the problems or atrocities he committed.this is not to say that Jammeh shouldn’t be accountable for the crimes he committed . I believe he should face competent court and the justices system so that all victims and their families will have justices . My theories are simply based on intellectual curiosity because I always assume anything can happen in life and in politics .
Maxs, it’s natural & healthy to disagree to agree for a common good or cause….. While you can theorise on evil demonic yaya jammeh grooming to “hand over” power, I contrarily see but a totally different scenario in the devil being captured or liquidated for there’s all clear indications in that than murderous yaya willingly giving up power for the gallows….??? Ebrima has embark upon a destructive mesmerizing on people’s lives instead of humble beginning of working to serve the nation, which is why the devil moved him closer to aid-abet as long as the devil got him on its evil services, & MAYBE can rise to ministerial & other levels if we are to go by your possibility theorem, before being got rid of like others before him…. Again your entitlement theorem will make the present Gambian generation to question who are the Jawara family for them to believe they are born to rule & or lord upon us all…??? The advent of the kanilai devil, if any, I believe is an eye opener blessing in disguise in that we will make good amends with the bitter lessons being learned, to make sure such NEVER EVER happens again in the annals of our history & put in place solid & concrete regulations, in the Constitution, for example, to level the political fields, prohibit Coup d’états, limited presidential terms, etc etc….. God bless Gambia; Ameen. Thank you all.
Mr Bajaw, i stated that the creation of our current problem ( Jammeh) has to do with the sense of entitlement , underestimation of individuals and willingful negligence of previous government in building strong democratic institutions so that informed citizens will participate in national affairs equally . The above statement is the root cause of our problem which I repeated numerous times . It might also result to creation Ebrima JAWARA if Jammeh decide to groom him . That is why our focus should be on the root cause of our problem. So you are right the present generation will question whether jawara family are entitled to lead. Thanks
Dida luntango, you like to deliberately misrepresent people, don’t you?? I never said Darboe is entitled to rule because he was brought up by PS Njie, a leading Wollof Politician of his time. If the idea was to establish Darboe’s birth right to rule, I would not have mentioned Ps njie. Darboe’s father was a leading politician in his own right. He was a member of parliament and propaganda secretary of United party. He was also the most trusted aide of ps njie, a wollof. All his kids go to Armitage for secondary education but because of his strong friendship with Njie, he decided to send lawyer Darboe to Banjul for secondary education. It was said that Njie extremely love the young Darboe for three things;
1. Darboe’s father was the strongest political figure for the UP outside Banjul, most dependable and most trusted by njie in the entire party.
2. The young Darboe was a very discipline and an obedient Child
3. The young Darboe is very intelligent and always do well at school.
it is not my view that certain people should have a birth right to rule Gambia. What I believe is that Gambia should be ruled by person of integrity and good character; Honourable men and women.
There is always an assumption that a good family tend to produce good persons thanks to the family education and upbringing. Exceptions are always found to this though. The thrust of this is; family background although not as a sole yardstick is always considered in African politics. That’s not me stating an opinion but just a fact.
Thanks
When you form an executive body in government or business { the two are very compatible} using descriptions such as “ruler.”
It distorts and corrupts the function of control.
Whether your sitting on a board of Directors or in a government “cabinet” an agenda is formed and discussed by the relevant Minister or Director. With expertise on the subject matter. A general discussion can follow, but by enlarge the contributor is giving an assessment as being the responsible party.
If the executive is solely reliant on the judgement of the “Chairman”
This could be considered a dictatorial board, fraught with risk. For
” his ” judgement can only be based upon his own narrow view.
A Chairman or Chief Executive may well have an expertise in a particular subject matter I.e. sales or logistics or finance or the military, but is very unlikely to hold all the ” cards in the deck.”
Having sat on several “boards” I am of the experienced opinion that a board that opperates by consensus or democracy offers the very best outcome. The Chairman acts best when “he” takes all opinions and forms an agreement or an action plan based upon the entire contents of the discussion.
Usually a vote is taken and the majority verdict is adopted…and recorded in the “minutes” of the board meeting.
At the next board meeting the minutes of the previous meeting are read out and progress on the previous adopted policy or action plan is interrogated.
If you convene a board where the Chairman is constantly hireing and fireing members of his cabinet. Reliance upon the Chairman’s judgement becomes paramount. But at the same time, confidence and direction are lost in a sea of fear and confusion.
Having been a party to two such major companies who suffered in this way….the outcome was inevitable. Both lost direction and both filed for bankruptsy.
To witness the “sinking” of a company with its losses for all concerned is a dreadful experience.
If your focus is solely based upon a personality and not the total body politic.You are being very unfair to Mr Jawara.
What realy matters is his knowledge, expertise and ability…not who he may or may not be.
The danger for him if there is a danger, is how the cabinet functions.
With so many having been charged under obscure related forms of alleged poor practice or procedure….one must ask the question?
Is it possible to do the job without fear ? For fear breeds isolation.
Having been in an out of Ministers offices in Gambia…what struck me most was there isolation. They were so busy protecting there office, all were disconected from each other.
The laws in Gambia appear to the outside observer to be a hindrance to the smooth and unfettered running of good governance. Perhaps the only way to survive is to form a board that only consists of Lawyers? God forbid.
opinion.
@lafia: “Dida, you like to misrepresent people …”
Provoke is the word Lafia! Nice response though – I didn’t know that Lawyer Darboe’s father was also a politician?
Did I hear you say that Lafia doesn’t deserve to rule because he does not come from a well-known family?
I agree with the professor when it comes to entitlement, but I must point out that ” ENTITLEMENT” is like beauty, is in the eyes of the beholder. As long as there is inheritance there will be entitlement. For these two goes hand in hand.WHO WOULDN’T WANT YOUR CHILD TO FOLLOW YOUR FOOTSTEPS? LIKE FATHER LIKE SON..Entitlement has a long history and could be if abuse or otherwise. We could even trace it to our creator.We all feel like we are entitled to something all the time.I would like to point out something here and that is because we misunderstood what entitlement is, often this has led to the abuse of public power for private gain.The abuse of public power for private gain is nothing new to Gambians.Public officials take advantage of things to which they are not “entitled” to.The end result is corruption as we have seen time and time again.Our society grooms us for entitlement for special reasons.”Name”recognition is one factor as our professor has pointed out, but I urge you to agree with me that since our human society is corrupt because of entitlement,therefore any movement that we are part of will inevitably be corrupt.If we can minimise the damages that the notion of ENTITLEMENT has done to u, .We can be few steps away from choking corruption.We are all ENTITLED, and at the same time nobody is ENTITLED.
Again, it’s not about coming from a well known family but a good family and even that does not stand alone. Ultimately, it should be about the person. Family background only help us to assess his or her character as it is the family that makes the person.
Some people though do deviate from family values and that is why family background should not be used as a sole litmus test for assessing character. I will not discount it though.
Thanks
This was a very poorly written story by Kairo News. It is full of inuendo and missleading information. Where is the proof and the evidence? to back up the story?
If Mr Jawara is considered by President Jammeh a trusted observer and worthy assessor of the possible mal-practices occuring within the corridors of power. Then this is indeed ironic.
It would give a clear indictaion that something is fundamentally wrong with the running of the affairs of state by his “trusted” APRC.
Ultimately…The buck stops with the President. He has only a little time left to bring forth some welcome good news for the electorate. He has staked much on freedom from hunger by 2016.
He will also have to show concrete evidence that the overwhelming and accumulated debt carried by the Gambian economy through his leadership was justified.
The recent 1 Billion supplimentary budget followed the damning revelations of the National Auditor….of significant and damaging slippage within the financial practices of government ministeries.Seems to suggest a negative and alarming trend. ?
Obviously…all is not well.
Is this government falling apart?
For the President “cometh the hour cometh the man”
Mr Jawara appears to be that man.
Ironic indeed !!!
What would be even more ironic is the IMF stepping in to the bail out the Gambian economy…. yet.again !!!
You can’t burn a candle at both ends.
This is a troubled government.
Lafia Touray , as Dr king pointed out we should always judge people based on content of their character not the color of their skin or family background . Therefore our individual character is supreme in finding out who the person is because as you rightly stated people can turn out different from their family background .
Kemo , entittlement is dicriminatory and corrupt concept because it give more opportunities to some individuals with recognizable family name in our political process than others . This is why Barbara bush , the mother of president George bush , urged her son Jeb bush not to run for presidency because in her words ” there are other wonderful families in USA where you can have good president “. The wisdom in her statement is ” equal opportunities for all “.
Entittlement in every aspect has corrupt connotation whether it is public officials believed in their entitlement to public funds or positions and individual with family name recognition in political process .
Kemo , I didn’t want my son to follow my foot steps , I simply want him to be better than me in every aspects and explore other things . I want him to have better thinking and analyze his situation to make informed decision . The concept of “like father like son” is obsolete and simply leave us stagnant in what our father’s do without exploring our talents or skills beyond our perceived comfort zone . So I do not subscribe to that concept .
@Maxs: “Like father like son”. I must agree with you there Bro. A true story about that:
Once, around the sinful midnight hour, I was sitting at my normal table outside a place called “Time Out” on Senegambia Highway – having for company a glass of red wine, a couple of ladies and the “2 Plus 1” Lebanese guy who has now been chucked out of The Gambia. I don’t know what the Lebanese guy said, but I answered: “Personally, I do not want my son to become a man like me, and I do not want my daughter to marry a man like me”.
“2 Plus 1” looked at me as if I had said something amazing and said: “Wow, Dida, that is deep. I always thought you were a cynical bastard but you do have a heart!”
I have told this to my son, who smiled – – – and has just chosen to study the first university course i did … Philosophy!
But I agree with Maxs … let our children be free to be the best they can be.
Max, I agree with you that the Son is supposed to be better than the Dad in every aspect, and this is called evolution If you will agree.Entitlement like I said can be abused or otherwise, but evolution is natural. Entitlement In your own word is “discriminatory” which was the main reason I tried connect it with corruption in our government.Like father like son is entitlement in every way.
Mr scales , you are right , this story was based on speculation without evidence . But this is what you get sometimes when you have autocratic and dictatorial leader .
Ministry of finance , a Sham department which always misappropriate and underprioritize their obligation to gambian people . Their budget allocations , examples millions of dalasis allocated for president’s travel expenses and useless celebrations is incomprehensible . Again these are individuals who careless about the future of our country but they are busy protecting their offices as you rightly stated .
Max, I think you need to revisit my post and see the qualification I have made to my statement.
I have heard more powerful words been spoken by my community elders of the past and the present than what is spoken by Dr King. The only downside is that theirs is not recorded in books and newspapers. The points is; I have the words of my grand parents and parents to look up to for wisdom, not Dr king’s.
Thanks
Ah! Mike, how comes all of a sudden you are swinging at kaironews for this article? Certainly this is not the first time you’ve come across it, is it??
My view is that this article is good and that Ebrima Jawara needs to be highly exposed for the Walter Mitty he is and also his complicity in the present governance situation in the country.
Thanks
Lafia…you are right. I am “guilty” as charged.
But they say fools rush in where angels fear to tread.
I held back because the story did not give me enough to form an opinion.
I waited to see what the rest of you were saying to give me a lead in to this situation.
I believe my comment is fair and objective.
As for “swinging at Kairo”
I give them much kudos for including my comment.
This is wholly democratic and in keeping of the best traditions of impartial and objective reporting.
For the record I think Kairo have proved that you can have an open forum provided it is policed accordingly.
Thanks.
Lafia touray , I understood your statement that was why I gave you credit and further emphasized with Dr. King’s words. Dr king was world renounced and respected civil rights leader whose wisdom and teachings is look up to by millions of people all over the world which is why I made referenced about him . In an intellectual discussion , we make reference to an individual with written record to emphasize our point . Again you and I agreed on the point been made.
Thanks Max.
Cheers
Lafia
I hold Dr King in high esteem and certainly his wisdom is universal. Yet I hear Lafia’s point loud and clear: wisdom, like charity, begins at home. I recall reading the well-educated Gambian Lawyer Fafa Mbai’s book and asking myself “why are all references to Shakespeare and other long dead whites when the book is about The Gambia?” The Mandinka, Fulas, Wollofs and others are full of wise sayings that can be utilised to Fafa’s point.
Anyway Max, I agree with Lafia that his grandfathers were full of wisdom. (But, what happened to Lafia?)
I agreed luntango, we need someone in our country right now who is inspirational and vocal like Dr king in fighting the rights of the citizens.
Dida Luntango, I rejoice that very unusual convergence of our views there. Many thanks for the concurrence. I hope by the time Bax leaves BBC1 studios playing “pointless”, he will be aligned to our concurred views on all subjects lol!
Thanks