By Deyda Haidara
Those who think are the first in the struggle should lead the struggle are wrong.
Those who think have insider knowledge of the Jammeh administration should lead the struggle are wrong.
Those who think are connected to political parties in the Gambia should lead the struggle are wrong.
Those who think have military connections in the Gambia should lead the struggle are wrong.
Those who think the diaspora can remove Jammeh from office are wrong.
The struggle is a movement that belongs to ALL Gambians wherever we live.
The movement has no name, no color, no language; the only common denominator of this movement is Gambia. The struggle has a territorial boundary and it is called the Gambia. It will be Gambians in the Gambia who would remove Jammeh from power. It will be the struggling youths living in the Gambia who will remove Jammeh. It will be the struggling political party militants living in the Gambia who will remove Jammeh. It will be the struggling service men and women living in the Gambia who will remove Jammeh. The very first group who will send Jammeh packing will be the struggling Women living in the Gambia. These women are the ones going to the market place not knowing what to buy because everything is expensive and they have little money.
These are the women who will struggle to put a little rice without meat or fish on the table just to fill empty stomachs. These are the women who will take their children to the hospital and find no doctors or medicine or money to pay for them. These are the women who will watch their husbands, brothers, and uncles penniless not having an extra dime besides buying a bag of rice. These are the women who would mend old school uniforms for their loved ones to go to school with empty stomach. These are the women you will find on street corners selling and trying to earn just D25 profit to get poor diet food for the next day. These are the women whom Jammeh has banned plastic bags to put small items into sell to thirsty and hungry passers-by. These are the women who feel Jammeh’s economic failure day in day out. These are the women who cannot afford D5 to pay for “Gelegeleh” and walk several kilometers to go to the centers where few dalasi could be found to realize a little hope of eating the next day.
These heartbroken women will be the ones who would wake up one day and say enough is enough. They will say we would rather die than see our children dying of hunger, sickness malnutrition and hopelessness. They will rise up with a cooking spoon in their hands, waist tied with a scarf to show the powers that be that they want CHANGE and NOW. These are the non-political women who want to only survive, eat, drink, clothe and sleep with hope nothing else. These are the women who will be tired of crying and complaining in the house every day. These are the women who will STOP blaming the men for their predicament. These are the women who know only One Individual holding them in bondage and poverty. These brave women will be the touch bearing of Jammeh must GO. Once they stormed the streets, their sons, daughters, brothers and uncles will join them to chant freedom songs marching towards somewhere. Their faces will like lionesses ready to hunt.
Once that happen, the local politicians will want to highjack the movement and earn it, the diaspora activists will want to take credit for it, the online journalists and educators would want to show the world that they are the instigators. None of these groups however will have the bravery of these women to affront dictatorship head to head. None of these groups would accept to be lead by these FEARLESS women braving the streets of the Gambia defying their husbands, sons and daughters and brothers working in the security apparatus who are tasked to contain their MARCH toward CHANGE. They will not fear their security personnel parents who are manipulated by Jammeh, for at the end work they will come back home to eat, drink, wash and sleep. They will not fear them one bit. They will tell them not try to STOP them for they cannot make ends meet for the family. That’s when Jammeh will know that he owns only Zeinab and his two children and no one ELSE. That’s when Jammeh will know that without a people he cannot be a president running a country. That’s the time Jammeh will open his eyes knowing the Gambia is not his personal property and that everything has a time limit excepts GOD’s.
Jammeh knows women have power that is why for the past 21 he has NEVER uttered a single negative word against them. What Jammeh fails to know is, he cannot give each and every family in the Gambia food to eat on a daily basis. Jammeh fails to realize that he cannot give each and every Gambian a job to earn a living. Jammeh fails to understand that his security personnel are husbands, brothers and uncles of these tired women at home. Jammeh fails to accept that at the end of day these security personnel MUST go back home to see yet again and again their hungry and tired wives, children, sisters and aunts waiting for them in desperation knowing they will not get an extra dime from them to cater for their needs.
On this DAY, Jammeh will then think of his brother Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso and then his brother Laurent Gbagbo of Cote d’ Ivoire. Jammeh is in a big TROUBLE.
Gambian women living in the Gambia will lead the struggle for CHANGE no matter how much NOISE we on the sides consider ourselves to be.
Long Live the Gambian women living in the Gambia, our hope for Change is on your shoulders and we know you will lead us to change the Gambia one blessed DAY.
We the men are behind you just like the men of Burkina Faso were behind you the women to oust Blaise Compaore out of the presidency.
GOD Bless you.
Ends
Women are the powerful forces beside the resilient menfolk; just like everywhere, the Gambian women are force to reckon with in dismantling the Murderous kanilai Tyrannical Syndicate…
But due to the literacy rates, the huge unschooled percentage, & awareness levels in Gambia, somebody got to appraise the population, of the link between EVIL Murderous yaya Killer DEVIL’s tyrannical maladministered mismanagements, & our sufferings economically & socially…
The political parties, the NGOs & the comradely population in particular, got to assert the Civic Awareness responsibilities, to sensitise the women & rest of population, especially those without access to the online media…
Everybody has parts to contribute, in this struggle, to ensure the UPROOT of Murderous kanilai Tyrannical Oppression against Gambians & humanity at large…
We’ll get there eventually, sooner…
Insha Allah
Haidara , I think you are right about the powerful role Gambian women can play to effect change . I have said it here before that they are the number one victim of dictatorial regime because of the psychological trauma (such as depression , anxiety , emotional abuse) , pyhsical abuse in the form of family burden and child care , financial constrain and hardships all a result of incarceration , disappearance , detention without trial , exiled and murder of their husbands , sons and uncles. Jammeh also used Gambian women for his political interest as well as sexual exploitation . He understand very well the power they had and support they have been given him for the past 21 years . This is why Jammeh has never imprisoned anyone despite the fact that he continue to abuse them daily in terms of cost of living and their daily lives . I think if we can influence women , they can be best citizens to help uproot him from power . Jammeh is very careful with women as you implied . Our young Gambians girls can be best used to get rid of him peacefully as was done to general sanni Abacha. This will be best case scenario without bloodshed and it can lead to peaceful transition. I think it is something Gambian girls needs to consider when dealing with jammeh . Jammeh being a sexual predator and child molester , he doesn’t use his brain well when it comes to sex. His closed protection officers like king papa and Rambo , Saul Badjie and ousman are all aware of this weakness . Jimbey’s and Ndey Jammeh are all aware of this too because these are the pimps he used to get young girls for him to sexually abuse them at the second floor of statehouse room called Jamaican house .
In terms of politics , Gambian women should also be encouraged to play big role in opposition parties because he is very careful with Women . I think the leaderships of various party needs to take that into consideration if we want to succeed . It is also the same reason that I have been calling for strong , charismatic female presidential candidate who is fearless , educated and has both national and international recognition . This year should be the year of female. I don’t believe that lawyer Darboe or Halifa sallah are strong candidates to effectively challenge and remove Jammeh from power . I think these two individuals are great assets to Gambia in terms of their experience , love for the country , sense of patriotism , sacrifices and legal minds but they needs to give chance to someone else . I would suggest that Their various political parties put that into consideration. It is about time we have a female leaderships in both of these political parties who will effectively challenge Jammeh .