JAMMEH’S SOOTHSAYER CONTINUES: Is the End Near?

JammehBy Gambiano

JAMMEH: Now, do say more, O worthy Soothsayer! Wilt any mutiny consume my person? Seest thou any treacherous manufacture, perchance bearing contours?
SOOTHSAYER: The dales of Mali did I frequent where do fare the most venerable of seers. For my art and its pedigree owe homage to sages who befriend interlocutors of the heavens. I tarried with those who spread draperies for time and sing madrigals to the sensuous ears of destiny himself.
JAMMEH: Is the end nigh? Will I rot in a coup or not? My ears quake for answers and thou shan’t bathe me in showers of suspense any further. Speak! O ye that prognosticate! And let me bear the wages of those sages!
SOOTHSAYER: Coups charge at those who severe not the jugular veins of victims to be sacrificed with the blood of virgins. For curs are destined to follow masters like those in Gambia’s army chase thy instructions, lest they rot in spells silhouetted on dark canvases.
JAMMEH: Live long, great soothsayer! That army is superfluous with cormorant bellies fed with dog meat and blood. Next we might feed them with phlegm of swine.
SOOTHSAYER: Sacrificial blood shall thou keep oozing. Fail not in that as did fail Nino, the Guinean and Gadhafi the Libyan. Of late did err Compaore, the Burkinabe whose multitude thenceforth detonated his departure.

A ghost of Gadhafi appears which only Jammeh sees. He briefly disengages as if ready to flee.

SOOTHSAYER: (Perturbed) What unsettles thy composure this hour? What force—what ramshackle?
JAMMEH: (To ghost) Alack, fiery fiend! Prithee retire or with spontaneity, announce what omens thou augur! Jammeh shall never vanquish till Kanilai woods march to Nyambai forest.
Ghost: Those woods will move for thy vanquisher, my friend. Presidents were beguiled by dark occults before thee. Some had to spill human blood to please demons. If I were in thy shoes, I would untie their laces this minute and handover Gambia.

Enter ghost of Nino Viera

JAMMEH: The Jinns from Mali announced that no mortal shall seize the Banjul orb from me.
GHOST: They announced the same to me earlier about Bissau. I fathom thee in perilous theology of the psyche.
JAMMEH: You were Nino. I’m Babili Mansa, Sheikh, Professor, Naseeru Deen, Doctor. I invented oxygen and founded Google. That’s why December 30th served its roughest hour, and yet passed feebly.
GHOST: If I were in thy shoes, I’d untie their laces this second and relinquish the seat too addictive.
JAMMEH: I shall never run out of dog meat and virgin blood, O thou that become too sententious this hour.

Exit ghost

SOOTHSAYER: What voices engaged thee? What monologue—what ephemeral possession?
JAMMEH: Even the dead envy my longevity. Where they limped, I sprinted like a Pegasus—where they grew breasts like females, I swelled with manes. Yet they preach to my crown about power?
SOOTHSAYER: Let cheeks red of winter’s cowards envy those tanned with summer’s sun. Let limbs fettered with leprosy ogle at an energetic toddler reaching at the rainbow. For Yahya shall fall not till Kanilai woods march to Nyambai forest.

Nino’s ghost reappears

JAMMEH: (To ghost ) My future basks in decrees encrypted on destiny’s staff of steel. From thence, I dread no uprising or coup.
GHOST: Arrogance corrupts—absolute arrogance corrupts absolutely. Your soothsayer plays thine favorite music as did mine in days gone—days I wish I could change. Twenty-two years is a lot, my liege.
JAMMEH: Hark, O thou that glisten with rays of death! ‘Tis carved by destiny on his staff of steel that Yahya shall never perish in a coup, mutiny, or their similitude.
GHOST: Yahya shall fall from directions he least espies, O Ozymandias! Where’s Pharoah? Where’s Idi Amin? Why do African leaders prefer to learn not on land, but under land—in graves with gashes too deep to sew or souls too damaged for easy resurrection? Hark, King of Gambia, hark! For I wait for a day to knock on thine sepulcher to remind thee of these same words you take in jest.
JAMMEH: (harangued) Wouldst that thou deliver this sermon to those less valiant. Like a Merovingian warrior, I’m sworn to veritable valor and preternatural strength. I bear the sword Excalibur!
GHOST: By our own disdain are we sentenced. We African leaders are shrouded in drapes we soiled with our excesses, and later carried on hearses burdened with the nation’s curse. Your end may be very near. Your dark occult bears scriptures with hermeneutics sometimes ambiguous, O thou that exult at hearing from fortune-tellers.

Exuent.

Ends

26 Comments

  1. Thank you Gambiano, for another beautiful and potentially very prophetic episode with bili bili mantaa. I remember a wise man say something like this, that the arrogant mind is like the pupil of an eye; the more you shine light on it, the more it shrinks. Apparently, bili bili mantaa will only learn from under the earth, much like his ghost visitors. Thanks a lot.

  2. Baba,
    My mentor!!! I’ve really missed reading your pieces. I understand time is scarce for guys like you. Please write more. Also, whenever I see your writing, it reminds me of my earliest days as a freelance fresh from high school at Independent Newspaper. You used to pay me and encourage me. You were the first to publish anything from me. Indeed, I’m poised to hold that in cherished memory!

    Yes, Jammeh isn’t one that will learn on land. Like many other cursed African dictators, his best classroom will be under land, “nine feet deep.” I feel it imperative to draw Gambia’s attention to the dark and evil occult this president has been trading in. Thanks Baba.

    • Thank you Gambiano. I am thoroughly humbled and honored to be considered a mentor by such a brilliant mind like you. I feel grateful to God for the opportunity to have contributed a little bit to your development as a writer and scholar. Yes, it has been rather hectic during the academic year and I have not been able to write much. But now that the summer break is here, I intend to start contributing again soon. Thanks a lot and please give us more of Moocha Yammeh’s Naysayer. Please forgive the parody.

  3. Gambiano, this is beautiful, Shakespearean to the core. You are not far off from your mentor, Baba. One of the best contemporary Gambian literary minds.

    May be those of you who are gifted with literary skills should consider another dimension to the Gambian struggle. To create a vehicle of expression, on the internet, solely devoted to a literary campaign to aid in the cause to promote justice, freedom, democracy and the rule of law in the Gambia.

    All subscriptions to this medium would be in the form of short stories, plays, poems, songs and other artistic expressions that highlight the Gambian experience. A replay of NDAANAN, a Gambian literary publication. on the internet.

    NDAANAN was a Gambian literary outlet that featured the best Gambian literary minds at that time, prominent among them the late Lenrie Peters. The first Gambian to publish a novel, The Second Round in 1966. Although William Conton, a Gambian who spent most of his life living in Sierraleone might be considered the first. His novel, The African, was published in 1961.

    • Wow! Kamalo, how nostalgic you reminded me of Dr. Lenrie Peters, our inspiring Gambian poet, medical practitioner, author, etc. I had to study his “The Panic of Growing Older” and “You lie there Naked” at Sixth form, Gambia High School. Also, I used to meet his sister, Bijou Peters at my work place even before she started Gambicats.

      Can you please tell me more about NDAANAN? You know, it was writers, teachers, poets, etc that wrote immensely to pique the interest of Salahudeen when the Crusaders seized Jerusalem. Something so merely literary transcended frontiers to chisel the surfaces of bad history and correct it for eternity.

      Earlier, Pope Urban II used his famous speech to rile the whole of Europe against Muslim rule in Jerusalem. Salahudeen was inspired and conquered the Crusaders. Today, Hollywood couldn’t resist, but produce an epic film about this in “Kingdom of Heaven.” So, writing is a very powerful tool, and yes, we can all do our part in the Gambian transcript! Thanks for your observations.

      • Gambiano, NDAANAN was a literary magazine published in the Seventies, as a new wave of literary writings emerged among the Gambian intelligentsia.

        People like the late Charles Jow, West African Examination Council, Dr. Lenrie Peters, Gabriel Roberts, Swaebou Conateh, Chungkunda Daffeh, Hassum Ceesay and many others were contributors.

        I used to enjoy reading Hassum Ceesay’s collection, Seeking to Please, that emerged shortly after NDAANAN ceased publication in the mid seventies. Literary awareness and appreciation among Gambians peeked during this period. You can find more information on the link below by Gambian Writers.

        Ndaanan – First Gambian literary magazine | Gambian Writers

        https://gamwriters.wordpress.com/2004/12/…/ndaanan-first-gambian-literary-magazin…

        Dec 1, 2004 – NDAANAN The Gambia’s only literary publication The inaugural issue In September 1971 the first volume of a literary publication was born.

        Yes, writing is a very powerful tool and Gambians should start using it as part of the political struggle. Some notable African Writers are also political activists in their own rights. And a few comes to mind Wole Soyinka and Ngugi Wa Thiong’o.

    • Thank you Kamalo, for the very kind comments. Thanks too for the great suggestion. Given time and work-related constraints, I am not currently in a position to start or manage such a medium, but I would be more than happy to support such an endeavor in any way I can. Maybe Gambiano can spearhead and lead us in this effort if time permits? It is certainly an idea worth considering.

      • Baba, I understand. The world of academia could be very challenging. Hopefully, someone else with the time and talent could make this a reality.

        At the Bantaba In Cyberspace, there is a Poetry column for creative writing. Gambians should avail themselves of this tool and then spread it to other mediums on the internet.

        You are doing your part and it is well appreciated. The archives of the Gambia-l are a living testimony.

        • Kamalo,

          Thank you! Indeed, thank you! You’ve just introduced me to something. I went through the link you posted. I’m humbled by the fact that I’ve never heard or read Tijan Sallah. But his poem says it all about African leaders.

          As for Soyinka, I had to do his “Post Mortem” at Gambia High. I haven’t read Achebe yet, but I scanned through his “Things Fall Apart.” Also, I know Hassoum Ceesay very well. I’ve spent years working with him.

          To diagnose Africa’s leadership problems, it won’t be a bad idea to consider the difference between the blackman and the whiteman. Please, I’m not trying to insult us, but the maturity level of most African leaders is questionable. That’s why a whiteman can easily serve two-terms in office and hand over power while an African leader will hang unto power like a 2-year old inside Toy’R’US or a candy store.

          Yahya Jammeh is one of those immature ones, a serious affront to Africa, and he perceives it not. A whiteman can have millions and still be humble. Give an African a few thousand dollars, a car and bungalow and he will abandon all his friends for new ones. He’ll start thinking he’s special (like Jammeh and Idi Amin). The whiteman invests his brilliance on inventing iPhones, computers, cars, planes, etc. while the blackman invests in voodoo and dark occults (Yahya Jammeh is a prototypical voodoo subscriber).

          • Gambiano, It seems Gambia High has prepared you well to cultivate a literary awareness and appreciation, that is beautifully depicted in your writing. At least for this piece that I have read.

            To me, Soyinka is a very difficult writer. I have read the Interpreters, but it is so difficult to understand. With a literary aptitude, though, a second reading makes it more discernible. The Lion and the Jewel is my favorite.

            I read most of Achebe’s books. Things Fall Apart is a classic. You can read it over and over again. The same effect it has on me, just like Mariama Ba’s short novel, So Long A Letter. Another classic.

            With respect to the leadership problem in Africa, I have a different theory. It is a lack of adequacy. An inadequacy to satisfy a need. And thus the need lingers on, and on, and on.

            And to make it worst, most of those who assume leadership in Africa are not well oriented, either academically or socially, and tend to come from very humble backgrounds with a grinding poverty as a backdrop.

            The recipe is hunger for power; for wealth and for attention. Everything has to be centered on them and around them.

            Contrast this picture to the American Founding Fathers. They have created a document that endures for more than two centuries. They have a sense of adequacy.

            Most of them were successful businessmen, academics and highly learned people.

            They were familiar with the political theories of their time, and when confronted with the task of building a nation, their selfless dedication and sacrifice to this cause, a historical signpost. An American Constitution, the delicate balance.

            What we have in Africa is different. Most of those who assumed power in Africa were not wealthy at the time. They came from very poor backgrounds.

            They also were not well acquainted with the political theories of our time. They were hungry for power and wealth.

            Except for the earlier liberation struggles, most of them do not have a sense of destiny and neither do they know their place in it. They do not have vision and the grace of humility. Selfish and self-centered.

            However, terms limits is an enviable disposition. It is the only political solution that can bring back sanity to Africa.

            By his own admission, President Obama would love to run again, and he can win, but that living document put the brakes on him.

            No matter how much he loves power, and being the leader of the world, he has to go when his time is up.

    • Kamalo,

      Wow! Another dose from your kind wisdom. I really admire your thoughts. Indeed, it’s very true most African leaders are sprung of rags to riches. It’s thus very easy for such leaders to be venal, besides disorientation to their political clock. You’re also extremely right about their level of education. You and I are both on the same compass, I suppose–only that you’re more precise with Maslow’s pyramid. Indeed, many African leaders are at the bottom of that hierarchy before office.

      As for Sonyinka, yes, he’s reputed to be very hard to understand. He’s like William J. Faulkner, the quest for understanding whom I got into some after-class quibble with my professor here in the States. I love to understand the core message of a literary work, but it’s during studying Faulkner I came across something in our text that says that literature isn’t about sending messages. If you really need to send a message, try Western Union. I still disagree to this day.

  4. What difficult task Gambiano to persuade your readers you are not Babil Mansa’s minister of the airwaves. Nevertheless, thanks for engaging with students of history and literature using our public tapestry as your canvass. Quite a searching piece!

  5. L J. Darbo,
    Lol! Thank you for the observations. On the other hand, I’m not Babili Mansa’s minister people have been suspecting. I finished high school in 1999, if that can be one of my few self disclosures here. It’s just coincidence I also went to Gambia High School and came from Brikama.

    The minister you may be referring to knows me very well. But he doesn’t know I’m writing these. The family I came from is sworn to remain apolitical. We flinch from inscribing our name on any political epitaph. My dad would have been so disappointed! Thus, the name Gambiano, which unfortunately prompted others to assume I’m Mandinka-inclined. Sheriff is Mandinka. None of my parents is Mandinka. When I was in middle school, I had a mandinka black beauty from Nyamina. She was uncannily beautiful!

    I wonder what Sheriff might be thinking each time people assume I’m him. When I was young, he told me something about my personality. I had adopted this Gambiano name well before he became minister. Sheriff doesn’t shy away from recognition. I do. Ok, enough of my silly trivia.
    I wished I could reveal myself. But “I have promises to keep. And miles to go before I sleep. And miles to go before I sleep.”

  6. Gambiano

    Notwithstanding your different slants on the question, I think you and Kamalo are on the same page regarding causes of the general tragedy of governance and leadership in Africa. Immaturity, and a lack of appreciation, or scornful and self-serving rejection of the values that must underpin a successful and modern democratic state plays a central role.

    On your piece proper, you and the minister appear to be steeped in the same genre.

    Is it correct to say both the minister and Baba were and are your mentors, or in the case of the minister a matter of parallel lives, but a coincidence in interests, talents, and literary genre?

    As for “Gambiano”, you explained it at least once before but I never linked the appellation to Mandinka. I regard it as conforming to your general ability in stylistic crafting and phraseology. As in Americano, or Italiano!

    Going by The Independent, Baba, and minister angles, there may be no need to consult with Shakespearean witches/apparitions, or Babili Mansa’s soothsayer on Gambiano’s identity.

    I like the way you blend Shakespeare with modern history and contemporary politics to convey the absurdity of what passes for public life in Gambia.

    Below are pertinent – to your piece – excerpts from the Shakespearean tragedy of Macbeth.

    SECOND APPARITION
    Be bloody, bold, and resolute. Laugh to scorn
    The power of man, for none of woman born
    Shall harm Macbeth.

    THIRD APPARITION
    Be lion-mettled, proud, and take no care
    Who chafes, who frets, or where conspirers are.
    Macbeth shall never vanquished be until
    Great Birnam Wood to high Dunsinane Hill
    Shall come against him.

    MACBETH
    That      will never be.
    Who can impress the forest, bid the tree
    Unfix his earthbound root? Sweet bodements! Good!
    Rebellious dead, rise never till the wood
    Of Birnam rise, and our high-placed Macbeth
    Shall live the lease of nature, pay his breath
    To time and mortal custom. Yet my heart
    Throbs to know one thing. Tell me, if your art
    Can tell so much: shall Banquo’s issue ever
    Reign in this kingdom?

    MESSENGER
    Gracious      my lord,
    I should report that which I say I saw,
    But know not how to do ’t.

    MACBETH
    Well,      say, sir.

    MESSENGER
    As I did stand my watch upon the hill,
    I looked toward Birnam, and anon methought
    The wood began to move.

    MACBETH
    Liar      and slave!

    MESSENGER
    Let me endure your wrath, if ’t be not so.
    Within this three mile may you see it coming;
    I say, a moving grove.

    MACBETH
    If      thou speak’st false,
    Upon the next tree shall thou hang alive
    Till famine cling thee. If thy speech be sooth,
    I care not if thou dost for me as much.
    I pull in resolution and begin
    To doubt th’ equivocation of the fiend
    That lies like truth. “Fear not, till Birnam wood
    Do come to Dunsinane”; and now a wood
    Comes toward Dunsinane.—Arm, arm, and out!—
    If this which he avouches does appear,
    There is nor flying hence nor tarrying here.
    I ‘gin to be aweary of the sun,
    And wish th’ estate o’ th’ world were now undone.—
    Ring the alarum-bell!—Blow, wind! Come, wrack!
    At least we’ll die with harness on our back.

    MALCOLM
    Now near enough. Your leafy screens throw down,
    And show like those you are.—You, worthy uncle,
    Shall, with my cousin, your right-noble son,
    Lead our first battle. Worthy Macduff and we
    Shall take upon ’s what else remains to do,
    According to our order.

    • L J. Darbo,

      Oh my God! In territories of fragrant English–of “measured phrase and choice words”, you command a sovereign shrine! What a strength of eloquence! What symmetry of chaste language and whetting lexicon! What colorant of sweet literature with such mastery saliently fecund! Indeed, the flags of your wit abound, as to fan mine cold and humble! It gladdens my heart to read L.J Darbo and call myself a Gambian.

      Yes, you’re right that both Kamalo and my humble self are on the same bearing with regards to Africa’s leadership diarrhea. He sees the glass half-full while I see it half-empty! Kamalo is another one whose writing whets my reading appetite. As for Baba and Sheriff, it was under the former’s tuition my journalistic sojourn sowed seeds, but flowered under Sheriff. The Independent wasn’t yet daily and money swept me to the Observer as a young family bread-winner. Where Sheriff chastised my wont, at times, Baba offered it a soothing refuge. Interestingly, Sheriff and I never talked about writing or how to write. And I’m still learning how to do that.

      Yes, I can’t remove Sheriff from my story because he became almost like big Brother (Not one in Orwellian “1984”!). But Baba left The Gambia ere my solidification at the Daily Observer. The Macbeth excerpts you culled hath thrust me into the jaws of nostalgia. As a teenager, I memorized sections of that play. And I think Jammeh isn’t too far from Macbeth’s story. Thank you for sending me back to Gambia High School days! It’s sad that most kids in The Gambia today are busy with Facebook and smartphones at the expense of books and intellectual curiosity!

  7. It is probably a part of the forums’ usual accomodation for pettiness in wandering if Sheriff or Jammeh is making comments or remarks, instead of folks engaging what is contained in those comments, remarks , view points, articles etc.. For me, @Gambiano can have a totally different perspective of the Gambia’s national resolve and that is not just a wonderful reason for getting oneself convinced that he is a Jammeh, Jammeh enabler, a Sheriff or a pro-dictatorship.
    I for example, think after all, that both @Gambiano and Baba’s contributions in the Kairo news forums are good bases for reference if one would like to sharpen his/r language and writing skills.
    Thank you both for your priceless intellectual help to us the laymen in search of light within the process of restoring a democratic civil society in the Gambia..

  8. Ggapm,

    Thank you. The fact that Allaah knows who I’m and what I truly stand for sufficeth our quest. As for writing, I’m far behind most of you here. The focus is how to help Gambia and Gambians peacefully remove Jammeh without blood! Those who accuse me here expect me to write angry language.

    Isn’t it possible that some Jammeh agents are writing here, using the foulest of words against Jammeh just to trick readers?

    • If one may think of the possibility that Jammeh agents are writing here, using foulest words against him just to trick readers…….But for what purpose?? One may not know the reasons why one will do something like that but in the forums sometimes, your blood chills as to what some folks might be entertaining in their contributions and comment like a ‘give a clue and find answer’ game . I decided on an online name because what they call the Nia, can establish madness, that they will call intelligence, on any joke here online with regards to names and place in the Gambia, that may seem a clue to their half-brains, to be used as a stupid lead to torture and kill innocent people. I think curiousity, wandering who is this and all makes the anti-dictatorships and their innocent families’ lifes vulnerable to the bloody hands of half-minded citizens.

      • Ggapm,

        I seriously agree with you. Also, think of guerilla warfare. I think Jammeh needs one. I watched a funny video of a corrupt police officer being slapped by an under-cover agent. But the undercover agent first came from behind, put a thick plastic bag over the corrupt officer’s head and started the series of blows. His victim never figured out who it was. That corrupt officer used to force college girls to sleep with him. He also dealt in illegal land sales and transfer besides money extortion.

        • Gambiano , the only people I always suspect and sometimes believe are agents of dictatorship here in this forum and in the country are pdois disciples and mr sallah . Mr Halifa sallah is an agent of dictatorship and he has been legitimizing dictatorship in The Gambia for a long time . Halifa sallah blamed the diaspora for what he called “war mongering ” . He stand for nothing except his selfish interest . I do not consider him as an intelligent human being , because if he is not a dummy he won’t attacked diaspora who contribute more than him in the development of The Gambia . Mr sallah is like any ordinary Gambian because he is not representative of any constituency but rather he is an agent of dictatorship . I strongly believe that it is in his selfish interest to see Jammeh in power.

          • Maxs,

            I respect your opinion. I respect Halifa’s as I do Darboe and others’. Halifa was right about war-mongering. Also, don’t think a majority of diaspora Gambians want war or chaos in Gambia. They are busy with work or something to take care of families and relatives back home. And Gambians inside Gambia are worried about the next lunch or breakfast. This is why Jammeh can dash money or offer positions to force people into acquiescence.

            I don’t know when was the last time you visited Gambia. I visit Gambia all the time. My writings aren’t based on “he said, or they said.” I see things for myself. Here’s something I’ll reveal, if you’ve not already known it. Jammeh sent one army officer, a big whig, to bury “Jujus” or “safo” or “Tayreh” in almost every town or village in The Gambia. These things work for Jammeh because most Gambians do subscribe to “Sihirr” or black magic. What we have in Gambia is a voodoo or cult leader with money. Angry words and insults won’t remove him. Intelligent planning will.

            My message to you and your cognates will never swerve. Anybody who doesn’t agree that Jammeh has to go right now is really selfish! But you don’t peel an onion or cassava in anger. You may cut your fingers.

          • This is democracy in fair play that you demonstrating here Max. I think this; …………,and you said it out right. Who you are critising can do no more than explain out right how you are wrong in your perceiption of the PDOIS. Its been a long time ago here in the forums when I expressed my observation in the forums that the leer on Sidia Jatta’s face in his hand shake pose with the Dictator seems to be demonstrating some exaggerated political maturity and very thing for that went as silent as the graveyard…..They won’t engage such allegation but would carry on with philosophy and ideology explainations.

  9. Basically, I think the most Gambians in the diaspora are vital human resources, especially those participating in these forum to persistently condemn the dictatorship that brought the Gambia’s growing civil society from the incline to a steep downfall, though you can come across the undervelopped Gambian human resources in some parts of the western hemisphere who are prepared for anything just for the dictatorship be entrenched to the most profound depths.
    Despite this fact I claimed, I would not consider or refer to any of them as nonenties and faceless. I think that arrogance and attaching self importance to one’s persona is one big ugly aversity in the Gambia’s political resolve.
    I like the personality of the black police corporal behind busting the watergate scandal. According to sources, he lives in the woods in a loghouse and declines to every interview or public appearances that are supposed to highlight the watergate scandal. This man is hardly known in the media.
    It is of my opinion that the good citizens for a better Gambia need listen very carefully to what the others want to say rather than build their own concept of other different opinions in the forums.
    If one mentions guerrilla warfare in the forums here is perhaps just equal to learning from one of those hollywood big motions where you can learn good and also evil. No one wins in guerrilla warfares but the demons who love dirt, rubbles, loneliness and swarms of gnats to accompany the quiet. God save the Gambia from all demons in the daylight and by night.

    • Ggapm,

      You’re very right again. It’s usually wisdom that enables one to listen to even his enemies. To expose Jammeh’s ills, it won’t be a bad idea for the online media to interview his supporters. Ask them why they support a man who said he removed Jawara because of “over-staying and rampant corruption.” Today, Jammeh is doing the same. You have to know how to corner your opponent. But Gambia isn’t just about opponents, ruling party, opposition, or even politics. Gambia is about a dangerous voodoo, occult, and devil-worship leader holding people at ransom.

  10. “Mr Halifa sallah is an agent of dictatorship and he has been legitimizing dictatorship in The Gambia for a long time . Halifa sallah blamed the diaspora for what he called “war mongering,” Maxs.
    Maxs, stop parading lies and confusion about this noble man who is doing everything to salvage a tired country of his birth. All what you are saying is pack of lies about Halifa. Do you consider the diaspora as a homogenous entity? Do all Gambians living in the diaspora belong to one group or to diverse groups?
    This is what Halifa said in his recent interview with Foroyaa.
    Excerpts:
    Foroyaa: What do you mean when you say lectures do not breed war and peace?

    Halifa: “Many Gambians called for people to rise up in April and May and many were counselling peace. My position is that people have their aims and designs but the material conditions will always dictate what course of action could prevail at any given moment.
    In short, war has two components, psychological warfare and active combat.
    Psychological warfare that is not linked to combat readiness is scarecrow tactics. Leaders who are driven to the extremities of vengeance against opponents in reaction to scarecrow tactics cannot be seen to be equal to the task of leadership.
    Reaction should always be proportionate to real and visible threat. Reaction to imagined threat is unsettling in effect.
    On the other hand, Gambians abroad who engage in war mongering without combat preparedness only succeed in transforming those under their command into fodders for rifles, bayonets, tear gas and truncheons. They should know that it is not a sign of bravery to take warlike postures when they are not armed and psychologically prepared for war.”
    Max,how many times have we told you to stop talking about war when you have nothing on the ground to show for it. Did i not told you before that you only succeed in providing the regime an excuse to use force against an innocent people who are engage in nothing but searching for their daily livelihoods.
    Halifa is damn right. You people are engage in nothing but scarecrow tactics and the regime is also misreading your actions and overreacting to the detriment of the ordinary citizens who have nothing to gain from it but endless daily suffering from undue searches, arrests, beatings and detentions.
    Now you tell me, how did this make Halifa legitimise dictatorship? It is the actions of your type that Jammeh uses as a justification to be a dictator when he spoke in Farafenni during his tour.
    Thanks editor

  11. Gambiano , you are very good in diverting the topic, Can you tell us which group in diaspora are calling for a war ? Of course you will defend Halifa sallah because you have the same attitude . You will be happy to see the status quo continue . Gambiano whether you visited Gambia very weekend , that is nonsense argument to put forward , there are thousands of dishonest and untruthful citizens like you inside the Gambia who claimed that there is rule of law and freedom in the country. So i would say your argument that you write things based on “things you see” is not an intelligent argument but a dishonest statement . No doubt you are the type of people who continue to lie about Gambian situation. what is your opinion of the rape of fatoumata jawara and tortured of Ngoi Njie . I bet if your sister or mother was raped and tortured , you wont tell us you see things for yourself in the Gambia and diaspora are war mongers. why cant you put yourself in the position of those women if you really care .