By Lamin Fatty
The borders of The Gambia and nearly all African nations were drawn in Berlin in 1884. No single Gambian or African was invited to attend to speak for us. The powers that be were solely interested in our raw materials, economic, political and cultural domination.
Our taxes were then paid to Great Britain at the expense of our people. Women and men of outstanding convictions sacrificed blood, sweat and tears to win us independence which was supposed to be the beginning of self-determination to pave a destiny devoid of hunger, poverty and misery. After one-hundred and thirty-seven years since the Berlin Conference, The Gambia has still to produce a caliber of political leaders who are capable of transforming our endowed natural and human resources to guarantee decent living for all Gambians.
On 18th February 2022, a fourth president might be in office to celebrate fifty-seven years of political independence. Or it could well be the incumbent which will mean a continuation of the status quo, a status quo that has until now yielded more of the same phenomenon of poverty, misery and an obvious tearing down of our social cohesion.
Will there be a new momentum for nationhood and citizenship? Our votes in December will predetermine our trajectory on the progress and prosperity for the years to follow.
Yasser Arafat once said when a people are desperate, they will turn to desperate means to be free and to survive. What happened in Sanyang, in Kombo South, on March 15th, 2021 does not surprise astute political observers of the socioeconomic dynamics along the coastal line of The Gambia. It’s always a case of illegal business maneuverings against the interests of the people of a particular village or town. And through gross negligence of the government and its petty bourgeoisie functionaries, we end up having fire, death and destruction in our communities.
Faraba Banta is a case in point. The Julakeh Company had an injunction to stop sand mining in the ancestral rice fields of the villagers. The company got that injunction overturned through a dubious agreement in the offices of the then inspector general of police. When the villagers couldn’t take it anymore and demonstrated against the exploitation of their land by a company in bed with the state, paramilitary forces were sent to quell the gatherings. The end result was three young lives cut short and many maimed for the rest of their lives.
Second, Ahmed Manjang on the “For the people, By the People” political talk show alleged a connivance between the operators of Chinese fish processing factories and rich Gambian businessmen to illegally encroach upon the gardens of the struggling women folk. A pattern of corruption and underhanded deal-makings continues on the rise. The next disaster can happen anytime soon. It could be today, tomorrow or any day thereafter. Until and unless we entrust the handling of our affairs with people who have the know-how, the sincerity and good conscience, we have to be prepared for shock and dismay every time.
The question should be where are the leaders who will spur sustainable development to utilize our seas, rivers and oceans to end poverty? One interesting name will be on the ballot papers in December 2021. Halifa Sallah of the people’s Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS) has proven himself to have a mastery of the socioeconomic fabric of our country to put policies, laws and programs that will effectively end this dilemma that seems never ending.
The Gambia now has, at least, seventeen political parties and still counting. But do we have the same plurality in proposed economic models and ideological foundations? Unfortunately, the answer is in the negative. What’s in abundance though, is personality politics and a deluge of empty promises to better our lot through time-tested and failed capitalist economic programs proposed by the United Democratic Party (UDP), the People’s Progressive Party (PPP), the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Reconstruction (APRC), etc., that have bugged us down for one hundred and thirty-seven years. Think, my dear compatriots.
The People’s Democratic Organization for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS) is the one and only political party that has stood out of the rest with honor and distinction. The membership, supporters and followers of PDOIS have their work cut out for them. The pioneers have done their homework in diagnosing the ailments that have befallen us as a result of our geopolitical location, colonialism and proposed solutions rooted both in theory and praxis.
The choice for this year’s presidential elections cannot be clearer. But we must all be prepared to sleep in the bed we make collectively as a nation. Being a Bainunka, a Jola, a Fula, Mandinka, Wolof, etc., will not spare you from sleeping on the bed we all made together. Neither will being a Baha’i, a Muslim or a Christian.
Our natural resources and tax revenues should build a foundation for a united, dignified and prosperous nation fit for living.
About the Author: Lamin Fatty is a member of the PDOIS Europe Branch and a student at the University of Hamburg, Germany.