(JollofNews)- There is no doubt that 22 July 1994 was the beginning of a despicable period when misery and carnage descended on the Gambia to last for 22 long years of blood and tears.
The July 22 Coup was a tragedy of unlimited proportions that shackled a people to slavery and contempt by the very sons and daughters of our society. Without fear or shame, AFPRC which transformed into the APRC led by Yaya Jammeh, Sana Sabally, Edward Singhateh, Yankuba Touray, Sadibou Hydara, Ebou Jallow and Lamin Kabba Bajo and aided and abetted by many more security officers and civilians in all walks of life unleashed the most brutal terror on the people of the Gambia.
Scores of Gambians were raped, tortured and killed while many more had their properties forcefully and illegally taken away from them and others summarily dismissed or their businesses closed for absolutely no reason other than the selfish interest of Yaya Jammeh.
We lived in a climate of fear and powerlessness, as our own State became the one and only predator on the lives of Gambians. For 22 years, the APRC plundered public wealth and disregarded every rule of our Constitution and every right of citizens with impunity. Indeed the AFPRC and APRC are the worst entities ever to emerge in the Gambia since Independence.
However we must rise up above the emotions about this day and its reality and look at the facts in order to help ourselves to move forward. The fact is that July 22 is not an illegal coup and the day is not illegal in the context of the Second Republic, which is founded on the 1997 Constitution. In that Constitution, the 22nd July 1994 coup has been recognized and endorsed in the Preamble as thus,
“Our hopes and aspirations as a people were reflected in the enthusiasm and zeal with which we embarked on the task of nation building on the attainment of independence. The self-perpetuating rule of the recent past, however, soon gave rise to the abuse of office and related vices which negated the total welfare of the Gambian people. The sovereign people of The Gambia therefore endorsed the change of government on 22nd July 1994 to rectify such evils.” (Preamble, Constitution of the Gambia 1997).
It was that coup under the AFPRC that a process unfolded to usher in the 2nd Republic through a referendum on the Constitution in 1996. That Constitution also went further under it’s Transitional and Consequential Provisions (Second Schedule) to indemnify the AFPRC and all that they did under Section 13. Hence by our current Constitution and political dispensation, July 22, AFPRC and APRC are legal events and entities.
Until now the APRC remains a legally registered party with representatives in the parliament. So long as they remain a legal entity they therefore must enjoy the rights to observe any day and conduct any activities they wish. That right cannot be denied to them because of what we think about July 22. APRC is a product of July 22 and therefore we cannot ban July 22 without banning the product of July 22. Hence this press release by the police is not enough and it is not legal. Let us remove emotions to objectively address the situation we face.
What we need is to use the law to address July 22 because July 22 is protected by the law. I would have thought that the Barrow Administration would take a bill to the parliament to declare July 22 as an illegal coup and therefore illegal to celebrate that coup by amending the necessary sections in our Constitution. The July 22 coup must be declared a day of infamy to be remembered as the period when carnage and misery descended on the Gambia.
Alternatively, it is for the Barrow Administration to go to court to have a declaration that July 22 is illegal and therefore must not be celebrated as a festive event. Rather it must be solemnly observed as a day of misery as how the Israeli’s observe 27 April/May as the Holocaust Remembrance Day or how the Americans observe September 11 terror attacks or how the Rwandans mark April 7 as Genocide Memorial Day, among others.
We must bear in mind that so long as APRC remains legal and operating then we cannot determine what events they should or should not observe or celebrate. If we do that then we are infringing on their constitutional rights to freedoms of assembly, association and expression and to demonstrate peaceably without the use of arms. Let us therefore demand that the Government takes the right steps to address the July 22 Disaster without emotions or appealing to the public gallery. This matter concerns the soul of the nation and therefore we must deal with it in the most serious, legal and robust manner.
Let us always insist on the rule of law and the protection of our rights because that is where our security lies. Forever!
God Bless The Gambia
A coup by its very nature and definition is AN ILLEGAL take over of government. July 22 1994 coup is an illegal and criminal act by a group of misguided young officers in the GAF, who history has now exposed to be common criminals, murders and rapist. To suggest that just because they held the country hostage at the barrel of a gun and passed illegal and immoral constitutional proclamation makes the initial act legal and bidding lacks common sense. Everything that Yahya did was illegal, immoral, sinful and greedy. There is absolutely no need for celebration. What we should do instead is declare a day of prayer and fasting every July 22.
God Bless The Gambia
I totally agree with you.
Furthermore, as any 22 July celebration would be a provocation of the Gambian people and therefore a threat to the public peace and order it can never be permitted.
Mr Jobarteh this piece is very educative,thanks. People should understand the legal instruments before they jump into conclusions. As long as the constitution remains the supreme law of the country ,July 22nd and APRC are legal. So if the government ( democratic ) wanted the celebrations not to take place,they should have done the amendment on the constitution asap,failing of which they have no legal right to stop whoever wants to celebrate,just as they have no right to stop whoever wants to mourn or sorrow.Bravo Mr Jobarteh!!!!!!!!.
The connection made between the AFPRC and the APRC is just mere inference that has no legal bases, and contrary to the view expressed, one did not transform into the other. Rather, one (AFPRC, which was a military entity) ceased to exist before the other (APRC, which is a political party) came into existence.
The mere presence of the coupists in the newly formed party cannot make that history (1994/96) part of the history of the new party, as the new party did not exist then. History is not transfered from one period to another. History belongs to the period in which it was made and the history of the AFPRC belongs to the period when it was made, whilst the APRC’s history begins from when it was established.
The APRC should not cheat history and extending their history beyond 1996, when it came into being, will be an attempt to cheat and distort history.
The insertion of provisions in the Constitution, which seek to retrospectively legitimise an illegal action or indemnify perpetrators of criminal acts against the state and fellow citizens, is itself illegal and immoral and no self respecting government would uphold that in the name of respecting the constitution, even if it was “endorsed” at a referendum.
My Deepest Sincere Prayers and Condolesence to Victims and Families of the 1981 Failed Coup and to the Victims and Families of those of the Second Republic under Former Presidents Jawara and Jammeh respectively. With all due respect to all Commentaries, “Good” Government is that which Governs More and Rules Less”. Let us all endeavor to Articulate and Advocate For Such a Government in the Gambia. A Government that is Ethnic, Regional and Party Agnostic or at least Indifferent. When we with Hard Earned Collective Work Achieve that Government, there will be No Room for Selective Blame and Punishment, Arrrests and Detentions with Little or No Cause. Significantly, We, All Gambians Need to Rededicate Ourselves to a Proposition of “All For One, And One For All” in Matters of National Interest, Individual, Group’s Rights and Security. Let us Begin by Speaking Up even when doing so is Not in Our Interest. Let us Learn to be Passionate Without Being Violently Disagreeable. Let us Learn to be Dispassionate in a Measured and Sustainable Manner. Guaranteed Rights To Peacefully Assemble Freely and Speak Freely, Should be taken as a Matter of Existential Reality in the Gambia. Without it, #Gambia Has Decided is Nothing but a Sloganeering Campaign Poster or T-SHIRT. Those who Died, Should not Die in Vain. They should do so, so that the Living may Learn to Co-exit in Peace and Tranquility. We Need our Collective National Civic Memory Without Prejudice, Marginalization, Purging Arrrests and Detentions. Law Enforcement Officers and those who are Designated as The Authority in Charge or Responsible for their Administration and Management, Should be Individuals with an Even Temperament, Compassion and Empathy for the General Public. Law Enforcement Officers Should Not be Turned into a Private Army or Entity, nor a Gang of Extortionist for Profit. Law Enforcement Officers and their Superiors Should be Servants of the People, Not the Reverse. On the other Hand, the People, Should be Law Abiding and Show Mutual Respect to Law Enforcement Officers and to Each Other. Mutual Respect Breeds and Engenders Communication and Understanding, while the Opposite Breeds Contempt and Suspicion, ending in Conflict or Hostility. May Allah/God bless us all and Keep Gambians and Gambia Safe with Peace and Tranquility. One People, One Destiny.
Barrow should take hold of his government or he will get a rude awakening from those that surround him.
Please my brother, for the sake of Allah watch out.
I will tell you my name and you will know that I am a true brother.
Let us be careful with tribalism thus we know you are not and cannot be hence you are mixed.