(JollofNews) – Please allow me space in your newspaper once again to express my humble opinion to add my voice to the lots of voices of patriotic Gambians on issues surrounding Foni and its people especially Kanilai.
Perhaps it is worth reminding ourselves how we got the birth of New Gambia time and time again since it still did not capture some people’s imagination or maybe they need to be told the whole story like if they have never witness it in real life.
The New Gambia came into being thanks to the selfless struggle and sacrifices of patriotic Gambians both at home and in the diaspora who removed a heartless dictator in the name of Yaya Jammeh.
It was a struggle of Gambians, by Gambians and for the Gambian people. In a nutshell, it was a struggle to restore democracy and rule of law into the social fabric of our political institutions and in our societies at large. So in that case, it is not for one individual party, a particular area or town and village. New Gambia is for all Gambians.
Should we allow ourselves to be dragged back into another brutal era of lawlessness and selfish rule? I think as a nation, we have far passed that stage after what has been a painful and brutal struggle of Gambians to safe the people of Gambia. By the standards of the 21st century, we must not allow selfish and ruthless idiots to turn our decent societies into anarchy so to speak. I have a feeling that the people who are doing this barbaric acts in our communities know exactly what they are doing and why they are doing it. So I am calling on the government of the day to draw a line at least and make themselves visible and heard in every corner of the Gambia to protect the Gambian people and our sovereignty.
What is happening in some parts of Foni and Kanilai in particular is appalling and tantamount to chaos and civil unrest. It is therefore not acceptable in a civilised society, and must be addressed by the Fonikas themselves if they are to put the interest of Gambia first before any other thing.
Having said that, I would urge the National Assembly members of Foni to take the lead role in tackling this appalling and barbaric acts that looms in our communities. In a way, I challenge them to get out of the comfort of their offices in the national assembly, go back to the people in Foni, engage them and explain to them the concept of democracy and the rule of law and what it means to them as a people, perhaps most of these people do not understand what it means and may need help.
I have no doubt that if these troublemakers are engaged and told with no uncertain terms what is acceptable and not acceptable in a civilised society, I believe they will think again and come on the right side of humanity. After all, it is the interest of Foni that they represent in the National Assembly and it is for them that they are there anyway.
I am convinced that it is not all the people of Foni behaving like this. It is just a pocket of mindless individuals trying to make everyone out there look like a culprit. I am telling you the people of Foni, you are victims and you are being used as scapegoats by these selfish individuals. You have a choice to leave them to bring chaos to your communities or drive them out from your towns and villages by rejecting their ideas and make the authorities aware of their existence in your areas.
Let’s not allow democracy to be vilified or misrepresented in our communities. It looks like these selfish and unruly individuals are trying to hide behind the word “Democracy” to inflict pain and suffering on our people once again.
I would like to appeal to all patriotic citizen of Gambia to be vigilant and endeavour to work very hard to spot such unruly and cowardly acts in our communities and do their very best to stamp it out. The Gambia is our homeland… for better or for worse..
Baba Jaiteh
United kingdom.
I seriously doubt some people in Foni will ever look inward to solve this issue. Imagine being from Kanilai, life was great for the last 22yrs. You pay less than the rest of the country for almost everything, nobody tells you what you can and can’t do and nepotism is available on the side in case you actually want to work for a living. Then one day you wake up and Jammeh is gone and all that has changed in the blink of an eye yet people expect you to accept it from day one. Denial is a fact of life especially for people who drop down overnight from their earthly haven back to everyday Gambianship. It will take time for some but for others, it will take someone giving them a rude awakening. I sure do hope no more people lose their lives in the process.
I watched a clip of late Haruna Jatta’s funeral on YouTube and the image of the mourners in the clip, most of whom would have been from Foni and Kaninlai, does not reflect a favoured people who enjoyed 22 years of bliss.
These were the same poor, ordinary, humble and down to earth people of Foni, as they were 22 years ago. There is no sign that these were enjoying the best of the APRC reign.
And unless someone wants to tell us that they were lying and cannot be trusted, they have since accepted that Yaya Jammeh’s reign has ended by Allah’s Decree.
Let’s stop spreading this fantastic claim that Foni wants to bring Yaya Jammeh back. It is nothing but a deliberate false propaganda aimed at masking the poor judgement and decisions of the executive, to which these people are reacting.
The people of Farato, who I believe are part of Busumbala Constituency, which voted overwhelmingly for the UDP NA Candidate, and probably for Adama Barrow too, also demonstrated in reaction to poor decisions of the executive. Why is no one accusing them of wanting to bring Yaya Jammeh back?
The fact of the matter is that either the executive is taking hasty decisions (due to influence from certain quarters) which have not been properly thought through or that there is no harmony in the decision making process, and thus, central control is not being exercised over government decisions, and that should be a concern to all.