We Don’t Want The Rwandan Type in The Gambia!!

Nurturing The Psyche For a Post Jammeh Era

    By Landing Nyassi

What resulted to the conflict between the Hutu and Tutsi in Rwanda which is a stain to the 20^th century can be attributed partly to irresponsible media houses that spread messages of hate and mockery. Majority of the Gambians are craving for change but the road to change should be marked with responsible statements that would bring our people under one Banner devoid of any form of tribalism. Statements like “the Gambia is a Jola kingdom or Jolas are favored above other tribes”  are not at all healthy.   Anyone who has been following events in the Gambia would realize that impunity of the regime is not directed to a particular tribe but goes across the Gambian population. 

In fact one may say Jolas suffered more under this despotic regime than any other tribe. A lot of the foni youths are languishing in jail for bogus allegations together with other sons and daughters of our motherland. The mysterious disappearance of Buba Sanyang, Marcie Jammeh, Jasaja kujabie, Modou Lamin Nyassi, Ddongo Mboob , Alfusainey Jammeh and others of Foni speaks volume. 

Another event that brought shame to our beloved country is the witch hunting exercise that was perpetrated by this satanic regime in which the elders of Foni were subjected to drinking hazardous concoction that left victims dead or severely ill. The most recent brutality levied on poor people is sentencing of four from Foni Batabut to a one year mandatory jail term for reportedly obstructing a presidential convoy.

Amongst those convicted are lactating mothers and a juvenile. Any sincere individual who reads between the lines would realize that Majority of the Jolas are not having it well with the regime in Banjul.  There are few people who are enjoying at the detriment of the majority and it is totally wrong to brand the Jola populace as floating in merriments at the cost of the rest of Gambians.   

It is a hard fact that there is some form of nepotism going on in the Gambia and that there are some Jolas who support the regime based on sentiments that the one at the helm of power is a Jola but this does not mean that majority of this tribe’s men concur to the current leadership and are associated with the malpractices of the Jammeh regime.  We have lived together for centuries without any problems, we inter marry and attend each other’s naming or funeral functions.

Each tribe’s man has one or two descendents from the other tribes. We are one people. The ordinary Jola, Mandinka, Wollof, Fula,Manjago, Serere, Bambara etc love each other. We should concentrate on nurturing what brings us together rather than what would make us fall apart. This animosity that is breeding is politically motivated and the plan is to keep us divided so as to perpetuate Jammeh’s reign.

The Gambia media houses be it online or print have a very important role to play to avoid victimizing a particular tribe in a post Jammeh era. Their role should be to keep the government on its toes, expose hair splitting stratagems employed by the regime to cling on to power and sensitize the general masses that national interests should not be traded with ethnic or tribal interest.  If we work on these we would be leading a healthy path to unseat this regime and usher in a new era that would not victimize any tribe but instead that which would bring to book those who perpetrated injustice against the Gambian populace irrespective of tribe.