By Lamin Darboe
Dear editor,
Please allow me a space in your paper to respond to Mr
Kabafu's article, entitled " Suwukuta with Eddy. Is lawyer Darboe
serious for real? Can darboe be trusted by Gambian voters?.
First of all, I agree with my dear friend that change
is long overdue in our beloved motherland. Yahya Jammeh is nothing but
a mistake for Gambia and the entire civilized world. Even in our
wildest dreams, nobody could imagine what our folks have been through
for the last twelve years under Dictator Jammeh.
Mr Kabafu! I also agree with you that this election is
about change and "about restoring the hopes of the forgotten Poor and
middle class". This was why Ousainou heeded to the call of Gambian
voters in 1996 and since then his party has been in the forefront of
opposing Jammeh and his thugs. So, know that Gambian voters still trust
Ousainou Darboe, Hamat Bah and others contrary to what so called
intellectuals think.
Again, your argument that Darboe should put aside his
"power greed" because he lost to Jammeh on two occasions does not hold
water. Let me remind you of happenings in our sister countries of
senegal and Kenya. As many of us are aware, Abdoulaye Wade formed his
Party in 1974, contested his first presidential election in 1978 and
then four subsequent polls. Regardless of his history, Mustapha Niasse
and four other political parties joined him in the runner-offs to
unseat the government of Abdou Diouf. And you and I know very well,
Abdou Diouf's government can in no way be compared to Jammeh's AFPRC in
1996. Another case in point is Mwai Kibaki of Kenya.In the 1997
elections, Arap Moi received 40% of the votes, Mr Kibaki pulled 31%,
Raila Odinga 11%, other two parties received 16% between them. In all
these cases, smaller opposition parties joined strong ones to initiate
changes. So why can't Halifa Sallah and Waa Juwara gracefully let go
and Join Ousainou instead?
Finally, see below party executives of the UDP. As you
can see their diversities, they are trusted leaders and refuse to be
part of a generation that "divide the country based on tribe". So, I
challenge you to call on Halifa Sallah to be realistic and join
UDP/NRP coalition to unseat Furumusu come September 22
| Name |
Position |
| Ousainou Darboe |
Secretary General and Party Leader |
| Yaya Jallow |
Deputy Secretary General and Deputy Party Leader |
| Ebraima Manneh |
Senior Administrative Secretary |
| Amadou Taal |
Administrative Secretary for Finance and Economic affairs |
| Mrs. Mariem Denton |
Administrative Secretary for Legal and Human rights Affairs |
| Femi Peters |
Campaign Manager |
| Amadou Sanneh |
Treasurer |
| Aji Jambanding Drammeh |
National President, Female Wing |
| Momodou L Shyngle Nyassy |
National President , Youth Wing |
| Baba Drammeh |
National secretary, Youth Wing |
| Aji Yam Secka |
National secretary, Female Wing |
| Maimuna Ceesay |
President, Female Youth Wing |
| Anta Samba |
Secretary, Female Youth Wing |
| Lamin Dibba |
Assistant Administrative Secretary |
| Hon. Kemeseng Jammeh |
Member of Parliament |
| Hon. Dembo Bojang |
Executive Member |
| Seedy Amang Kanyi |
Executive Member |
| Dr. Boro Suso |
Executive Member |
| Aka Drammeh |
Executive Member |
| Mary Jones |
Executive Member |
| Fa Bakary Sanyang |
Executive Member |
I look forward to your reply.
Lamin Darboe