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Freedom Newspaper Chief Editor clarifies-Binneh Minteh!!!
Saturday, August 12, 2006 (368 reads)

Clarification: Binneh Minteh, unfortunately we didn't receive your piece on the issue of Bajinka, Lang Tombong Tamba and others. We read the piece on the AllGambian.net this morning. But we are saddened to learn that you unilaterally concluded that the said piece was authored by the editors of the Freedom Newspaper. As a point of observation, the said piece was written by Bufaaleh who is not an editorial member of this paper. Bufaaleh is a contributor like any other person including your very self. While we appreciate your commendation, we want to draw your attention to how Bufaaleh was addressed by the Reporters Without Borders when this very paper was hacked. As we are working with these seasoned journalists to sue the Gambian government for hacking our site, we would not give the chance to any individual or an institution to indicate otherwise. This paper will never give up its move to drag the Jammeh government to court and Bulfaaleh is an important element in that. Therefore, we would not want anything that will dilute our process.

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Case File X-Where "Ego-Massaging" Is a Dogma-Jolof Land Spa!
Saturday, August 12, 2006 (220 reads)

Isn't this an existential war of endless Hullabaloo? Should this be a road to State House or a thorny path to Hate-House? There are wild wolves in Jolof Land attacking our existence! This means threats have started creeping towards existentialism. Come,Come,Come...Ignorance Come here! More raw laws,more mud,more sores. More "brownish" moons to stay up above the plains. We can't see the brightness we can only see the wan moon light. "Ndeysaan!" when judgement patrols within the fields of prejudice callous minds are considered pleasant pals. This isn't safe bro. It is not! I love commitment. If character was a plate,I would choose commitment as my spicy garlic sauce. Is there any difference between the sad and the bad? Yes! The sad can be good but the bad cannot be good. The sad aren't usually good. The sad aren't usally bad. The bad aren't always sad either. There is a french writer who said it this way..."Seul les embiciles sont recompensees"-"It is only idiots that society compensates!" Saaara Demba Please do not take this literally it is a philosophical "escapade". In reality being an idiot or being a pleasant gentle character is relative. It relates to the receiving perception and judgement. Lest we forget when Dr. Achebe said this..."Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder" Isn't that true when one things about the essence of "social relativity" in our land? Njagga Mbye the famous Senegalese singer said this.."Suhlu Mborr Langak Mom Mogen mooye borey daan Ngaiye rey!"-When one is supporting a wrestler,it is much better if this fan dances with him in the middle of the arena. Relaxing at the rear waiting to rejoice when the wrestler wins the match is not ideal.

Freedom Newspaper Mail Bag:What our readers say today!!!
Saturday, August 12, 2006 (261 reads)

By Jabou Joh

"The leadership of the UDP/NRP Alliance is very conversant with the laws of The Gambia and in particular laws regulating and governing election matters. Probably if the views of some people who are part of the UDP/NRP Alliance were heeded the legal and constitutional mess created by the registration of NADD would have been averted."
Well, in view of the above pronouncement, the billion dollar questions I would like to ask are these. If the intentions of the UDP/NRP to forge an alliance with the other opposition parties weresincere and genuine and They were not seeking and have never sought power for its sake as they say, then one must necessarily ask: 1. where were all these learned legal minds who claim to be "conversant with the laws of The Gambia and in particular laws regulating and governing election matters" when the formation of NADD was presented to them and they accepted it? 2. Where were these capable legal minds when the MOU was being put together so they could lend their legal expertise to make sure they applied the above mentioned knowledge to ensure no problems arose with the terms outlined in the document?

Breaking News:Gambian opposition helping Jammeh to win September polls?
Friday, August 11, 2006 (498 reads)

Breaking News:Gambian opposition helping Jammeh to win September polls?

NRP/UDP and NADD say they will not come together to fight Jammeh-The Nation shocked!!!

Darboe/Sallah fall out again

Hopes across the tiny West African country of the Gambia and beyond for an opposition merger to fight incumbent President Yahya Jammeh has dashed away, as NRP/UDP and NADD leaders failed to reach an agreement over the "Presidential cake" which is seemingly eyed by opposition leaders. Leader of Gambia's biggest opposition group and twice Presidential aspirant Ousainou Darboe says both he and his colleague Hamat Bah are not going to resign from their newly formed alliance to join the opposition NADD led by veteran politician Halifa Sallah. Darboe in a statement try to justify their move not form an alliance with NADD. As the Nation is yet to recover from this heart breaking political twist affecting our divided opposition Halifa Sallah of NADD says NADD respects NRP/UDP'S move not to join NADD, but pointed out that they also will not be part of the former since NADD was the parent body, while citing the Memorandum of understanding that was signed by party leaders about a year ago. As the ongoing talks to bring the opposition failed, it is now evident that the opposition will be opposing each other come September 22ND 2006. Local political observer in the country say the opposition are embarking on a waste venture as none of these parties can posed a serious threat to incumbent President Yahya Jammeh. The abolition of the second round of voting , gave President Jammeh, who is increasingly becoming unpopular in the Gambia an added advantage of winning future elections. Observer's say Jammeh's biggest threat is his own party which is gripped by power struggle and infighting. This paper is now vindicated on its past stories about the power greed affecting the Gambian opposition. Below is the full text of the bombshell letters issued by both Darboe and Halifa Sallah on opposition fall out. Please read on...

UDPINRP ALLIANCE

18/19 Liberation Avenue

P.O. Box 688

Banjul, The Gambia

1h July 2006

NADD Executive Secretary

No. 30 Papa Sarr Street

Churchill's Town

Serrekunda

K.S.M.D

The Gambia

Dear Colleague,

Your letter ref. NADD/F A/02/02/06 of 6thAugust 2006 refers.

Thejoint Executive Committee of the UDPINRP respects NADD's decision to reject the proposals emanating from it.The UDPINRP Alliance wishes to draw NADD's attention to the fact that legally UDPINRP cannot be part or members ofNADD. The NADD Executive seems to be ignoring the decision of the Supreme Court in the case ofSallah and others Vs. The Clerk of the National Assembly and others. The suggestion that UDPINRP Alliance is to state categoricallywhether it is willing to join NADD is a suggestion that fails to recognize thelegal position that parties cannot form or be members of political parties.

Although Mr. Hamat Bah and Mr. Ousainu Darboe and indeed any other Gambian is free and entitle to join NADD the political party under whose umbrella you propose to sponsor candidates for any election the reality of the matter is that neither Mr. Bah nor Mr. Darboe is willing to resign their membership of their parties to rejoin NADD.

The leadership of the UDPINRP Alliance is very conversant with the laws of The Gambia and in particular laws regulating and governing election matters. Probably if the views of some people who are part of the UDPINRP Alliance were heeded the legal and constitutional mess created by the registration ofNADD would have been averted. The UDPINRP Alliance is not seeking and has never sought power for its sake. It is an Alliance that is genuinely committed to the amelioration of the worsening conditions in all aspects in The Gambia.

Finally I regard your rejection, without any discussion, of our proposal as a rejection of our invitation to meet and discuss and this we accept in good faith.

Yours in the service of the truth
A.N.M. OUSAlNU DARBOE ,

(For UDPINRP Alliance)

IT IS TIME FOR THEM TO GO
Friday, August 11, 2006 (318 reads)

IT IS TIME FOR THEM TO GO

BY MUSA CAMARA

Political parties are meant to be institutions that provide alternative programs to one another as to which direction a country takes. They are constituted by citizens of a country who all see themselves as equals and compete amongst themselves for the various portfolios in their parties through the democratic process that sometimes serves as precedence as to how their governments will look like when they come to power. In most instances, they do not have any individuals that are synonymous to the parties even though they may have founding leaders or leaders at a particular period of time. The leaders are always replaceable when they become unpopular either within their parties or with the general populace. They are characterized with institutional stardom not individual stars whose exit means the demise of the parties. However, this is not case with the Alliance for Patriotic Reorientation and Construction [APRC] or United Democratic party [UDP] or the National Reconciliation Party [NRP]. In these parties, the decisions of leaders are edits to be followed without questioning. There are very little if any democratic process or checks and balances in these parties.

Private Eye With Gambiasara-The Realities of Faith
Friday, August 11, 2006 (217 reads)

The Realities of Faith

Gambisara decided to piece this together for the best interest of the Freedom Newspaper reporting team. Of late, Gambisara have observed with keen interest of the stories being published online. Most of the stories are either too personal or political. In a bid to say the least, Gambisara wants to make it crystal clear that it harbor’s no grudges against anybody, but only a gentle reminder to all those who are contributing stories to this leading online Newspaper. Mr. Pa N’derry Mbai did a good job as a journalist in Banjuland reported greatly which earned him his reputation globally. He went an extra mile to establish this leading newspaper which is now the talk of the town. Gambisara feels that whoever is contributing, should do it wholeheartedly by reporting accurate information due to the simple fact that Mr. Mbai’s credibility is based on what is published by the Freedom Newspaper. He will be held responsible for any inaccurate reporting because of his capacity as its Managing Editor and Publisher.

Editors note:Gambiasara thanks for your observations. This paper will never deviate from its mission statement. We are not here to witch hunt people, but to report the truth and nothing but the truth. People should distinguish what news and what is not news. Opinions expressed by your veryself and other contributors of this leading paper are not ours. It's yours and not that of the Freedom Newspaper. We cannot be held liable for opinions of our readers and contributors. It is your God given right to express your views in a true and democratic country. Gambians should do away with this culture of so called libel and defamation suit. The people accused by Freedom Newspaper opinion writers are as well free to come and defend themselves. We are not preventing them from being heard. At Freedom, we believe in free expression. We are very responsible and would not hesitate to censor messages that are not in the public interest. We are very aware of the fact that freedom of expression goes with responsibility. We shall safeguard the said responsibility at all times. Thanks for the observations.

Freedom Newspaper Mail Bag:What our readers say today!!!
Friday, August 11, 2006 (340 reads)

By a proclaimed State House military official

Editor,your recent piece on major Bajinka is not balance and not true at
all.I can tell you Bajinka never take part in any killing for Jammeh.Infact
,he did on the contrary save lifes.Sometime in the
near future,the truth will be reveal.Bajinka's current situation is due to
the fact he did intervene in denying Jammeh's killers to killed prominent
politicians in the Gambia.
I can reveal to you and your readers that DEYDAY HYDARA'S killers were
nobody but KAWSU CAMARA
BOMBARDAY MUSA JAMMEH AND AZIZ TAMBA.This is documented and will be reveal
later.Also,Bajinka's wife was pick up thesame day his brothers were and were
released a week ago,except for two.I am going to send you a copy that will
tell you that Bajinka is an innocent man pretty soon.

...................................................................................

By Salam Mahama

Dear Editor,
It is sad that people are still being detained following the government
clampdown on
peoples whose names were published in the Daily Observer for allegedly
supplying damaging information to a US-based online publication, Freedom
Newspaper.

It is sad that this even took place but what has to be address is did we as
a nation manage our response to this crackdown well? I would say No.

There is no doubt in my mind that they (Government paid agents) hacked into
the system, what action are we taking to bring the hackers to book; we are
all waiting on that. I think there are laws on that and we must follow it
and get to its logical conclusion.

Those who were arrested were not only Journalist but other subscribers; they
are still made to report weekly, we have not been able to come out with a
full list of those arrested. I can tell you with doubt that one Lamin Bojang
of Farafenni is still being detained and being the sole bread winner of the
family his father has been taken ill.

Whereas I will blame the journalist for writing as if only journalist were
being detained, I equally blame us too for coming out of detention and
refusing to tell the public the beatings received. I met one of guys from
Keneba; he just said to me that whatever has happen to him he leaves all to
Allah.

As nation we all act with short memory, all these atrocities should be
documented and should remain some as logo for a website.

Please editor, we must act now. The issue of the allege escapes said to have
killed is no small case, don’t they have family member who can go to court
to as the government for a proof. Please you can say no.

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Gambian journalists detained for months
Thursday, August 10, 2006 (464 reads)

Press Statement

Gambian journalists detained for months

Malick Mboob and Chief Ebrima B. Manneh, two journalists and former
staffs of the Daily Observer, pro-government daily newspapers have
been languishing in detention without charge at the National
Intelligence Agency (NIA) since May.
Both detainees have been held incommunicado since their arrest. Mboob
has been detained for seventy five (75) days; and Manneh is now more
than a month in detention.

http://www.freedomnewspaper.com/Portals/0/jammeh.jpg

Mboob was arrested on May 26, in the wake of a government clampdown on
journalists whose names were published in the Daily Observer for
allegedly supplying damaging information to a US-based online
publication, Freedom Newspaper. He has since been sacked from his job
as communications officer of the government's Royal Victoria Teaching
Hospital.

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Alert Niger: Government threatens to revoke radio stations licenses
Thursday, August 10, 2006 (149 reads)

Alert Niger: Government threatens to revoke radio stations licenses

The Nigerien authorities on August 4, 2006 threatened to revoke the
licenses of some independent FM radio stations for what they described
inciting civil war in the country. Prime Minister Hama Amadou who issued the threat at a press conference in Niamey failed to disclose the radio stations that would be affected.According to Media Foundation for West Africa (MFWA)-Niger source
Prime Minister Amadou explained that this decision by the government
is as a result of the inability of the media regulatory body Conseil Superieur de la Communication(CSC), to apply severe sanctions on media houses.

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NADD: The Citadel of Hope-Commentary
Thursday, August 10, 2006 (372 reads)

By Foday Samateh

NADD: The Citadel of Hope

This is not an opinion, it is the fact: the National Alliance for Democracy and Development (NADD) is, over and beyond all other political parties, the hope for The Gambia. This conclusion is sanctioned by common sense, thinking mind, and all precedents of universally-applied principles of analysis.Those who need convincing, out of patriotic concern for our dear nation quivering for its precious life, here are the overwhelming candid truths that prove the conclusion beyond all reasonable doubts:Twelve years in power, Yahya Jammeh has run down our country beyond the lowest level of the acceptable and plunged it wreckage into the abyss of the unforgivable. It is not an act of a genius to catalogue with eyes wide shut the Jammeh record of colossal failure into the thickest encyclopedia on human events. Such a task is even unnecessary in this election.