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Yaya Dampha Reacts to Foroyaa—Jollof News Controversy
Wednesday, 18 January 2012 17:32
(JollofNews) - I read your editorial “Foroyaa vs. Jollofnews Informer” dated January 16, 2012 with shock, dismay and great
disappointment.Let me first clarify that as a contributor and yes partner of Jollofnews, I am not the author of the said article but would chose to stand by my colleagues as I know the contents of the said article to be true. I am however baffled that the editors, editorial board of Foroyaa whom, over the years, I respected, promoted, honored with all due regards in the period that I worked with and even after I left them have chosen to include me in their baseless attack, in an attempt to tarnish my good image.
Over two weeks ago, I, like other colleagues, had received the petition of the reporters that was sent to the Foroyaa editorial board, which I did not act on and
deleted. This was because a fellow journalist, another colleague, someone who worked with us at the Foroyaa/PDOIS called a few of us to try and find an amicable way, including how to help you guys pay the arrears that you owe some of the journalists. Sam Sarr cannot deny that he was contacted by email about the petition and the details of the reaction of the board which he acknowledged in an email. We decided to hold on because of the tone of the email correspondence with Sam Sarr. We concluded that that was not the Sam we all used to know. The message was not civil and what he said was his response to his own reporters shocking. I, Yahya Dampha, already had more facts on this matter including an audio transcript of Halifa’s reactions (in the meetings with reporters) and shocking statements such as those who signed the petition should not attend his burial where he to die. I nearly fainted when I heard the nature of your threats to some of the reporters like Pateh Baldeh (who backed off from the petition) when you asked him (Pateh) to remove your (Halifa’s) name from the child Pateh named after you if he (Pateh) will not remove his name from the petition. For now, I will leave the rest for later.
Because I have always had high regards for you, members of the Foroyaa editorial board, as political mentors, as social activists and as advocates of human rights and change, even though I knew some of these things to be true, I suppressed my journalistic urge to dig deeper and to publish against you. I never had an agenda to go into a cyber-war with you. Now, I am reacting because you pushed me to the corner. If, as you claim you have rights to protect your integrities, I also have the right to protect my own integrity. The self-aggrandizing statements that you have built your credibility and that you “have reached self-actualization” cannot in any way serve to bully or cow me into silence.
Instead, what this does is project to your readers and to the Gambian public, your egoist and myopic view of yourselves vis-à-vis ordinary Gambians, your employees and those you deem unfit and unworthy (as we are yet to prove our credibility) to challenge your views, your actions and the way in which you manage an institution of a political party, which is of interest to ordinary Gambians.
The fact that the managing editor can respond to a journalist that the way you manage the paper is of no interest to them when your employees are about to go on strike is an indicator that you, at the Foroyaa/PDOIS feel you are beyond reproach, that you should not be questioned or challenged when that is actually your stock in trade.
Sam Sarr
Yaya Dampha
Back to the personal attacks on me, I quote “Dampha was a freelance reporter for Foroyaa after he left the army and had plans to stand for PDOIS in elections. We do not know how he became a bedfellow of these other fellows. We are proposing to him to look for another avenue to serve his country. The people he is associating with are just not credible. This is why they would not hesitate to do the dirty work of clandestine reporting. Dampha knows the case he left with us.” I am surprised that credible, ethical, and self-actualized editors could make such a baseless statement, leaving my departure from Foroyaa open to any interpretation, speculation and further rumours. I expected more bravery, to have made you bold enough to tell your readers the case I left with you.
The editorial board and PDOIS party leaders know that between the period 1995 to 20.07 that I served you, I demonstrated maturity, commitment, courage, fearlessness and sacrifice, and ended up being one of the reporters you all trusted very well. Before going into the details of my departure and some other issues, I would await your clarification on this paragraph. I need not remind you that you owe your readers answers. I will also come up with my facts and leave the honest, objective ones to decide.
Now, on your baseless and ridiculous proposal that I disassociate myself from Kemo Cham and Abdoulie John due to their past experience as senior members of staff of the Daily Observer, let me first state it is not for you to advise me on who my bedfellows should be. Since I left Foroyaa/PDOIS, had other Gambians, journalists from other papers, associates of political parties, human rights activists and others who do not necessarily share the same views as PDOIS/Foroyaa treated me in that manner, I would’ve had a pretty rough time getting back on my feet in the wilderness. I do not remember a supportive gesture, statement coming from Foroyaa/PDOIS, instead when contacted by partner organisations working on my case, the reaction from you guys was that I was not at risk or danger but was using a particular incident to get asylum (in Senegal of all places). Yet, during this same period, on one of the visits to Senegal of the managing editor, he could get in touch with me, to ask whether I could get in touch with my contacts and file in a story on disappeared/detained Gambians.
As a democrat and free person, my understanding of freedom(s) includes that of association and choice, Kemo and John are journalists like myself and have the right to work for or belong to any group of their choice. Maybe, as you indicate, employment circumstances in the past may have allowed each one of us, myself not excluded to be used against each other but today we recognize that we share the same beliefs and have the same goals and agenda.
On top of it all, do you not find it inconsistent, that in the same editorial where you defend the rights of PDOIS to have a paper associated with it as a political party, you take beef with another paper for being slanted towards another political party, the APRC?
Last point on this issue of ‘bedfellows’ is Foroyaa indicating that a PDOIS led government will not work with or partner with others who had served under the Yahya Jammeh administration? I leave your readers to judge for themselves.
Finally, let me react to the issue of ‘sacrifices’ made by Foroyaa and or PDOIS anytime you respond to others or are challenged. I just want to remind you that you are not the only ones who have sacrificed for The Gambia, for fellow Gambians and for a just cause. We all have sacrificed one thing or the other at a particular point in our lives. No one asked you to sacrifice, it is a choice that you made so live with it and stop blowing your own trumpet, expecting people to be grateful to you, eulogize you for it. Like you, let me just remind you of a few of my sacrifices for PDOIS/Foroyaa. You mention in the editorial that I joined Foroyaa when I left the army. No, I started my own small business and later joined PDOIS after which I worked for Foroyaa as a party worker. That was before the paper was commercialised.
In doing that, I too had turned my back on lot of things, including my small business which failed as I did not put in the required attention. I could have chosen to join Yahya Jammeh and his group as an ex-soldier as you all know I turned down lot of offers and stuck with you even though what I got from Foroyaa was a piece meal. So, I too, in my own way, sacrificed for and towards you, your beliefs and a lot for my country The Gambia. And, I am still sacrificing. I continue to do my human rights work, advocating for a better Gambia when, I, could be like many others who get political asylum only to build their personal lives and forget what our people are going through.
I rest my case.
Yaya Dampha
Sweden
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Comments
TRUTH IS VERY CLEAR AND LIES CANNOT BE TRUTH; NO MATTER HOW YOU TRY?
THANKS YOU HAVE THE POWER FOR THOU ART GOD!?
GOD THIS GOD THAT IS NOTHING AS YOU ARE NOT GOD!
WE HAVE UNCOUNTABLE NUMBERS OF GAMBIAN CITIZENS STANDING FOR HALIFA AGAINST HIS POLITICAL ENEMIES AND OBSESSED HATERS! THIS EPISODE IS VICTORY FOR HALIFA/FOROYAA/PDOIS; BEING ONLY POLITICAL PARTY GIVING TO COMMUNITY; FOROYAA WAGE BILL D200 GRAND, EMPLOYEES, NYAKOI VENTURES AMONGST OTHERS; WHILST OTHER POLITICAL PARTIES ARE DEPENDING ON PATRONAGE AND SPONSORS TO SURVIVE! WHICH PARTY ALWAYS SHUTTLE ACROSS GLOBE SEEKING CAMPAIGN FUNDS WHILST PDOIS IS SELF-SUSTENANCE? HARD WORK AND ENJOY FRUITS OF LABOUR! THEY MADE SACRIFICES AGES AGO AND NOW FOROYAA THRIVING, WHICH THEY OWN AND HYPOCRITES HAVING GUTS TO DECIDE ITS MANAGEMENT? HYPOCRITES DARE CROSS YAYA'S LINE?
BASELESS AND MALICIOUS!
NATION BELONGING TO ALL OF US AND EVERY CITIZENS FRANCHISED, WITH FREEWILL AND RIGHT TO EXERCISE OWN CONVICTION; WITH SENSE OF MORAL DUTY TO PUBLIC AND COMMUNITY!
I WILL BE SCOUTING TO WEED ANY FILTHY VIRUS FROM THEM AND TEACH THEM DISCIPLINE? BEING ON OPPOSITION FRONT SAW WHAT THESE PETTY FEUDS IS COSTING US, WHICH I CAN'T CONDONE!
And by flip flopping from one user-name to the other,they intend to create confusion and mistrust between various contributors....We must be mindful of their tactics....
The veterans of these forums should not be fooled when they start start using our user-names to attack others...If anything,we should be motivated to put these cowards in their proper places...
Once again,I hope Jollofnews takes the necessary actions to rid these forums of these unwanted elements...
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