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Editorial: President Jammeh learns his lessons!
Wednesday, 06 April 2011 00:42
(JollofNews) - Someone has said that allow the fool to talk and they will arm you with all you need to hang them by the
neck– not to say that President Yahya Jammeh is a fool, but to point at how close he came to making himself look so when he met with “media chiefs” in beleaguered Gambia, last month.If Adolf Hitler had been given a chance to explain himself he sure would have expected victims of his atrocities to accept that his actions were in the best interest of his idea of the world he intended to create.
Saddam Hussein, as he emerged from his hiding hole, must have had the same adamant thought as regard his handling of the state of affairs in Iraq and the region, jeopardizing the lives of millions.
The point here is that when a man convinces themself into believing they are the only path to salvation for their people, they rule themself out of the fallible human class. Their view of everything is the only viable course of action. Nothing else matters beyond how they view things.
This is what Yahya Jammeh evokes anytime he talks. His recent meeting with representatives of Gambian newspaper owners was a perfect reminder of this attitude of his.
Gambian journalists say they want freedom of speech - it is not a new demand, it is already provided for in the Constitution. All they are asking for is a guarantee that the people who swore to uphold the constitution, the government of Yahya Jammeh, respect its provisions and stop violating it.
But Jammeh insists he will not allow freedom of expression at the expense of the security of the country.
The question is, if freedom of expression is such a risk to the nation’s security, why have it in the Constitution?
Many of us erroneously described Jammeh’s meeting with the newspaper owners as a good sign; but, as we would eventually learn, it is not.
Some people have already commented that any attempt at resolving the present impasse between the government (President Yahya, he being the sole force behind all these deplorable decisions by his government) and the press can never be tenable without dealing with the Gambia Press Union (GPU). That is one very true statement. Unfortunately, however, it can never happen.
An objective analysis of last month’s meeting reveals that it’s just the beginning of Jammeh’s attempt at repeating history by dividing the GPU as he did the Gambia Students Union.
So many Gambians have sacrificed so much against Jammeh’s excesses that it will appear unfair to single out one. But the influence the Gambia Press Union, under its present leadership, has had on his rule is so significant that its reference, especially in light of present talks about Jammeh’s attempt at re-establishing “good relations” with the media, is essential.
One positive revelation in last month’s meeting between Jammeh and the newspaper owners is that he has learnt a very important lesson from his immediate past experience, which confirms what many have been arguing - that it will take an equal response to the things Jammeh does to his opponents to stop his unruly manners – an eye for an eye.
Before the last meeting, the last time Jammeh ever spoke about Deyda Hydara, someone whose death he is a suspect of, he said some of the nastiest things you can say about the dead in our part of the world. And the response to that from the GPU president beats his imagination, leading to his impulsive decision of jailing six journalists. The ensuing international campaign spearheaded by Ndey Tapha Sosseh, with the entirety of her executive behind bars, pushed Jammeh into further embarrassment when he backtrack his decision. He will never forgive Ndey for this. And that said, he will ever remain fearful of her in every bit of her moves.
Jammeh would subsequently bring ridicule upon himself by attempting to have the exiled GPU president silenced, accusing her of engaging in “hostile activities” against his government.
Since when did speaking against human rights violations become hostile?
Anyway, it is safe to deduce that the always tough talking Jammeh has learnt, highly impressively indeed, from his experience with the GPU under its present leadership. His cautious reference to Deyda this time round is testimony to this.
It wouldn’t be right to say activism against Jammeh’s undemocratic actions had never gotten so much attention outside Gambia, but at no point has the man, in his over 16 year rule, grown so jittery and fearful by actions mounted internationally against his reign.
In short, Ndey Tapha Sosseh is to Jammeh what Moses is to Pharaoh.
This article is intended to draw attention to the fact that Jammeh’s latest move has more to do with his attempt to take over GPU, given that elections for the leadership of the Union are at the corner, rather than his supposed intension of mending relations. Take an objective look at the entire discussion and you will see the obviousness of this.
Jammeh’s failed attempt at convincing the world that he has no qualm with the press was accentuated by his attempt at what he knows best, laying the blame on the poor Gambian civil servants for refusing to talk to the press. If you did not know better how things operate in Gambia today you would be forgiven for believing for a moment that there was any jot of honesty in that misleading suggestion by Jammeh.
On the proposal by some newspaper owners at the meeting that the private press be included in national function, Yahya Jammeh said they (meaning he) decided against it “because when we say this thing, instead of writing exactly what we said, you decided to say what I didn't say as if you are Yahya Jammeh.”
In essence, what Jammeh wants is a Daily Observer style reporting, which republishes verbatim his mostly incoherent, painfully lengthy, irrelevant lectures. Unfortunately, to some extent this is already happening in some quarters in the independent press. Do they have a choice?
The point is, if the president is opposed to involving the independent media because they do not write what he prefers, as was clearly put across by Jammeh himself, how could you expect a fearful civil servant, who wants to keep their position, to talk freely to the very same media the president so shuns - certainly not in this era of such a high prevalence of prosecutions on false information charges.
Bottom-line: you can’t claim to have a free society if you don’t have a free press.
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Comments
He has a beard...I do not.
I am not a journalist.
I believe in free speech.
If Yahya Jammeh was to phone me...I would pay him the same respect.
That dosn't mean I agree with what they say....only they have right to say it.
This is a forum where we(Gambians)com e to discuss matters that concern Gambian issues and not where we expect you to come and tell your Cock and Bull stories.Personal praises and self recommendations are not what we want to see here.Of course we want CHARMING and DILIGENT people to come forward and contribute something that is significant to the topic but posts like your recent ones have to importance to the topic.Thank you!.
It is more likely that I am either Viking {Norseman} or possibly full blown Norman from Normandy. The family records at Somerset House, in London, fade prior to the Tudors...
But I tend to feel romantically attached to The Vikings..due to my stunning blue eyes and my rich blond hair.
{ I also walk with a limp and spit a lot}
See you in Valhalla? or then again maybe not?
and Jack Nicklaus....
Yer...the man !!!!"
I once stood next to Ousainou Darboe in the Banjul High Court and charmed the Judge - she gave me the "Sine Die" I wanted.
Dr Owl asked the next day: Is Sine Die Same As Half Die?
I was infront of Lord Justice Burnton a few days ago and he began by saying: "Mr. Halake, you are CHARMING and DILIGENT but I don't see ...." at which point I stood up and interrupted:
"My Lord, I have prepared a page I would like you to look at before you decide ..." I handed the page to the Clerk.
The LJ smiled as he read and said "I did say you are DILIGENT but I don't see that you have grounds for taking this matter to the SUPREME COURT".
With that the Lord Justice stood up and his parting shot was "Good luck if you can find a way!" Of course, I am taking it to the Supreme Court as a final step before the European Court of Justice.
Just tell us what you really want and we might be able to facilitate your aspirations! All you have be in your comments or rebuttal is factual ..cause trust me most of us can discern when you are not...PLZ NO CONTRADITIONS...
SO YOU EITHER WITH US OR ...AGAINST US.
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