Thursday, June 9, 2016

YAYA JAMMEH NEVER FAILED TO EXECUTE HIS THREATS. YOU CANNOT DOWNPLAY HIS MOST RECENT


MOST of us remember when Yaya Jammeh and his Military Junta threatened to deport the defunct INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER proprietors, bona fide Gambian citizens to Guinea when they were fearlessly holding the regime's feet to the proverbial fire. Understanding he wasn't able to do that, he dastardly BURNT their offices and machines down.

So what makes MANDINKAS any different, special? He would have said that to anybody he perceives an enemy to his perpetual reign. Remember, he'd deported the late Kenneth BEST, a Liberian refugee who founded the Daily Observer before it was bought to become the instrument of oppression and propaganda. So the deportation threat was vain talk and shouldn't bother anybody who understands these issues.

WHAT most concerned people are scared of and worried about is the THREAT TO KILL Opponents because they're Mandinkas. I cannot understand for the life of me why anybody would take that to be an empty threat. Yaya never promises to kill and did not. NEVER!

** In 2006 angry televised address to the nation after the alleged coup he promised to 'set an example'. Daba Marena, Lt. Ebou Lowe, Lt. Alieu Ceesay, WO2 Alpha Bah, Sgt Malafi Corr all allegedly implicated were being transported to Janjanbureh prisons only to be extrajudicially murdered in the bushes of Kanilai.

** At his inauguration in 2011 at the Independence stadium, he swore and promised that he'd be 'more dangerous' in the coming five years than he was when he was in uniform.

** In August 2012 before the country's religious leaders, he promised and swore that those in Deathrow #prisoners are going to be killed. Under the cover of darkness, a dozen were secretly whisked away from Mile II to be slaughtered.

** In 2013 at the launching of Operation Bulldozer, Jammeh issued a 'shoot first and ask questions later' to his Security forces. Binta Jarjue and her Boyfriend, had bullets rained in their hired taxi, for the driver allegedly refusing to stop at a security checkpoint. She was murdered.

** At a political rally in North Bank in 2015, Yaya promised and swore that most of his political #opponents wouldn't witness the 2016. 'One by one, they'll all die', he promised. Well, Solo got picked up on a political reforms mission, murdered in cold blood.

NOW WHAT is there to believe that his threat and promise to kill MANDINKAS in their numbers will be any different?

Here is a fact that we all should acknowledge: The threat to kill a certain ethnic group came from Ousman Sonko the Interior Minister and Yaya Jammeh the President, two people known for their murderous ways who happened to be Jolas BUT ARE #NOT A #REPRESENTATION of the Jola ethnic group in character and sentiments. I do not see any two tribes or more picking up weapons (guns, machetes or Stones) to kill each other. So that is not my worry. It never was my worry cos this was not a inter-tribal threat. We surely are ALL Gambians but certainly all belong to various tribes. And admitting that isn't a problem because we've forever embraced and celebrated    that ethnic diversity. Therefore, in as much as we want to encourage tribal harmony and discourage anything that would charge tribal acrimony, IT'S DANGEROUS TO DOWNPLAY OR BRUSH ASIDE Jammeh's threat as 'distraction from the real issues' or 'falling for his craziness'. That would be falsely attempting to mitigate a real threat that had bloodthirsty tyrants struggling to cling on to their reign and lives at all cost, plunge relatively peaceful nations and people into a bloodbath.

 Yaya does not need any singular tribe or group of tribes to execute his threat of mass murder. He only needs a few Gambians loyal to him and willing to kill and die for him. You think no Gambian would do that? Those who murdered Nov 11, 1994 coup suspects were Gambians. All those who pulled triggers on April 10/11, 2000 were Gambians. Those who murdered Deyda Hydara, the 40 Ghanaians, Daba Marena and co., Solo Sandeng and tortured defenseless women to a near-death ARE ALL GAMBIANS. So please dead that 'No Gambian Will Kill Fellow Gambians for Jammeh'.

And again, I recognize the need to amplify our oneness as Gambians, but in doing so, brushing over Jammeh's threat as distraction could be deadly. And I'm not with that at any cost. We may not be able to stop him but let's NOT dare him. What we must do is be cautious, alert and sound the alarm to keep the world in the know of his intentions. Those who matter. Not just in rants but through diplomatic channels. Yaya is a dangerous being with the power to do anything to Gambians. And thus far, we've not seen any impacting consequences to his abominable actions.

Pata PJ