HEAR THIS...
Some 11 months ago in neighboring Senegal, an opposition leader was accused of rape and invited by the police for questioning. Parts of the Senegalese Capital of Dakar had some threatening disturbances with people flooding the streets setting properties on fire. On rape Allegations! And mind you, Ousmane Sonko was not even the 2nd largest opposition in the country. The Police, the State proceeded with caution cos they understood the Consequences of 'acting stupid'.
Four months ago in The Gambian town of Pipeline, peacefully gathered supporters of the country's main opposition were forcefully dispersed by a few Paramilitary police officers, shooting teargas, injuring dozens of people. The police officers identified themselves in a recorded video celebrating, before a presidential adviser paraded himself making a mockery of the situation. Imagine that. The country's largest opposition party (UDP) that had just scored over 200,000 votes in a tensed election, whose leader is a 70+ years old former vice president, had teargas shot directly into his residence, the country went to sleep, woke up and had ice cream for breakfast! In the midst of all that, you had people running with an alternative narrative that 'the UDP want to burn down the country by forcing to overturn the election results'. Not even the National Human Rights Commission said shit about it.
The UDP needs to change its ways. The fear of having to be labeled Violent should not turn you into sheep, submissively being led to slaughter. You can be nonviolent and peace-loving, and not be a vegetable. For 2 decades and a half, the UDP are the only political party to have been physically assaulted causing loss of lives without Consequence.
Ousmane Sonko took a mic and told his supporters before God and Man, to be ready. 'If they hit you, break their teeth'. And that message reverberated and was understood. The UDP are telling its people 'turn the other cheek even if unlawfully assaulted, cos we are peace loving'.
There's NO developed COUNTRY that hadn't 'self-destruct' before they 'made it'. The Gambia cannot be an exception. And I think it should start with this National Assembly Elections. CITIZENS MUST be willing to protect the laws of the country by refusing to watch the law being violated. The definition of a 'Citizen' is pretty clear in the Constitution. ANY who acquired voters card ILLEGALLY MUST BE PHYSICALLY STOPPED FROM VOTING in April. If they insist, whatever they get out of it is deserved. After all, Bala buka falling bala la.
Now that that point is made, we'd address the charges of Tribalists and Tribalism, next.
