Mandinkas need to take a colser look at themselves
DATE: 29 JUNE 2011
BY BAMBA MASS (Human Rights Activist UK)
I sometime wonder if the actual Mandinka problem of disunity did not start far back from the “Kaabu Turubang Kansala war with the Fulas”. Please if so, I appeal to the Fulas to release the Mandingos from the charm they inflicted on them thus their disunity because hatred, disunity and self destruction has and continue to be venom in the mandinka vein to this day.Self eluded pride was destroying a lot of mandinkas thus barring them from achieving anything. It was evident while other tribes continue looking for plan B, the mandinkas sit and talk about each other who supports Yahya Jammeh and who does not. Some believed they are most backward of all the tribes in the Gambia as a result of their own infighting. Where other tribes continue to secretly see each other to resolve issues, the Mandinkas monger telephoning agents of Yahya Jammeh about the activities of each other. What length a Mandinka would be prepared to see a fellow Mandinka sacked from his/her job, become mad or even dead was believed by some to be immeasurable.The facts are plain example a mandinka intellectual would have his/her number one hidden enemy from amongst his own kinsmen. Even some uncles or step Fathers/mothers would hate to see a family member prosper more their own kids. Those blood family members who should have been the rock on which to build one’s temple would wish your downfall than prosperity just simply because one happens to have unsolved scores to settle with a half brother, co wife ect, some would extend their hatred to the children of that person they had scores with.Imagine Mandingos with more than 46% of the Gambia population are the only tribes fighting over Yahya Jammeh’s positions while he continues to hate them with passion. We are known to be each other’s reporter to Yahya Jammeh. If the other tribes joined the monster, the idol worshipper, yesterday, today they are beginning to see beyond their nose. The mandinkas are next to the Jolas who Yahya uses mostly in his dirty games and most of those dirty games, Mandinkas are used to make their fellow Mandingos disappear.URR:In the Gambia Yahya Jammeh continues to use the infighting amongst Mandinkas to benefit himself thus every time there is news of change of Alkalo or chief and the devil laughs when Mandinkas scramble and fight each other. In the Kantoras, the mandinkas are infighting for the chieftancy position and alkalo positions amongst themselves. In Tumana, Sandu the same. Even in Wuli example sutuko where some of my ancestors come from, the Jattas and the Kamasos infighting for Alkaloship why? Is anybody’s guess. CRR:In Fulladu where mandinkas are the minority and could have left those positions of chiefs and Alkalo to Fulas in the majority, Mandinkas continue to fight for amongst themselves. In Niamina Dankunku, the Mboge and now the fatty fight for the chieftancy position. What is going on? Even in Sami the Jawla and the comah would hate for the post now that they both lost it, they still would go to any length to regain it.LRR:In Jarra East the Darboe, the Saidykhan and now the Kanagie? In Jarra West the Jarjusy and Kinteh would go any length to please Jammeh for that chieftancy post and Jammeh knowing this, keeps shifting the post depending on which of the clan at the time could bring him more mandinka following We must remember Baba K.Jobe a mandinkas being responsible for the sacking of endless mandinkas for Yahya Jammeh across the country only to be disgraced, used and caged. Soma Jobe who used cutlasses and gathered youth of Basse to attack Ousainou Darboe a Mandinka and opposition leader while he soma Jobe served as assistant commissioner and despite still lying for the devil, he is no longer needed. Very sad indeed. In Kiang East, Kiaf Sanneh, Jeneri Sanneh and now Kolior, all fighting. Wali Sanneh was accused of being behind most dismissals of fellow Mandinkas at the area council in Soma. In the kiang central, the Sanyang, one man whose brother was made chief presently wanted to kill some Mandinka women who parked their car with opposition flags on it at their compound gate. Really SAFUYA and PALASOO would kill us all.WR: In kombos the Brikama Sanneh, the Touray of kombo north and the Darboe of the south would kneel and even destroy each other to please Jammeh to get selected as chiefs of those areas no matter what. Imagine even Mandinka women do participate in the fight against fellow Mandinkas. Ara Jatta and Sister Ndey Jatta of kombo sukuta reporting anyone who dares challenge them. Women in Serekunda Market would run for their dear lives when they told Ara Jatta is on her way towards their stalls. What is this? NBR:In Badibu the Dibba, the Jammeh, the kinteh, the Singhateh and rescently the Jange and Kanteh all throwing in their hats for the post instead of uniting behind one in each district? In nuimi, I would spare them due to a high level of hallucinating substance from their Jamaica could maybe their reason for acting abnormally (Jokes). But can anyone imagine my son Queen Jammeh championing the kingship of Yahya Jammeh while Lt LF Jammeh serves a life imprisonment? This is not only sad but madness. The Sonko would also jump with an offer of the chieftancy post depending on how many Mandingos they can get for Jammeh. What is this chieftancy chieftancy thing all about? Can’t mandinkas be contented if they are not chiefs?Stop your caste systems and infightings amongst your selves for no Sulla are better than Nyamallo and no Nyamallo are better than jungos. Infact there are no Jungos. For we are all Jongos (Slaves), and children of the same father read history. Stopping members of caste from marrying despite loving each other dearly is unIslamic, unchristian and against God. Why prevent what God had made legal? Develop oriented people don’t practice separation in sectionalism. It is out dated when all castes are mixed for there are no DNA tests in Africa and people need to think hard for some seen as Jongos could be princes and vice visa? That’s why other tribes abolished it. When Mandinkas can come together and regain their respect in society where everyone now blames them of everything and anything, instead infighting. It is the Mandinkas that would say “I would rather die first than see suntukung prosper or Nyamo kono is my father’s enemy therefore his children must pay for what their father did to my father. Why? Don’t you think maybe you or your children could benefit more from Nyamo kono than the one you think of benefitting you?Truthfully there are still gallant Mandingos who are trying hard to resolve these huge proplem affecting everyone including non Mandingos but they are in the minority and even despised by some lousy ones who are blinded by greed.It is time Mandinkas rethink and look at their position. If one says “”I would never criticize Yahya Jammeh because I have my family back home. Who does not have families back home? That is the greatest cowardly and hypocritical act ever because it is not out of bravery others are talking. People talk against tyranny because it is time we get rid of the cancer before it destroy the little unity we all have. Take an example of Chief Ebrama Manneh who we all morn despite no one known openly for having seen his dead body being reported by fellow colleges amongst them Mandinkas?At the NIA, Mandinkas who were alleged to have reported Daba Marena now had themselves all sacked while some face court charges for allegedly torturing a prisoner. These tactics Yahya Jammeh uses to divide and rule Gambia and Mandinkas are his main target.How about Jun Nfansu Conteh of kombo faraba who reported a fellow mandinka Kanyiba Kanyi to Yahya Jammeh for campaigning against tyranny just because Jung Conteh want to keep his post of chief. Though he still is chief, but does he now have conscience? For these questions are asked of men with human conscience! Imagine Gunjur, Gambia’s Islamic seat of knowledge with almost everyone related to each other. Mandinkas reporting Imam Ismaila Manjang to Yahya Jammeh only to be tortured? His only crime was to ask Muslims to stop worshiping Idols nothing else.Imagine while other tribes despite their political differences, unite saving each other from the tyrant Yahya Jammeh’s Jungulars, while they continue to enjoy quietly sharing and co operating, the Mandingos go about reporting each other, taking each other to marabouts in their efforts to see a foe’s son/ daughter getting fired lucked up or get deported from abroad. Destroying each other seems to be the Mandingos expertise.I hate tribalism but suffice it to say I cannot as well shake someone’s hand that would have me poisoned tomorrow if he gets the chance.Yahya Jammeh is on record publicly insulting Mandingos calling us “durumehs and sulu sajii yos”,( squirrels and sheep in wolves clothings). He even went on to say the Mandinka language doesn’t exist that even what they call RAIN is borrowed from the Quran. That Mandinkas at non Gambians they come from Mali and Kaabu while some tribes were in the Gambia before them and when they came and settled, they grabbed all lands from defenceless people and forced their rule over them.Coming back to the topic of tribalism,Yahya Jammeh who claimed to be a non tribalist, has only two Mandinkas in his cabinet remembers and even though we dance to his whip and fight amongst ourselves for his cause.Have we forgotten what Yahya Jammeh himself said? Let hear him!In his interview with Kebba Dibba published over the publicly owned GRTS television on the eve of July 22, President Jammeh dwelt into the issue of press freedom, Mandingos being the only illegal immigrants and the disappearance of Chief Ebrima Manneh verbatim ect.
What hurts me most to be quite honest is this phenomenon of illegal migration. I am not tribalist but I know there are tribes because I believe in creation? Tribe is just a culture and norm. But when you look at the statistics of people that are being deported at any given time, 98% of them are Mandingos. When these people leave, they don’t tell government. Government is not aware. And if they come out that they end up somewhere, then they come and say this person has disappeared, Yahya Jammeh has killed him. But look from 1994 to date, 99% of those people who are deported as illegal immigrants or who were voluntarily repatriated by the IOM. 98% are all Mandingos. Today they took us to court, West African court, and ECOWAS court for Ebrima Chief Manneh. All the people they said have disappeared are all Mandingos. People who have vowed to overthrow my government. If I have to kill people, those are the people I should kill but they are in prison. But why would I kill a journalist like Manneh who was in fact the observer correspondent in my office. You understand the reason why they take him now, you see if you commit an offence as a so called journalist, you take it to court because they want to make sure that they use it and when they criticize you and some people take advantage of that and where they failed to have visa they leave and then they go out there, they end up in the sea. They said oh because is a journalist, they said Yahya Jammeh killed him. Remember the case of Foday Makalo, they said we killed him. Foday Makalo was employed by us. He did a lot of things wrong and went to Dakar with our Gambian vehicle. When the vehicle was retrieved what they said, oh they killed him only for him to surface later in Spain. People have to understand that this country belongs to all of us and I am not expecting everybody to like me. If you dislike me I don’t care but don’t try to create a negative image of the country because that negative image also, if you think is going to affect Yahya Jammeh, you are making a great mistake. It is going to affect all the people in this country. So why is it that all the people they said has been killed by the government are Mandingos? When 99% of all these illegal migrants are all Mandingos. That’s the reality. Go to immigration or go to anywhere or in fact look at the IOM report of voluntary repatriated Gambians. They have a report. You look at that list. You go to immigration and find out from 1994 to date, all the people that have been deported, 98% are Mandingos. So if they want to leave, are not preventing anybody from leaving but let them be honest enough to stay or say we want to leave. But to say, oh! This man has disappeared so Yahya Jammeh killed him so that anybody who wants to leave will have a visa. But look at all the people we are wrongly been accused of disappearing, there is somebody they called Kanyiba Kanyi I don’t know. They said he was arrested and is in custody somewhere or he has been killed. When we arrest people, we take them to court. Ousainou Darboe killed somebody, we took him to court, unfortunately western pressure on the judges, the case dragged on for a long time and it ended up still not being punished and he has been acquitted and discharged. Did we kill him? No! There are people sentenced to death, if they are justified why we don’t kill them. And one should always ask yourself why is it that oh Yahya Jammeh is always accused of killing Mandingos? What do I have against the Mandingos?. But one has to look at it this way, why is it that 98% of all the illegal migrants who have been deported or repatriated are Mandingos. That’s the reality! And now they said yes, well released Chief Ebrima Manneh and compensate him US$100,000.How can we release somebody who is not arrested by us.In July 2010, Jammeh said at a rally, “Whether you like it or not, no coup will end my government, no elections can end my government. By God’s grace I will rule this country as long as I wish and choose someone to replace me.” The same month, he added “Come 2011, whether you vote for me or not, I will win,” and “If any area chooses to be with the opposition, let them go ahead and expect no benefit or development from my government.”Jammeh has been accused of restricting freedom of the press. Harsh new press laws were followed by the unsolved killing of Deyda Hydara, editor of The Point newspaper and Gambia correspondent for Reporters without Borders and the French news agency AFP. Hydara, who had been mildly critical of the Jammeh regime, was brutally gunned down in December 2004. Alhagie Martin, one of Jammeh’s closest military aides, has been named in connection with Hydara’s killing. It is widely believed that Jammeh is responsible for Hydara’s murder for the same man accused for involvement in the Deyda Hydara murders has been promoted and made the commander of State Guards by Jammeh even though he Jammeh has denied that security agents were involved in the killing, he had never let Alhagie Martin face any commission of enquiry into such allegations to clear his name before any promotions or positions. But the truth is, this same man has said on many occasions that anybody found sabotaging his government would be buried six feet deep. How can he now contradict himself saying they don’t kill people? Yahya Jammeh was also coated as saying they don’t kill people but keep you for very long periods of time until you grow old enough not to do anything for yourself much more for people. So that too contradicts his version of not having Chief Manneh and Kanyiba.HERE IS SOME REVELATION: Ousman Koro Ceesay (RIP), a finance minister in Yahya Jammeh’s government was allegedly killed by Mandinkas. Former Captain Ebou Jallow who was spokesman of the AFPRC and member of the military junta said that Yankuba Touray a mandinka from Badibu Nawuleru, Alhagie Kanyi from Sankuya, Edward and peter Singhateh Mandinkas from Wuli, killed Koro Ceesay in Yankuba Touray’s house and dumped his burnt body at a bush near Jambur. None of them now works for the devil they helped created In the November alleged coup of late Lt. Basiru Barrow (RIP), Lt Momodou Lamin Darboe (RIP), Lt Jawara (RIP), Sergeant Kairaba Camara (RIP), Lt. Bakary Manneh (Nyancho) (RIP) all Mandinkas and their colleagues who are from other tribes were betrayed by Mandinkas, had Alhagie Kanyi a mandinka from Jarra Sankuya accused of having done the dirty job of killing the above named Mandinkas and co for Yahya Jammeh only to be disgraced and fired from the army himself.Also two of the fourteen students (RIP) killed in the April 10th and 11th student demonstrations who are all Mandingos killed in Brikamaba CRR allegedly by one inspector Fatty a Mandinka who was accused to have shot them at close blank range for the Yahya Jammeh and the AFPRC only to be promoted and later retired from the police. When Landing Sanneh a Jola and Sergeant Dumbuya(RIP) were accused of trying to overthrow Yahya Jammeh, Dumbuya was gunned down in broad day light by State Guards in the middle of Albert Market in plain view of all around and killed but Landing Sanneh was spared and in jail. Almamo Manneh (RIP) a mandinka who prides himself that before anyone tries removing Yahya Jammeh, he/she should first kill him. But that same Almamo was brutally killed and accused of trying to escape while being arrested for an alleged involvement in a coup.The opposition UDP party militants Sedia Sanyang (RIP) Kebutay Jafuneh (RIP), Seedy Jawneh (RIP) all whom are Mandinkas died as a result of torture meted out to them at the Denton Bridge by Yankuba Touray and co Mandinkas all in the name of keeping Yahya Jammeh in PowerLate Hon Sheriff Mustapha Dibba (RIP) a Mandinka, who decided to serve in a Yahya Jammeh government despite saying publicly in a BBC Focus on Africa programme that he would never work with him, was disgraced even in death. A man so great in Gambian history as Sheriff Dibba, a founding Father of Gambian Democracy who had served his country as both vice President, cabinet minister and even Speaker in the second Republic for him to have not be at least honored by Yahya Jammeh in death shows his total hatred for the mandinkas.Two the sitting members of Parliament Late Hon. Abdou Karamba Gassama (RIP) and Hon. Buba Samura (RIP) who both died in a car crash were both refused State burial because they belong to the hated tribeWhen Col. Ndure Cham staged his coup and was foiled by Lang Tombong Tamba a Jola who was tipped off by a Mandinka friend now also in Jail, those allegedly said to be involved Daba Marenah (RIP) a Mandinka and co, Yahya Jammeh was accused of having said he doesn’t want to see them again thus they were allegedly executed But when Lang Tombong himself became accused of trying to overthrow Yahya Jammeh, He is allowed to survive and taken to court. Why Lt. Basiru Barrow, Lt Momodou Lamin Darboe, Lt Jawara, Sergeant Kairaba Camara, Lt. Bakary Manneh (Nyancho) and their colleges (Names not mentioned here) not accorded the same fate? Why Almamo Manneh, Sergeant Dumbuya and the likes were not accorded the same? Why has Daba and co not accorded the same? Why were they transferred from a more secured Mile 2 prisons to the provinces and said to have escaped with hand cuffs? Now Jammeh, who denied being tribalist when he was trying to defend his attack on Mandinkas including all the above meted out on the Mandinkas, has all his tribes in all important positions and what do Mandinkas get from him, chieftancy posts and Alkaloship!Read belowSome are as follows: (Remember, some of these officials are my good friends but the truth must be told and my apologies to any who feels offended by these revelations)CABINET: Yahya Jammeh Minister of defence (Jola), Hon Fatim Badgie, Minister of Health and Social Welfare, (Jola) Hon. Ousman Sonko Minister of the Interior,(Jola) Hon Pierre Tamba (Jola), Minister of Local Government and Lands, (Jola) Hon Abdou Kolley Minister of Trade, Regional Integration and Employment,(Jola),Civil service and military:Hon Ousman Jammeh Secretary General and Head of the Civil Service (Jola), Harry Sambou Permanent Secretary for Defense for the Gambia, Yankuba Kolley Mayor of KMC (Jola). Fabakary Tombong Jatta Majority Leader (Jola),Nfarama Jatta Governor Central Bank (Jola), Abdoulie Bojany Speaker of the House of Parliament (Jola), Pahary Jammeh Solicitor General (Yahya Jammeh’s cousin) , Ben Jammeh Director General NDEA (Yahya Jammeh’s cousin), Numo Kujabi Director General NIA (Jola), , Inspector General of Police Yankuba Sonko (Jola), Buba Sagnia, Director General, Gambia Immigration Department(jola), Muhammed L Gibba Managing Director, Gambia Ports Authority (Jola), Nfansu Bojang Director General, Civil Aviation Authority (Jola), Mr. Lamin Gibba, Managing Director SSHFC (Jola). Mr. Tamsir Badgie Snr. Poject Manager SSHFC, Brigadier General Ousman Badjie was named deputy chief of Defence Staff The first female and only general in the entire Army Ratatouille DK Sanneh, elevated from the rank of Colonel to General. This show how weak Masaneh kinteh was made. He is only a figure head with no command or power to do anything. Gambians need to stop sleeping and realise the fact that we are no longer in a Jawara era when even a sergeant can command Soldiers and they obey him/her. Soldiers even now a days, take a different oath from that of the previous days. The Army is more divided than we the civilians. Ask any former army officer and they will tell you.
Imagine Foni that had always had opposition candidates since independance, now all uniting saying all APRC candidates should go un oppose. Are they better than us? I think so!With all the above it seems the mandinka community either does not care or are just too greedy to care that those killed even not their close relatives but are human beings that deserve dignity even when accused of a crime.
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