Home of the Mandinmories

Until now,I have decided to stay clear of the brouhaha ignited by Don Imus's racist comment. But the hypocrisy of his defenders is making my blood boil.Everyone who stands up to the podium to defend Don Imus says the same thing, right off the bat: What the man said was deplorable. Indefensible. Disgusting. Or any other litany of words to try to separate themselves from his vile comments. If you believe that what he said was disgusting and indefensible, then what the hell are you defending him for?

Today marks the 7th anniversary of the April 10th 2000 student massacre that took place in the Gambia. Alpha Robinson wrote a powerful poem in the heydays of that senseless human tragedy. In memory of all those students who paid the ultimate price, here is Alpha Robinson's timeless poem:

Cry not Mama

Trying to make sense

Out of the senseless

Turning around in circles

Sleepless and restless

Trying to feel your pain

Mothers and fathers of the martyrs

Young lives taken away

From earth to earth

Living in our hearts

Forever Forever and Forever

Mothers we mourn by your side

You have carried that baby for eight months

The ninth month demanding your breath

The joy you felt after the birth pains

Hoping and dreaming

That your baby will one day be someone

You gave that baby solid food and love

Toiling under the sun

Nothing you would not do

To give that child a future

Fathers we mourn by your side

You work this earth with bare feet

You deny yourself pleasures

To give that child a future

How anxious you were

Waiting to hear from the maternity ward

Or was it from the home

News about your baby

You two took that child to school

With high expectations

To acquire knowledge

For a better future

Then came the gunman

The neighbour’s child he was

No stranger to you

He calls you mother and father

Yet he turned that gun on your children

And took them away from you

Forever Forever and Forever

But cry not Mama

That child is in eternal peace

How can I tell you

How can I make you understand

That your pain is not in vain

That your pain is mine

Some give their lives for others

In their own way

And live forever

Look at me Mama

I am your child

For what your child died for

Will live in me forever

So they all live in me Mama

All those courageous children

And I am not alone Mama

We are all your children

As you dry your tears

Gripped by grief

Your legs feeling numb and heavy

Trying to make sense out of the senseless

Seek consolation in us

We who will carry your child in us

Until we take our last breath

No they did not die in vain!

For what they died for

Cannot be killed Mama

Justice must come

Freedom must come

A new Gambia will be born

It’s only a matter of time

By Alpha Robinson

May their souls continue to rest in eternal bliss.

He may be a newbie and he is obviously not perfect, but, so far he and his campaign executed well. He is clearly doing a good job of turning enthusiasm into tangible campaign support.

WHOOOOO HOOOOOOO!!!! $25 million dollars . IT'S ON. IT'S SO ON!

Obama, we got your back baby. We got you. There's PLENTY more where that came from.

The Gambian online community has been swirling with indignation at the arrest and detention of Washington based former Observer reporter Fatou Jaw Manneh. She was arrested on her arrival at Banjul international airport sometime last week and today we learn from the point that she has been arraigned and charged with insulting the president. Here is what the point has on the incident:

Fatou Jaw Manneh was yesterday arraigned before Magistrate Pa Harry Jammeh of the Kanifing court, charged with ‘indictious offence.’ In her reaction to the charge, the accused told the court that she could not take her plea in the absence of her lawyer. The court thus granted her time to get the services of a lawyer.

The accused, arrested and detained on her arrival from the US, is said to have worked for many online newspapers in Washington, DC. She is expected back in court today.

Meanwhile, this paper was reliably informed that family members of Ms. Manneh has been given access to her, and also providing food while in detention at the NIA since last Wednesday...thepoint

Thank God she has been release on bail. that is a start.

Could Robert Mugabe's dictatorship be living on borrowed time? The Roman Catholic archbishop in one of the dioceses in Zimbabwe is calling on the people to take to the streets to protest Mugabe's authoritarian rule. He is not only talking the talk but will be walking as well:

Pius Ncube, the Roman Catholic archbishop of the southern Bulawayo diocese, urged Zimbabweans to take to the streets in protest at the government's ongoing crackdown against dissenters opposed to the government, Reuters reported.

"The biggest problem with Zimbabweans is they are cowards, myself included, but as for me I am ready to stand in front, even of blazing guns," Ncube told a news conference.

"If only Zimbabweans are prepared to stand, so am I prepared to stand ... we are not going to be bullied."...Link

Now thats what I call moral courage. If only the Imams in the Gambia will muster the same courage and take on Yahya Jammeh's insanity, the country will be a different place.

CNN's Africa trotting correspondent, Jeff Koinange was recently invited to the Gambia to report on the mystical AIDS cure perfected by Yahya Jammeh. True to form and perhaps after the bruising he took at the hands of this feisty sky news correspondent, Yahya refused to be interviewed by CNN even though his office extended an invitation to the news channel.

Here is a video of Koinange's trip to the smiling coast broadcasted on CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 program: VIDEO

It is really sad to watch Dr. Mbowe attest to this nonsense despite the medical training he went through over the years. This is what he told CNN:

I can swear 100% that this herbal medication his excellency is using is working. It has a potency to treat and cure patients infected with the HIV virus.

That is a bold statement. Dr. Mbowe is swearing 100% to the potency of a herbal medication the contents of which he doesn't know.

While I am grateful for the public service of these seven U.S. attorneys, they simply lost my confidence. I hope that this episode ultimately will be recognized for what it is: an overblown personnel matter.

In a press conference yesterday, he claims that the firing of eight US attorneys who a week before had lost his confidence happened essentially without his knowledge.These were the same people he claimed represent "the face of the department," but then claimed he essentially didn't know who they were because this all was done by his chief of staff. I mean hey...there are 10,000 people working for me. How can I possibly know what my CHIEF OF STAFF is doing? Yeah right Alberto. Undoubtedly, your chief of staff was spending his nights with Arlen Specter's chief of staff re-writing the Patriot Act to give you powers you didn't know you had to fire people you didn't know for reasons you didn't understand.
And you want us to believe you deserve to stay in your present position why?

Iglesias said criticisms of his performance by the Justice Department "are demonstrably untrue statements." He added: "We all have a right to defend our honor. I felt like my honor and the honor of my office was attacked...." http://www.washingtonpost.com/...

"If given the choice, I'd elect to stay home and mind my own business," Cummins told The Associated Press. "Now that I'm under subpoena, I'll go and give cooperative, truthful answers." When asked if officials in the Justice Department or White House had asked him to decline the earlier requests, Cummins said he had no comment...http://www.msnbc.msn.com/...

If you still think he deserved the job wait until you read this quote from the same US attorney:

Cummins said in a telephone interview Tuesday that he appreciated Pryor's [Sen. Mark Pryor, D-Ark] defense of his service, but that he remained a Bush loyalist who had considered leaving his post regardless.
"In my case, it's fair to say it was handled poorly, because they could just have easily called me and said 'You haven't done anything wrong. You're a champ. You've been a great performer for the president, and we'd like you to cooperate with us and give this other guy a job for two years,'" Cummins said... http://www.nwaonline.net/...

They would rather go into lucrative practice with Gonzales’s recommendation than go to bat for the American justice system. That is why despite the ineptitude of Alberto Gonzales, [I will not shed any tears if he is canned]: I believe the purged attorneys deserved the fate that befall them.

I don't think that another incredibly polarizing figure, no matter how smart she is and no matter how ambitious she is--and God knows, is there anybody more ambitious than Hillary Clinton?--can bring the country together. Obama is inspirational, and he's not from the Bush royal family or the Clinton royal family.

It is funny I said all this, and yet, if Hilary was to win the Democratic nomination I will probably have to vote for her; since the Republicans appear to be no option after this Bush disaster. But in this battle royale for the Democratic nomination, I am for Obama and will not hesitate to put forth the flim-flamsy act the Clintons employ when it comes to black electorates. Today's events are a manifestation and continuation of the Clinton machines bamboozlement of the black voter. However this time around, there is a genuine alternative for black voters: Barack Obama...

Remember all that craziness about how Obama wasn't "black enough" to win black voters' support? Well, a couple of weeks later: not so much. The washingtonpost has this story on a poll release showing that more black voters now support Obama in a head to head match up against the wife of the fake black president. Here is a snippet:

Clinton's and Obama's support among white voters changed little since December, but the shifts among black Democrats were dramatic. In December and January Post-ABC News polls, Clinton led Obama among African Americans by 60 percent to 20 percent. In the new poll, Obama held a narrow advantage among blacks, 44 percent to 33 percent. The shift came despite four in five blacks having a favorable impression of the New York senator.

We still have ten months before the first primary votes are cast. Unless Obama makes a rookie mistake or Al Gore decide to get into the race, this is Barack's race to lose.

It is one thing to read about the madness that is Yahya's claim to have a cure for AIDS, but to see the drama with your own eyes in moving video is priceless. Our Scandinavian based brother Buharry captured the treatment session broadcast live on Gambian television on video.

The session is interlaced with recitations from the holy Quran while Yahya could be seen in some scenes rubbing some kind of ointment on semi-nude women. How is that for all the religiosity he waxes poetic about. Without further ado:

Here are the links to the videos:

Day 1


Day 2





Sky News in the United Kingdom interview Jammeh and some of his patients. It is a sad tale. Watch the video here.

The Quack in the Gambia is what the German Newspaper Der Spiegel describes our resident dictator. Here is a snippet of an excellent article they wrote on this drama:

the self-styled AIDS healer is now claiming to have discovered his fortune-telling skills. He claims to be able to predict a person's moment of death, after a single look in their eyes...

Okay, that's it: the Man is certifiably crazy.

The national assembly elections have come and gone. The ruling APRC won most of the seats contested. No surprises there...you don't need to be a soothsayer to predict that outcome. The aftermath of the elections is turning into a nightmare for some communities. My native village of Saba has been marred in a communal rift. Both candidates for the Lower Badibou seat in the national assembly elections are natives of Saba. They are from the same compound to make matters worse. I blogged about the intricacies in this post

Reports coming out of Saba has it that the UDP candidate and some of his supporters have been arrested and detained at the Farrafenni police station after an altercation started by the niece of the winning candidate. Meanwhile, the winning APRC candidate is reported to be in Kanilai, hobnobbing with the president after seeing to it that his opponents are detained for standing up to the bullying and threats coming from his niece. This is tearing up that community and somebody needs to tell Suku to stop the nonsense and let innocent villagers whose only crime is opposing him go free.
The point newspaper has a rundown of opposition UDP supporters arrested around the country. Here is a snippet about the Lower Badibou incident I was alluding to:

In a related development, Mr Kebba Binta Suwareh Singhateh, who contested in the recently concluded general elections under a UDP ticket for Lower Baddibu, was, at the time of filing this story, still said to be in detention at Farafenni Police Station. Mr Singhateh was reportedly arrested shortly after the results of the legislative elections were announced and taken to Farafenni Police Station in North Bank Region.

Update:

Foroyaa has a report on the incident, listing the names of the detainees. Needless to say, I know most of these detainees.

MASS ARRESTS IN BADIBOU
By Yaya Dampha

The defeated UDP candidate in Lower Baddibou, Mr. Kebba F. Singhateh and (15) fifteen of his supporters were arrested on Saturday by officials of the Police Intervention Unit,(PIU).

According to Mr. Lamin Buna Singhateh [ a brother to the defeated candidate ], one Miss Jamba Barrow (a cousin to Hon. Suku Singhateh) had a brawl with Mr. Faburama Singhateh at the market and it ended in a physical fight. He said that later in the day, one Lamin Singhateh came and found the UDP candidate’s son brewing China Green tea (Attaya) and assaulted him; that an MP (name witheld) later called the police who came and arrested Kebba F. Singhateh, Lamin Singhateh, Ebrima Dambelly, Omar Ceesay, Faburama Singhateh, Alhagie Ngum, Jololi Barrow, Mafafu Saho, Lang Jumbo Singhateh, Faburama Gasama, Bubacarr Singhateh, Ousman Suso, Burama Jaliba, Buramanding Singhateh, Buranding Danso and Dembo Makalo. Nine of the arrestees are detained at Farafenni Police Station while the other six are detained at Kerewan Police Station.

The family members have raised concern over the arrest and detention of their loved ones and called on the authorities to release them.
However, sources close to Farafenni Police confirmed the arrest of the nine people.

When contacted, Police Relations Officer (PRO) Aziz Bojang said when complaints were made to the police they had to arrest those suspected and that it is only the court that can prove guilt. He said if somebody lodges a complaint with the police, they (the police) have to proceed to effect the arrest of those alleged to have committed the offence, but that this does not mean that the police are siding with the party that complained.

Superintendent Bojang however did not say anything as to why the Lower Badibou UDP candidate and his supporters are still being detained for over six days which is beyond the required constitutional duration of 72 hours or three days.

I don't know if I should cry or laugh at the absurdity of Yahya Jammeh's behavior. Gambians really need to be concerned if nothing else. The man is literally nuts. Not satisfied with the moronic stunt he pulled at the hospital the other day, Yahya Jammeh has vowed to start healing HIV/AIDS patients provided they agree to be treated in public. The freak of a commander in chief is making a mockery of our people's intelligence. The sad thing is that he is going to get some scared straight doctor at the hospital to certified AIDS patients as cured after his stunt.

I got mad at the opposition on the ground for not starting a shit storm over yahya's mental meltdown: but come to think of it why bother. The fool is going to embrass himself in a grand style, why help him from his misery? Time to get your lazy boy and watch Yahya jemus make a fool of himself. The point has the skinny on this madness. Here is a snippet:

In his speech, President Jammeh disclosed that he has now got the full mandate, with strict conditions, to embark on the treatment of HIV/AIDS and Asthma. Commenting on the treatment of HIV/AIDS, President Jammeh pointed out that the patient must first be diagnosed as HIV positive and should agree to be treated in public.

If you have the stomach for reading human scummy behavior, click on this point link for the rest of the story.

The lunacy of Yahya Jammeh has no boundaries. The man is delusional and running the Gambia into the ground in the process. What  kind of a prank is this fool pulling on Gambians? He will run to any dingy institution to get a title. Obviously been called doctor has gotten to his head. He is literally practicing some kind of voodo on patients admitted at the Royal Victoria Hospital.

The sickening part of this whole episode is that you have board certified medical doctors vouching for his bullshit. This is the same man who try to sell what he claimed to be an all purpose medicinal water to our people last year. That scheme fail, not because he didn't have people vouching for his scam, but because everybody knew the fucking emperor has no clothes. Now whatever psychotic medication he is taking needs to refilled and fast: because the moron is losing it.

Why are the Imams sitting around and letting this lunatic use the Quran in vain. Funny, isn't it, how times have changed? Once upon a time, Muslims considered avarice a sin. They will rather go to an early grave than bear false witness. In Yahya Jammeh's Gambia, this isn't so. Religious leaders are much more interested in how to get their lot ahead than standing up to a coward.
If you are wondering what spike up my ire, well read this observer story and weep for the Gambia:

Jammeh cures PATIENTS at RVTH

The curative power of the Holy Qur’an and traditional medicine were yesterday put to effect at the Accident and Emergency (A&E) Unit and the Private Ward of the Royal Victoria Teaching Hopital (RVTH) by President Yahya Jammeh.

Jammeh combined both the spiritual power of curing and traditional medicine to alleviate the suffering at the emergency unit, as well as restore the health of patients in critical conditions. The process was so effective that patients responded to the healing techniques within a short span of time. His medicinal application was simply the Holy Qur’an combined with a few traditional herbs. 

The curative power of the Gambian leader left many mesmerised and stunned, including his entourage, doctors, nurses, patients and other staff of RVTH. It was his second consecutive day at the hospital, after attending to the patients on Saturday.
Speaking in an interview with journalists, shortly after attending to the patients, President Jammeh said: “Nowadays there are a lot of strange illnesses. It seems there is no remedy for them and most of time even if there is remedy, it takes a lot of time for patients to heal. So I think its time for me to come out from hiding and show them what I can do”. 

He then added: “I told Gambians since 1994 that there are a lot of things that I can do. But Gambians would never know the Yahya Jammeh that is here. I believe in two things. If somebody is sick and you cannot cure the person with the Holy Qur’an, the person is certainly going to die. And it would not take 24 hours. There is no disease in this world that you cannot cure using the Qur’an and some natural herbs that are existing either in the forest and/or at our homes. So this is traditional herbal medicine but basically used in the Qur’an. It is spiritual. So you will realise that the whole ward that we took care of yesterday were coincidentally, all Muslims.” 

He then continued: “Yesterday, there were two patients that were in very critical conditions. In fact, both of them could not talk. I saw that one of them was suffering and was in great pain, so I had to take care of him to relief the pain. But the good thing about it was that he was temporary relieved. But I said yesterday that I have no home with him, including the old man.” 

Source
President Jammeh told journalists he got his medicine from the forest, saying “what is important is that it my concoction and my knowledge. It is a natural knowledge for me, which is based on the Qur’an. These are basically plants. I have the title of doctor. In fact, I am a stronger doctor than them, because I use the name of Allah and the Qur’an”.
On the continuity of curing patients, President Jammeh decribed the exercise as a duty. However, he pointed out that he also has other responsibilities. “One, I am a head of state and have to take care of state matters. I am also a family man. Also, I have to pray a lot. In fact, what will happen will be Saturday clinics. And of course, it will not be every Saturday, because sometimes I have to go to Kanilai. But we will make an arrangement with them so that we can deal with the most critical cases. The rest they can take care of them, such as malaria. But cases where there is no hope, those are the ones I will concentrate on,” he noted. 

He disclosed that he would also attend to HIV/Aids patients,which he said would require time. He elaborated: “What we could do is to take members of Santa Yalla, who have exposed themselves so that we can start with them. But I will tell you when I am ready, because it is not easy to do it. It is not easy to prepare.” He stressed that one must pray a lot. 

President Jammeh then observed that he does not “ just go and cure a patient. There are signs I look for and I use the Qur’an”. However, he confirmed that for two of the patients, he did not use the Qur’an because he was “definitely sure that they are going to die. It is not easy but that is the way it is. There is nothing I can do for somebody whose time is up. But if it is a question of illness, we can take care of it”. 

He informed journalists that he started the curing process with his relative to ensure people understand that it’s no joke. “You must have seen the other one who before I touched him was saying he could not breathe and that he was going to die. After I attended to him, he was asking for a job to the extent that he showed me his driving license. Its all with the power of Almighty Allah,” he said. 

The link
Asked about the link between the Qur’an and traditional medicine, President Jammeh replied: “There is no distinction between the Qur’an and traditional medicine. Traditional medicine is purely the use of herbs. And every herb that is of medicinal value is mentioned in the Qur’an. You will also realise that there some people call marabouts, who use the Qur’an to write something, wash it and give it to the person to drink. So that’s the link. And for any verse that you can use in the Qur’an for healing, there is a tree in the forest that you can use if you cannot use the Qur’an. So if you can use the Qur’an and the tree itself, it makes it simple. You are invoking the name of Almighty Allah. And Allah has said that there are so many things that we can do. There are so many things that are hidden from us.” 

President Jammeh further noted that there is no difference between traditional medicine, modern medicine and the Qur’an. He explained: “Whatever they use as modern medicine, must have been extracted from a plant or naturally existing chemicals. In the Qur’an, you have both the herbs and elements - elements of a chemical nature that you can use. In fact, what you extract from the plant are chemicals that are extracted to make medicine. Some may exist in mineral or gaseous form to make medicine. The source of all modern and traditional medicine is from Almighty Allah, and that is the Qur’an. Allah says he has created for mankind all in this Qur’an. It’s like a literature. I may read a story like that of Shakespeare and I may know the literal meaning of it. But somebody who has done literature would be able to explain to you what they are talking about, which may be different from what I understand about it.” 

He then affirmed that he is willing to share the knowledege, provided it would not be commercialised. “If it is going to be commercialised, then no!,” he stressed.
Dr Malick Njie, Chief Medical Director of RVTH, expressed his impression with Jammeh’s miracle, saying what “he has got is different from what we learnt in medical school”. 

Dr Njie added: “I was amazed by somebody who said he could not breathe and who thought he would die. But after what he gave him, he asked for a job. I cannot talk much about that because I do not have much knowledge about it. But traditional medicine is someting that is in the country. It’s been an excellent visit. We had him yesterday, we had him here today. His mere presence stimulated a lot in the patients.” 

He disclosed that a woman, who was in a bad condition wanted to be discharged, after she had received “something from the President. She was ready to go. I told her well,. if you are well, you must go so that we can admit other patients. But His Excellency said do not let her go.” 

He said another female patient, who was in a psychotic condition and  incoherent also responded to President Jammeh’s curative medicine, after it was administered to her. “She was ready to go home, which we found amazing. She started talking coherently. This morning the consultant did the check-up round and certified her fit to be discharged”. 

Patients’ account
Also speaking to the journalists, Amadou Bah, a patient at the A&E Unit, said: “I am getting much better than before. I am really grateful to President Jammeh for treating me. I am very happy.” 

Omar Jaiteh, another patient, said: “I now feel fine. I am feeling much better now.”
Ebrima Demba, who was confined to his sickbed since his admission at the A&E Unit, said: “I feel really great. I could not walk from my bed to the toilet. But now, I can walk thanks to the President. Illness is cured through a gradual process and I really want the President to come again.” 

Alagie Hydara and Elbo Jarjue, also expressed similar sentiments.
President Jammeh brought gifts for the patients and then gave out D30,000 to a lady, whose father passed away at the A&E Unit. He also gave gifts of cash to the Kanifing gas explosion victims at the Intensive Care Unit.
President Jammeh was accompanied to the hospital by the Secretary General, a number of Secretaries of State and the Chief of Protocol....Daily Observer.