Home of the Mandinmories

Ten Wins In A Row

1 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Wednesday, February 20, 2008

On the day after Wisconsin and Hawaii, I've been ruminating on what would be happening right now if Barack Obama had lost ten straight contests since Super Tuesday.

Here's the first thing that would have happen:

If Obama had lost ten straight contests, the Clinton campaign and/or its surrogates would be calling for him to "step down" for the "good of the party." They would want the Democratic party to "coalesce" around its "obvious frontrunner."

There's precedent for that

Democratic Party leaders leaned on Gary Hart to quit in 1984 and Jesse Jackson to quit in 1988. Both were running against more establishment-type candidates.We tend to forget Jackson's run in 1988 but as someone pointed out yesterday, he had the highest-ever number of delegates for a second-place candidate until Hillary Clinton exceeded that mark yesterday.

Here's another thing I know. If Obama had lost ten straight contests, each and every Obama concession speech would have congratulated his opponent and thanked the supporters who worked tirelessly for him in those states. According to the NYTimes this morning:

“Mrs. Clinton did not mention the Wisconsin results; she did, however, call Mr. Obama to congratulate him on the victory. “

Obama would be gracious enough to congratulate his opponent publicly and to thank his supporters in the states he lost….Remember New Hampshire? Enough said...

Tribalism....Kenya on the brink

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Wednesday, January 30, 2008

This is what happened when simple minds and power-hungry politicians used bigoted language to incite hatred amongst their own people. What is happening in Kenya has been fomenting for a number of years. It just boiled over after the last elections were rigged. Politicians and their groupies have been silently spreading ethnic and tribal code words in these communities for a number of years....culminating in what is today described by the US undersecretary for African affairs as ethnic cleansing.

The tragedy happening in Kenya could have been avoided if Kenyans stood up to ethnic bigots years ago and nip their message of intolerance in the bud. Most bigoted commentators have their facts wrong. They trade in half-truths and innuendo to past aspersions on a group of people they happened to hate.

This is one of the reasons why a lot of my countrymen were aghast to read on the front page of the GambiaEcho, a fact-free tirade against the Gambia's largest tribe by Sheriff Samsudeen Sarr. If you read Sam's piece and have no inclination to Gambian politics and society, you will come away with the feeling that the Mandinkas of the Gambia are just a tribalist lot...bent on dominating their fellow countrymen. Nothing could be further from the truth. Sam Sarr knew this...but he has an agenda all along...and that is to castigate and demonize an entire tribe.

However, it is sobering to see how many other Gambians took it upon themselves to counter Sam's blatant disregard for history and call him out for what he is... a tribal man. Saul Saidykhan's piece is legendary in this respect. If we let the Samsudeen Sarrs of the world get away with spreading false and insidious messages based on their personal vendettas then we are headed for a rude awakening. The consequences will be deadly. That is the lesson Kenya is teaching Gambians....squash the hatred before it consumes your nation in death and anarchy.

Yes, we can! Si, se puede!

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Saturday, January 26, 2008

The past few weeks of the primaries has been rather nasty. We saw Clinton Inc. play dirtier than we could have ever imagined. They pull all the stops and dirty tricks. They continuously race-baited an honorable man for having the audacity to challenge their quest for a third term. We've heard them call Obama a "fairytale." We've seen Bill Clinton yelling at reporters who dare question his cut throat tactics. Tonight the Mark Penn / Clinton strategy of "unless they tell you otherwise - it's legal" has been exposed and defeated. Obama has won by close to 30 points and this crushing win changes everything. And we deserve to celebrate tonight!

Two months ago Hillary Clinton was leading among all demographics in South Carolina. She was cruising to her coronation. Tonight is a different story. South Carolina voted for hope and change. The exit poll numbers have shown what we all already knew - Bill Clinton hurts Hillary more than he helps. He runs around getting testy with reporters, pushing the negativity, spinning and deceiving - like what he did with Obama's Reagan quotes. He failed big time. South Carolina rejected these dirty politics.

Now it is a time to focus on the February 5^th contests. Get younger voters out as usual and appeal to the inherent good in every voter…or what the Clintons called false hope.We have cause to celebrate tonight. The Obama campaign face down the politics of personal destruction without flinching and came out victorious. Now that is hot…

"Some call it a fairytale - I call it the American dream"

Obama Wins Iowa

2 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Thursday, January 03, 2008

I almost forgot how effing good it feels when the right guy actually wins the election. Congratulations to Senator Obama and on to New Hampshire!!!

...it is the dawn of a new day in America. Change is in the air...

Obama For America

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Thursday, January 03, 2008

It is finally here...the Iowa caucus. Change we can believe in begins tonight. If the polls are a representative sample of the Iowa caucus goer, senator Obama will win Iowa tonight.

He ran a great campaign up to this point and all things considered, he will be heading to New Hampshire tomorrow with a victory in Iowa.

Good luck Obama...

"Fire up...ready to go."

Kenya...Please God Not Again

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Machetes ... oh the dreaded machetes are been brandished in Kenya. It is a dreary sight after the havoc they wield in Rwanda. The aftermath of last week's elections in that East African nation is more complicated than Gore versus Bush in 2000.

The Kenyan election was almost certainly rigged in favor of the incumbent... that is what often happens in Africa. However, contesting it with machetes is going to tear Kenya along tribal lines and undermine the recent progress made by that nation. But leaving the results of a rigged election to stand is no panacea either.

The world community stood aside while Rwandans were slaughtered in a murderous tribal rage. Never again, they vowed will such a thing come to pass. The Europeans were skeptical of the results from the get-go:

The head of a European Union team of observers, Alexander Graf Lambsdorff, promptly spoke about deep misgivings concerning the counting process. Diplomats in Nairobi, the capital, pointed the finger at the Kikuyu old guard, men who had feared that they would lose their fortunes if Mr Odinga had made it into StateHouse. Even if Mr Kibaki's cronies are innocent of charges of vote rigging, he will have no national mandate: outside of the Kikuyu lands, Mr Kibaki was soundly beaten across the country, including in Nairobi.

By contrast, the US state department's initial statement on the results was shameful. They legitimized a sham election with a congratulatory note. They have since backed from that statement, but the harm may have been done.

I am fearful that Kenya is drifting towards Rwanda's recent fate unless the world community voiced out and take action now. If you think this is an exaggeration, well the trend line isn't encouraging. Money quote:

In Nairobi, the capital, tribal militias squared off against each other in several slums. Witness reports indicate that more 200 people have been killed in the past two days in violence connected to a disputed election Kenya held last week.

Tribal militias armed with machetes...does it ring a bell?

Andrew Young... What the hell

1 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Monday, December 10, 2007

It is a long primary session for political junkies like yours truly. When you think it can’t get any worse, out pops out another Clinton weasel. The culprit this time is Andy young…the African dictator’s best friend. He went on Newsmakers Live …maybe at the behest of the Clintons to say some stupid stuff about the viability of the Obama candidacy. Here are some money quotes:

“It’s not a matter of being inexperienced. It’s a matter of being young,” said Young, who is 75. “There’s a certain level of maturity ... you’ve got to learn to take a certain amount of (expletive).”

“There are more black people that Bill and Hillary lean on,” Young said. “You cannot be president alone. ... To put a brother in there by himself is to set him up for crucifixion. His time will come and the world will be ready for a visionary leadership.”…AJC

Well someone should have told Andy Young that Barack will be as old as Bill Clinton when he (Clinton) took office. Kennedy was 43years when he took office as well. Dr. Martin Luther King died when he was 39 years old — and he wrote his famous letters from Birmingham Jail when he was just past 30. In fact, Mr. Young should go and read the portion of that letter where Dr. King argues against those sympathetic white ministers who kept on telling civil rights activists to “wait” until times were more favorable for protest, and Dr. King said, well, that would mean waiting FOREVER. Now, over three decades later, and Mr. Young is telling a black man to “wait.” Oh Please. However, young wasn’t done with his Clinton worship as he went on to say some more absurd bullshit such as:

Young also quipped that “Bill is every bit as black as Barack.”

You’ve got to be demented or the Clintons have something on you to say something like that. I have a feeling that this whole interview is setup to trick misinformed black voters to vote for a Clinton dynasty.

With regards to the old joke that Bill Clinton is the first black president, and the new nonsense spouted by Young that “Bill is every bit as black as Barack.”, I will give the floor to Kevin Alexander Gray. He made the following comment in a counterpunch article in 2002:

Back in 1998 during the height of the Monica Lewinsky scandal, writer Toni Morrison said, "black skin notwithstanding: this is our first black President" citing his dysfunctional upbringing as commonality with black males. But the joke's an insult. The punchline is that Clinton is decadent and promiscuous, got rhythm, got caught and got over -- so he's black!

In fact, during the 8 years Clinton was in office, the incarceration rates of blacks surpassed the egregious Reagan era. Although Clinton has since attempted to change the past through his actions post-presidency, during his reign he continued to support mandatory minimum sentencing, flawed "3 strikes" laws and did nothing to change the disparity in sentencing between crack and powder cocaine which disproportionately affects African Americans.

These efforts, in turn, put more black men behind bars than ever before creating a new generation of felons courtesy of our defective war on drugs

But that is the dynasty Andy Young wants back in office as long as his palm keeps getting greased.

Fatou Jaw Manneh....Justice delayed...

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Monday, December 10, 2007

So another Judge decided to wash her hands off the abomination that is the trial of Fatou Jaw Manneh. Ever since her arrest and detention and the subsequent proffering of seditious charges against her, three magistrates and now a judge have decided that they don’t want to touch the case with a ten-foot pole. They kept transferring her from one courtroom to another without any adjudication...

If there is a victim in this case besides the accused, it is the rule of law in The Gambia. It makes no sense from a legal standpoint whether the accused is innocent or guilty to keep transferring her case from one magistrate court to another as if they operate in separate sovereign entities. However, it tells us something about the character of the men and women who are entrusted with adjudicating and upholding the rule of law in The Gambia. They are scared of their own shadows due to the authoritarian climate under which they ply their trade. Instead of standing to uphold their oath of impartiality, they keep passing the buck.

Suppose, for the sake of argument that Fatou Jaw is guilty of insulting the president. What harm has it done to the image of the man that is worse than the one he inflicted upon himself with the witch doctor masquerade he has been putting up lately?

Now suppose that she is innocent (I subscribe to this notion). Isn’t it unconscionable to have this damning charge hanging over her head for a year while scared straight judges bounce the case from one another like a ping pong ball?

The Gambian constitution includes a right to a speedy trial. This provision is supposed to keep people from being jerked around by unscrupulous and vindictive prosecutors who cannot prove that they have committed any crime. Prosecutors have to put up or shut up. In this case, unfortunately, it is not only prosecutorial malfeasance, but the bench is acting cowardly as well.

You couldn’t find a better case that fits the old cliché that justice delayed is justice denied.

Et tu Jesse...

2 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Tuesday, November 27, 2007

Two days ago Barack Obama made the following comment in a New Hampshire gym:

-->

Obama, speaking to a racially mixed audience of about 500 people at a local high school, conceded some progress had been made on racial issues -- but not enough.

"On every measure, on income, on health care, on incarceration rates, on the criminal justice system, on housing, on life expectancy, on infant mortality, on almost every single indicator, there is still an enormous gap between black and white," the senator from Illinois said.

Obama said urban areas and minority communities often suffer first when problems spread across the nation. "There's an old saying that when America gets a cold, black America gets pneumonia," he said.

if you are black that comment should assure you that the candidate cares about issues that affect our community. That is until you read an Oped penned by that doyenne of the civil rights movement...Jesse Jackson. Here is the money quote from his Oped in the Chicago Suntimes:

-->

Can Democrats get the votes they need simply because they're not Republicans? You might think so in this presidential campaign. African-American and urban votes are critical to any Democratic victory. Bill Clinton won two terms without winning the most white votes. His margin was the overwhelming support of black voters. George Bush learned that lesson; that's why his campaigns spent so much effort suppressing the black vote in key states like Florida in 2000 and Ohio in 2004. His victory margin was the tally of votes suppressed or uncounted.

Yet the Democratic candidates -- with the exception of John Edwards, who opened his campaign in New Orleans' Ninth Ward and has made addressing poverty central to his campaign -- have virtually ignored the plight of African Americans in this country.

--> Jesse is equating poverty with been African American. That is true if you accept the politically correct assumption that all black people are poor (despite all the demographic evidence to the contrary), but nothing could be further from the truth. Most black folk are not consumed with soul-crushing poverty. Granted there are hundreds of thousands of poor black people, but the scourge of poverty doesn't spare any race in this country.
In fact, the great majority of us (African Americans) are doing alright and quite a few (Jesse included) are doing very well. Most of us have the exact same middle class concerns as everyone else, with the added issue of dealing with racism.

Barack, in the speech I quoted above touched on all the salient issues affecting our people in this united states, but Jesse singled out John Edwards for been the only candidate that care enough. Jesse Jackson and his generation has done a lot for civil rights in this country. They've shed blood, sweat and tears to make America what it is. However Obama is running for president of the United States. He can't afford the “angry black guy” moniker. He is talking about the issues and his record in the Illinois senate is a testament to his commitment to issues affecting black folk in this nation.

The peculiar thing about all of these is that Jackson has already endorse Obama for president. Could this be sour grapes? I dunno... but the notion that Edwards is the only one talking about poverty issues doesn't pass the smell test...all I can say is Et tu Jesse.

Dark Continent...digitally dark

2 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Monday, November 26, 2007

I hate that term: "Dark Continent", but Africa at night do look dark compared to other parts of the world. Click here to see what the other parts of the planet looks like at night. Most of the continent of Africa (except for south Africa) is dark literally.

A serious consequence of this electricity problem is the non-existence of an internet culture in Africa as chronicled in a new United Nations report. Here is the money quote:

“in Africa, ICT has barely taken a foothold. Computer illiteracy and the lack of access to ICT are widely recognized as an increasingly powerful obstacle to the economic, civic, and political development of Africa.” And Africa Recovery notes that in Africa “For most people even making a telephone call is still a remote possibility in an era when most of the world is now communicating almost instantly across cities, regions and the globe using wireless and satellite technologies to send high-speed electronic messages.”

Senegal's Abdoulaye Wade has this to say about the dilemma facing Africa .

“The digital gap brings with it a danger of isolating certain peoples, those in Africa in particular.”

Africans after decades of independence are still lacking behind in all human growth indexes compiled. And what are the leaders doing about it except for the lamentations made by the likes of monsieur Wade. Asia and Africa had comparable economic outlooks at the dawn of their independence. In fact sub Saharan Africa...with it's natural resources was primed for inevitable economic growth while Asia seemed an economic backwater with no promise in the immediate aftermath of colonialism.

Today, the roles have reversed. Sub-Saharan Africa is the economic backwater while Asia is setting the pace for economic development. The four Asian Tigers: Hong Kong , Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan set the pace. Now their bigger cousins in China and India have risen up to the challenge ....putting their ingenuity to the test while some African leaders play witch doctor.

The next generation of African children are been left behind digitally while the kleptomaniacs ruling over them play God. And Africa remain the "dark continent"...figuratively and now digitally.

Peter Who?

1 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Tuesday, September 25, 2007

I was talking to a friend the other day about the firing of Edward Singhateh and the repercussions or lack thereof it could have on the security and long term stability of Yahya's government. My friend was of the opinion that the Singhateh brothers ( Edward and Peter) wouldn't let Yahya humiliate them like he does with the other ministers and functionaries he fires on what seems like a daily basis.

I had a good laugh at this assumption. What my friend failed to understand is that Yahya Jammeh is not a two bit dictator any more, but a full fledge one. He has gradually strengthen his grip on the security infrastructure over the years, with his cronies manning every facet of the elaborate and brutal system. Peter might be second in command in the army, but he has no power...zilch, zero. Yahya has essentially marginalized Edward when he kept demoting him from the vice chairman to defense and then forestry. Let that last point sink in for a minute. From the number two honcho to Forestry and fisheries...Jesus Christ. If Edward has any following in the army, he would have had Yahya by the cojones now. What? with all these stories floating around about how brutal that Edward fellow is...you think he will be taking such a humiliation on the cheek without lashing out? I don't think so.

Now comes the story that Yahya has discharge Peter from the army while he (Peter) is out of the country on a one year training course. Cunning ... wouldn't you say? Fire him while he is caught off from what little following he may have in the army. I won't be surprise if in the next few days some soldiers are rounded up and accuse of a coup. The house cleaning has just begun.

Here is the Gambia Journal's story on the discharge of Peter and the firing of kebba Sanyang...the later was recently moved from justice to works and now he is unemployed:

In a move that surprised few, President Jammeh has relieved Lt. Peter Singhateh, brother of the former Secretary of State for the Forest and Environment Edward Singhateh, of his commanding position in the army also discharged from the Gambian National Army. Peter Singhateh was the Deputy Commander of the Defense Staff. The Gambia Journal has learnt that Peter Singhateh left the country only a week for a-one year training in an unnamed foreign country. ...the Gambiajournal

The GambiaEcho is reporting the same development here

Has Edward been arrested?

1 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Saturday, September 22, 2007

The Gambia Journal citing unconfirmed sources is reporting the arrest and detention of Edward Singhateh:

Another unconfirmed report say the recently dismissed Secretary of State for Forestry and the Environment, Mr. Edward Singhateh has been arrested and detained. The yet to be confirmed report did not say when and why Mr. Singhateh was arrested. He was the only remaining one of the three men who together formed the post-coup military junta that ruled The Gambia between 1994 to 1996...

Edward Singhateh fired?

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Sunday, September 16, 2007

According to Ebrima Sankareh of the Gambia echo, Edward Singhateh has been relieved of his Fisheries ministry and replaced by his permanent secretary Kotu Cham...a career civil servant. Here is a snippet of what he wrote:

According to unassailable sources from State House, the most powerful man in Yahya Jammeh’s government, 39 year old Edward David Singhateh, a callous man masked in a fake image who has killed more Gambians than any other person has been sacked. His Permanent Secretary, Mr. Kotu Cham of Sanchaba Sulay Jobe village is the new Secretary of State for Forestry and the Environment.... Gambia echo

There is no independent confirmation of this story. So take it for what it is ...

Update

The Gambia journal is reporting this development as well. Here is the link.

Cabinet Reshuffle

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Friday, September 14, 2007

The Point newspaper is reporting that Yahya Jammeh is reshuffling his cabinet. This is a developing story ...

The Gambian leader Yahya Jammeh will today, September 14th, name a new cabinet, a report monitored over GRTS yesterday announced. According to the announcement, President Jammeh, acting on relevant provisions of the Gambian Constitution, yesterday effected a cabinet reshuffle. Meanwhile Mr. Kebba Sanyang, who hitherto served as Attorney- General and Secretary of state for Justice, has been reassigned to the Department of State for Works, Construction and Infrastructure as the Secretary of State of that Department. Mrs. Marie Saine Firdaus, Technical Adviser Office of the President, has been appointed as Anthony-General and Secretary of State for Justice. The rest of the Cabinet is expected to be announced today.... The Point

Update:

Omar Faye and Bala Jahumpa are out of the Jammeh cabinet. The former replaced by Mass Axi Gaye and the later by Crispin Grey Johnson. Mr abdoulai Sallah formerly of Health has been brought back to replace Grey Johnson at the Higher education portfolio, while Ousman Jammeh is entrusted with the newly created petroleum ministry. Petroleum hmmm...

All other secretaries of state remain intact. Bala Jahumpa and Omar Faye will be assign diplomatic duties.

Holier than thou

0 comments Posted by ousman ceesay at Friday, August 24, 2007

So professor Ba Banutu Gomez had enough of the US of A. He decided to pack his bags, return back to the Gambia and invest his savings into a business college. Ain't nothing wrong with that if you ask me. What gets under my skin though is the tendency of African intellectuals returning home and all of a sudden converting to the religion of sycophancy to fit in the system. It usually start with subtle statements like this one that Gomez is reported as saying in the point newspaper:

Professor Ba Banutu-Gomez, the proprietor of the newly built Bantu Business College, has called on all Gambians outside The Gambia to stop focusing on politics, and instead focus on developing the country regardless of any political ideology one may have, adding that if the country is the centre of our hearts and thinking, we can work together even though we may have different political ideologies.

The good professor is smart enough to know that is hogwash. If the politics is dictatorial and authoritarian, development ain't gonna happen. But that is not important to him at this moment. He has a plan and an investment, the success of his venture depends on the goodwill of the political masters. So he wouldn't want to do anything to raise their ire. That is smart business for him, but to tell the rest of us to stop focusing on politics is disingenuous on his part as well. Development doesn't happen in a vacuum. Sustainable development needs a stable political environment to incubate and flourish. That is what loud mouths like yours truly yearn for and Mr. Gomez knew this all along. The Gambia no matter how you slice it isn't going to develop with a business college here and there until the political environment change.

Talking of holier than thou, the professor went on to make the following absurd comment:

“I challenge any Gambian, if you care about your own people, your own country, then you should come back and invest in your own country, not only in education but in any form.

Who said you have to go back to a country before you could be counted as caring for and investing in it. I bet most of the students that can afford to pay the tuition to get into his college will have the money sent to them from abroad. If that is not investing in the development of a nation, I will like to take a class from the professor to learn just what people like me need to do save for packing our drawers, boarding a plane to "bilad-a-sudan".

Do we care about our people and country. Sure we do. Without our remittances, that place will be a war zone. The remittances feed, clothe and is responsible for the construction boom which employ thousands of people...get the drift professor?

Good luck with your venture, but save us the sermon.

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