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Momodou
Denmark
11835 Posts |
 Posted - 09 Oct 2006 : 17:20:31
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NADD Flag bearer on the Election
Below we publish the first part of the statement issued by the NADD Flag bearer on the recently concluded Presidential election.
This is the beginning of the end of an era in Gambian politics. The Gambia is now at a cross road between the past and the future. The past can never be restored and the present can never be sustained. The future must come. This is why clarity is necessary to shape a new way forward for the country. This is inconceivable without putting the election results in their proper perspective.
First and foremost, it is important to point out that an election is not a wrestling march where one has the victor and the vanquished.
Executive office in a democratic society is a position of public trust. Election to the position of Chief Executive of a nation carries the duty of being the guardian of the liberty and prosperity of our people. Honour is due to those who enlarge the liberties and enchance the prosperity of the people in exercising executive authority. Hence those who find themselves in a position of public trust have a duty to prove that they deserve being entrusted with the task of charting the destiny of a people. Those who have not been elected should live exemplary lives to prove that they deserve being considered for election to such high level of office. They should keep the person in office on his/her toes by being a force of example in words and deeds regarding what they would have said and done if they were elected. This is the demand of democracy which should be addressed at all times and circumstances if there is to be a legitimate government and opposition in a country.
Now, I will address the question that is often asked regarding my reaction to the election results.
Those who have a clear-sighted appreciation of the events preceding the September 2006 polls would agree with me that I was an unwilling candidate who procrastinated up to the end because of my conviction that under a NADD umbrella a united opposition had the opportunity to kick start a new Republic founded on the fullest expression of the sovereign power of the people, fullest respect for their fundamental rights and freedoms, fullest display in accountability and transparency in public office, unalloyed display of Republican and democratic values to override monarchical and autocratic features in governance and unparalled humbling of the office of the presidency. Consequently, up to the eleventh hour I refused to take a picture to put in my ballot box for the election in anticipation that a democratic united front would be created so that only one opposition candidate would contest the elections. These aspirations did not materialize. The demise of the prospects of a democratic united front which binds all opposition parties to a minimum programme of establishing a democratic foundation and an accountable auditing system that would put in place a viable fiscal, financial and macro economic base and thus give Gambia a new start in the 21st century forced me to rethink.
President Jammeh strongly believes that he has given Gambians a new start. I cling to the NADD agenda because of my strong conviction that the new start NADD would have given Gambia in terms of liberty and prosperity would have been far superior to what he could have ever imagined.
Left with no option but to stay aloof and be guilty of indecision to betray or plunge into a sea of uncertainty and risk exercise in futility, I chose the safer option of using my nationwide tour as a presidential candidate as a gauge to determine the viability of my candidature. The response was electrifying. It confirmed all the more that NADD possesed the potential that all National Democratic Movements are endowed with to ensure their success, that is, the power of ideas and the power of mass support. Eyes and ears glued to TV or radio and the NADD message was received with a comprehension and passion that were rear in Gambian politics. The omnipotence of the force of logic in NADD’s message gave it authority and clout all over the country. As the masses received NADD with ecstasy irrespective of tribal or regional distinctions, it became increasingly difficult to predict the outcome of the election.
See next issue for the second part of the statement.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 86/2006, 6-8 October, 2006
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