GMC offers ‘standing ovation’ to President Jammeh
The party leader of Gambia Moral Congress (GMC), Mai Ahmad Fatty, has commended President Yahya Jammeh for his “solemn executive pronouncement” forgiving Gambians abroad who might have wronged him and for proposing reconciliation outreach to them, saying they are all Gambians who are free to return home and participate in the national construction and socio-economic development taking place in The Gambia.
In a press release sent yesterday to The Point, GMC party leader Mai Fatty stated: “GMC welcomes the President’s proposed reconciliation outreach to Gambians in the Diaspora contained in his recent interview with the DG of GRTS, Mr Kebba Dibba.
This initiative is in consonance with our previous calls for national reconciliation and political dialogue involving all political stakeholders, both at home and in the Diaspora.
Therefore, GMC strongly supports this gesture and further praises President Jammeh’s political courage and goodwill in effectively engaging those he may have considered his arch political adversaries.
A hallmark of pragmatic leadership is the capacity to harness and work with all shades of divergent opinions, with the ability to objectively dissociate issues from personality.
Reconciliation must not be an end in itself. It should aim at serving the overriding national interests. It should not be symbolic or paternalistic. It should not be a trap to horde, traffic perceived opponents back to the country or a ploy to attract and assemble a significant community of non-conformist diasporans within the country, to neutralize or obliterate them using pre-planned judicial processes against them or systematic heavy-handed law enforcement persecution.
Like most Gambians, GMC is encouraged in assuming the President’s sincerity by virtue of the strong moral and spiritual justification or rationale provided by himself.
Rightly, we too subscribe to the President’s understanding of the Holy Quran that to aspire for Allah’s forgiveness, a good Muslim and a good Muslim leader like him should contain the capacity to forgive.
It is now imperative that the President’s strong moral and spiritual relevance that guided his deliberate pronouncement, be solidified into an effective political policy framework, the implementation of which would in practice be reflected not only in governance but openly and verifiably applied by the entire government machinery.
Sincerity, which was publicly assured by President Jammeh to the hearing and sight of his fellow Muslim citizenry, requires it’s unconditionally as an imperative Islamic component. That is why the President publicly appointed the Supreme Islamic Council the national mediating role.
In implementing this highly unexpected conduct, GMC offers a standing ovation to President Jammeh.
Beyond reconciliation efforts extended specifically to the Diaspora, it is imperative for national political dialogue to take place on issues such as the electoral reforms, amnesty to political detainees and prisoners, rule of law discrepancies, etc.
GMC encourages the government to take a positive, bold new initiative on these issues. We undertake to support and complement government’s efforts on these matters as a responsible national opposition. This is because it falls within our stated competence of supporting and working with the government on areas of common moral or policy convergence such as these.
Our constitutional role as a government-in-waiting is not simply to oppose every government policy, action or conduct for the sake being an opposition. Rather it is proper and mandatory to accord national interests pre-eminently, to openly support government when national interest demands, and to offer concrete divergence when in our estimation such interests equally require.
When a serious leader seizes the rare opportunity making a solemn pronouncement on the occasion of a national milestone, it is taken seriously by all citizens and the world at large. A serious leader does not make frivolous statements or utterances he has no intention of honouring. That is not only unIslamic or satanic but outright treacherous and unpatriotic.
All Gambians both at home and abroad and the international community GMC look forward to the rapid, full unconditional translation of the solemn Executive pronouncement from mere words to verifiable concrete action.”
Source: Picture: Mai Ahmad Fatty, GMC
Source: The Point
Ends
This is the most naive political statement I have ever heard . So mai fatty, it means you and every Gambians who disagreed with dictator Jammeh, have wronged him and should seek forgiveness. What a disgrace? Jammeh should rather seek forgiveness from gambians whose families he killed , disappeared , forced exiled , tortured , inprisoned , and above all the whole country for his despotic and evil rule . So you subscribed to the misleading belief that Jammeh is good Muslim who care about Gambians. It is naive to think and act the same way as jammeh in using religion as justification for his recent outburst which is full of threat. The Video which every one watched has no indication of reconciliation but it was full of threat , and self righteousness. Clearly mr fatty, you are really desperate to have reconcilation with jammeh but you need to be careful because jammeh is unpredictable and cannot be trusted. Political naivety is the result of why jammeh is still in power. You are quick to endorse and praise him without critical analysis of his pronouncement . How about the ten people who he indicated that he won’t forgive , you don’t care about those people ? Your endorsement is even more dangerous than Jammeh’s outburst because it give legitimacy to Jammeh’s statement. What policy did Jammeh put In place before this outburst ? The answer is none. Did he mention any policy after this outburst for you to quickly endorsed him? The answer is none . Over the years, Jammeh knew that you are all bunch of cowards who hide behind the name of opposition without any principles to fight what you claimed to believe. How many false promises did Jammeh make over the years? A real opposition are on the ground who are ready to sacrifice their life and they do not quickly endorse any outburst from Jammeh but they ask relevant questions and critically examine the situation. These are the men of substance who have principles and a cause to fight, not just cheap political popularity.
We are no kids for Mai to play with our intelligence. We know very well that recently Mai made few visits to Ghana and president Mahama of Ghana his God Father must have convince him to play the peace ball for some reason, therefore this 180° turnabout is the least what we expect of him. Gambians should by now do a proper research on who John Mahama really is. Make the connections between Jammeh, Chambers and Mahama and see if anything ticks between the four including Mai. Who knows if Mai was promised the presidency against a general amnesty for Jammeh? Mahama being the current sitting president for ECOWAS, whiles we know that this institution refused to recognize the 2011 presidential elections in the Gambia speaks volumes. We also know that Jammeh is looking for an EXIT strategy, we know for a fact that he has been seriously warned to consider handing over the presidency preferably in March 2016 in an orderly manner in other to benefit from some king protection from the International community. Jammeh is on very tight corner and Mai Fatty the new cavalier in the hood is an acceptable option for him. The Blaise Compaore syndrome is being dangled on JK’s head by the International community as a serious warning for Jammeh to take heed.
Sure enough Mai Fatty is on a mission and a deal. Let him clear the air.