At the end of the Courtroom drama; we are  farther from the truth now, as we were nearly five years ago

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By Mathew K Jallow, Associate Editor

The courtroom dramatics is what soap operas are made of. The fireworks were not unlike any July 4 Celebration of the American Revolution. Not quite; but this came close to a Perry Mason courtroom drama. There was intrigue, there was mystery, there was murder and there was suspense. But, this was not fiction carved out of an Agatha Christie novel. It is real. The lawyer versus the General; caught up in an unprecedented show of lawyers' logical thinking on one side, and a soldier's bravado on the other. In the end, there was no winner, but the theatrics raised more question than provided answers. The interrogation of the General for such an extended period of time, made it seem like Lang Tombong Tamba was being tried for the murder, or at the least, the disappearance of former intelligence Chief, Daba Marenah and Co. Now, four years after the disappearances of Daba Marenah, Alieu Ceesay, Alpha Bah, Manlafi Corr and Ebou Lowe; all of them former members of the military and security forces, their strange and bizarre disappearance story has come back to center-stage once again. And now, Richard Chenge, the state’s prosecutor, seems to be laying this hot heap of dirt and filth right on the lap of General Lang Tombong Tamba. But, General Tamba will have no part of this hot potato. The question now is; how much success will the state prosecutor have in tying together the disappearances of Daba Marenah and Co. to the General and his alleged co-conspirators' current treason trial? One thing is clear though, the General's trial and denial of involvement in Marenah and Co's disappearance has generated a renewed interest in the disappearances, five years after the five were reported on national television to have escaped from the state's lawful custody as they were being transported under tight security, to another prison in a remote part of the country. However, given the regime’s history of lies and distortions, no one in the country believed the regime’s account of the story. The question many Gambians are asking now is: Was the state prosecutor aware of the state’s publicized and televised information five years ago? Why did he choose to bring up this issue again after the state had essentially closed its book on the disappearances five years ago? What message was Jammeh trying to send to the public through the state prosecutor? But, more importantly, where are the five missing Gambians and what happened to them? And what does prosecutor Richard Chenge know that we don’t know? Could General Lang Tombong Tamba, as head of the military, be unaware of the circumstances surrounding the disappearance of these young Gambians? If any thing, it has become so clear that the regime lied five years ago when it announced the escape of Daba Marena and Co., from state custody. And, now this unbelievable story is coming to a head in a courtroom drama that pitted the General against the State Prosecutor in legal rhetorical flourish and determined denial. At the end of the courtroom tug of war, however, we are farther from knowing the truth now, as we were on that fateful day nearly five years ago, when Yahya Jammeh’s regime announced on the national television that Daba Marenah, Alieu Ceesay, Alpha Bah, Manlafi Corr and Ebou Lowe had escaped from custody. Clearly, the courtroom drama has left Gambians more puzzled about the whereabouts of the five missing Gambians, but somewhere between what the state prosecutor knows, and what the General is telling, lies the real truth. Like so much more, there is a lot still to be brought to light about the murderous reign of terror of the Jammeh regime, and this case only opens the doors to what will eventually happen after Jammeh is finally gone; people will talk, either willingly or be compelled to do so. Only then will the full picture and the extent of this regime’s murderous spree and brutality come to light to Gambians and the world.