By Ebrima G. Sankareh Editor -in- Chief
United Nations’ Resident Representative to the mini-West African state of the The Gambia, Zimbabwean born Fadzai Gwaradzimba has been declared persona non grata (PNG) and urged to leave Banjul within 24hours.This latest twist comes at the heels of high profile resignations at the National Aids Secretariat (NAS) where two top officials Mr. Saihou Ceesay it’s Director and Ms. Aisah Baldeh, the Sectariat’s Global Fund Administrator quit following what many had suspected, their tenacity to defy President Jammeh’s unbridled arrogance that he can cure AIDS willy-nilly. However, under Jammeh’s Gambia, it is more probable than otherwise, that the duo may have just silently protested and call it quits for their own security. In whatever circumstance they may have resigned, Gambians and all should hail their move as a tacit disapproval of the way things are going on since the President’s announcement that he has clues to the key.
Genesis of The Trouble
Reporting on Jammeh's treatment sessions earlier this week, Britain's Sky News in a strongly worded lead by its Africa Correspondent Emma Hurd captioned “President Aids Cure: Real or Hoax” quoted the UNDP chief as saying that claims of cures for AIDS could encourage sufferers of the disease to engage in risky behaviour and potentially, worsen Africa’s AIDS nightmare. The UNDP Resident Representative’s comments were precursors to an eye-catching line purportedly from the United Nations that read: “UN has warned of the dangerous consequences of President Jammeh’s curative gifts”. Jammeh has dismissed the skepticism and insists the cure works.
To day, in a front page lead captioned “News Flash”, The pro-government Daily Observer in very vindictive verbiage observed: “The UNDP Resident Rep, Fatou Zimba, has been given her marching orders because of her irresponsible comments”. “In fact since her arrival in this country” argues the Observer, “she has done nothing and has achieved nothing, unlike her predecessors. We wish her a speedy departure.” This scathing observation by the paper is a sequel to its February 21 editorial where in plain metaphorical exaggeration it ranted interalia: “The statement by Fadzai Gwaradzimba, the UNDP co-ordinator in the Gambia, quoted by Emma Hurd, is irresponsible and most unexpected from a UNDP resident representative as her statement is not based on any perceived sexual behaviour pattern by people of this country. In fact her statement is not only absurd but infantile, as it assumes that once the cure for aids has been found, there would be increased promiscuity. This is poor reasoning.”
Therefore, like the scourge of AIDS itself, any perceived threat- real or imagined, to Jammeh’s curative powers is likely to be dealt a devastating blow. Remember the two Daily Observer journalists who were sacked and then reinstated only after Fisheries Minister Yankuba Touray brought in rapprochement between the duo and the temperamental administration for a crime that Prosecutors with the help of linguists may call “evidence of gross syntactic misconstruction.” The journalists as it was later alleged were reprimanded for alluding comments that were supposedly from the AIDS patients to the all too powerful Head of State. In sum, instead of “according to the patients” the duo reported “according to HE.”
This then is the result of trying to deny President Jammeh’s curative prowess. So far two journalists, two officials and one UN diplomat have paid a prize. If you add Sky’s Emma Hurd as a potential candidate to be declared PNG, then six souls thus far.