Who Mandated Captain Sana B. Sabally?

By Omar Saidy-Khan, Louisville Kentucky

"Sana Sabally came and was determined to end it all". I wonder who gave Sabally that mandate? How would any body know? This self-adulating, seemingly religious zealot who has been portraying nothing but criminal arrogance has again enamored Mathew. The idea that peoples' gripe with Sana Sabally's tribute to Hydara can be excused by the acts of irresponsible driving shows the bankruptcy and the tenuous stretch Mathew has been habitually engaged in. These fruitless efforts to cleanse Sana's reputation and abhorrent act of treason will not succeed. Sana and the rest of his fellow traitors have committed a very serious crime against the state and will be held responsible for the crimes, no fudging of the issue will save them. They had no authority, or mandate and no legitimate reasons for overthrowing a constitutionally installed government. Their own selfish desire for power, greed and arrogance, not any patriotic motivation, could have driven them, as Mathew and some of their supporters would like for us to believe. Mathew, your detractors have won me over, after re-reading several of your recent articles. You have over and over pointed out the contribution of many a Mandinka, Jola, and Suruwa to the terrible corruption that ensued during the pre-coup govt. You have yet to mention a single Fula involved in anything. Is this coincidence or have all my Fula kinsfolk been clean as a whistle? Throughout our on-going debate, not once have you noted or assessed a single blame to any Fula, which tribally I am a part. You have however, mounted this foolish indefensible stance for Sana, a criminal, for the obvious reasons of kinship and nothing else. This effort of mine is to give you the opportunity to provide empirical evidence to dispel the apparent biases you may not have noticed so far. Here is a starter for you, when FFHC was set up who did Buba Baldeh staff the entire campaign with. Mainly our tribesmen including you. Again Buba upon being appointed Minister went about replacing persons of other tribes with Fulas, a good example was A. A.  Njie a renown veteran educator and politician was summarily fired to be replaced by Ousman Jallow (OJ), who at the time had no clue as to what his job required or entailed. His only qualification was he was a Fula and from Basse. It was an open secret that the Commercial Bank under Ousainou Njie was open to M. C. Cham and Friends of Ousainou. It was during this time that M. C. had the Bus Stop shops after being fired as a Minister. Can you tell me if these loans have been paid yet? I can name you twice the number of Fulas who were more responsible for economic carnage at the Co-ops.Starting with the two Jallows, MM and MBO were both Fulas and not one of the subsequent MDs Or Sec MGR was Mandinka.Yet in your false list of Mandinkas appointed due to nepotism you failed to name any body who is a Fula. I know Kawsu Darbo, because he is my first cousin and can assure you, and his present disposition will confirm, went to sixth form before proceeding to further studies abroad to be an Insurance Executive. Today he heads one of the most successful insurance companies in the country. I believe you will admire Kawsu if you really like to know him without any prejudice. He might not be handsome or popular, he is however an honest quiet man of purpose and drive, that has him handsomely rewarded with the trust of his employer and family as a whole. Mathew your libation in extreme self delusion into believing "one thing I know for SURE-we await your evidence-if Sana Sabally was still in Govt., there is no way, that Yahya Jammeh could get away with such atrocious reign of terror over our people.” I have yet to read anything that supports that prediction from any body but you. Only Yerro Jallow your compatriot suggested any sympathy for Sabally's efforts to rehab his image and reputation of a wild cannon. I bet Mathew will fail because it is unprincipled and nakedly contradictory for any one with a single bone of liberty, the Rule of Law and any desire to grow democracy to condone the actions and concomitant evil that resulted in the damages that has happened. Even the mere semblance of support for Sabally is unacceptable in any public discussion about The Gambia. Condemnation to the highest degree should be our only recourse. He has chosen to cause harm and brought death and torture on the innocent who may have died in his pursuit of power. They are a group of cowardly young men who deserve our violent revulsion and condemnation not understanding. I refuse to understand their motivations and reserve my right to forgive evil and insincere ranting of madness. Mathew either you subscribe to the idea that Gambians have a right to elect their own Gov’t and condemn to fullest Sabally's actions in1994 or support a dictatorship. They are cowardly men, if one can call them men, who subject a peaceful people to terror and mayhem. Illegally seizing guns to intimidate civilians is the height of terror that has to be unconditionally condemned, and any one who engages in such should draw condemnation from all segment of our society. However they may have behaved later is of no import to me. Their initial act of treason is contemptible enough to banish them form us, both physically and socially. All those involved are condemned as far as I am concerned. Mandinkas, Fulas, Wollofs, Jolas who have taken any action in committance of this heinous deed must answer for their crimes and deep wound it has inflicted on the Gambia. Sana Sabally was not an innocent by-stander; he was an architect of the whole crime. He deserves condemnation not lionization of any type. To lionize him is simply sycophancy plain and simple. Forgiveness is our prerogative, as the injured. Sabally the criminal has to repent then we will think about forgiving him. Mathew, your attempts to mitigate or rationalize Sabally’s actions are another stab of the same wound all over again. This will only harden unwillingness to pardon and bring back an erstwhile but prodigal member of the family. Mathew, I hate to compare your mendaciousness to that of Bubacarr Sankanu. However, your mendacity is identical in nature. You both strive to be provocative to achieve notoriety not an adult and fruitful debate. Your postings are mendacious, except in the case of Sankanu he cherishes and fantasizes too much the idea that we are paying any attention to his drivel. When you are found floundering in your own ironies you move the post. You must wonder why your articles draw such virulent responses. I can assure you their mendacity and blatant bias is a starting place of your self-examination. Your vicious attacks and accusations against honorable men and convenient avoidance to point out the obvious has not helped. You must realize that The Gambia is a small place and nothing remains hidden for long. Any journalist treasures the reliability of what you write. Adopting an attitude of reckless abound will kill you. When you bemoan Sana Sabally’s' short nine years in prison where do you put the plight of the dead, tortured and displaced Gambians who for no fault of theirs are subjected to the virtual and real prison that the Gambia has become, because of Sana's treasonous activity. This is both cruel and intellectually dishonest, if we accept your rightful indignation about the prevailing dictatorship. Do you not realize that he authored this script and the saying, “you made your bed so sleep in it is fitting here’? I wish he were in prison with the rest of them. Mathew, get your head out of the sand. You cannot redeem the terrible reputation of any member of the 1994 coupists including the acts and alleged crimes of your hero Sana Sabally.Your defense and the rationale you purport to makes no sense at all. Can we conclude that a forthright condemnation would have happened if he were not a Fula? Please prove me wrong, because I honestly believe you have failed to think this through without prejudice.