My Curiosity: Understanding the Massembeh Ward, Kiang, Mansakonko; Part 2

Massembeh Ward Candidates Bakary Jarjue and Lamin Jarjue © Standard Newspaper

By Yero Jallow,

Congratulations to the Gambia and her citizens. Diamond jubilee! What have you achieved? Independence is a lovely spirit. In the West, I have not seen governments spending so much money and resources on these celebrations. I have not seen presidents and politicians climbing with their heads out in running vehicles. Last time we checked, The Gambia is a developing country. I accept correction, and I respect those celebrations, though I prefer a quiet place. I think that these resources can be directed to far more important sectors, especially medical, food, energy, and job creation. I leave it at that for another brainstorming exercise, so let us wrap up the Massembeh ward by-elections neatly.

Based on IEC's voter registration records (2021), there were 22,193 registered voters in Mansakonko from 29th May 2021 to 11th July 2021, which is 11.59% of the total registered voters in the Gambia. Countrywide, The Gambia registered more female voters, at 57%. In MansaKonko alone, 58% of registered voters were females. The Massembeh ward is a tiny fraction of the overall Gambia's registered voters. That is one factor to weigh in.

Take a peek:

The Massembeh ward consists of Massembeh, Kolior, Jomar, and Toranka, totalling 1,753 registered voters, which equals 0.18% of Gambia’s total registered voters.

Massembeh: 614 registered voters

Kolior: 520 registered voters

Jomar: 307 registered voters

Toranka: 312 registered voters

(Courtesy, Lamin Darboe) Thank you, Lamin, for the numbers. You answered a part of my curiosity.

Let us look at some of the other realities:

Most of rural Gambia's youth population likes to stay in the Kombos and the Greater Banjul area for job opportunities and the bright and gay life of the city. Many others, mostly young men, left for greener pastures outside The Gambia, if you like to say, “The Back Way.” I don’t like the word itself. The elders are farewelling, leaving some of Gambia's villages very empty and lonely. All of these reasons combined contribute to negative population growth.

On the ground, the politics have been very divisive; I have listened to a great number of those who swamped Kiang for their candidates. I like the citizen participation and fanfare, each stating their views, without fear, arrest, or intimidation. I dislike the empty promises, political tension, and display of power in a way that is arrogant. The question remains: Whose message is resonating more with the voters?

Oftentimes, the disparity is that the necessary loud noise from the Diaspora groups doesn't normally translate to votes in the Gambia. A clear case point was during Jammeh's regime. Despite the efforts of the Diaspora, removing Jammeh was only possible with a coalition. Some of those at home work for the government or have close ties, so their loyalty is normally hidden for fear of reprisal or their survival. The old adage goes, "He/she that feeds you, controls you." In the Diaspora, you can become a keyboard warrior without fearing arrest or prosecution for comments outside civility; you are not censored.

The Gambia's Diaspora are sidelined, they do not vote and are barred from holding certain positions in the Gambia due to their dual citizenship. It is also quite tedious to pay for two trips from the Diaspora all the way to the Gambia: the first trip to register and the second trip to vote. In fact, some of these elections are held at different times. If the necessary changes are not made, the Diaspora will continue to be sidelined in future government positions, and that will demotivate those in for positions. I know many who are motivated by seeing only true democracy; they neither need jobs nor have immediate plans to relocate home, perhaps due to their young families, medical facilities, and a whole lot of other reasons.

I see others criticise the Diaspora, that we only criticise and refuse to go home to take up positions. If the Diaspora refuses to take up positions, then the enablers and political turncoats do not have any issues being recycled from one government and political party to another, and quite honestly, it is working for them—they are getting the jobs and can praise-sing any sitting president. On the Diaspora's refusal to take up jobs, the reason is not far-fetched and simple—no principles, no credibility, and lots of uncertainty, fighting over power and positions. You know it! Additionally, of those who signed up, most of them are now back in the Diaspora; others regretted ever working for the Barrow government, evident from their daily bashing of Barrow at every blink of him. 

Dr. Ba Gomez (Ba-Banutu) once shared at a conference, “Criticise and offer solutions.” For example, there is growing criticism of Barrow from the Diaspora constituency. People want him to wrap up the presidency. This is not so easy. Even one of Gambia’s best political observers, Halifa Sallah, argued that so long as you don’t have term limits in the constitution, you cannot retire Barrow forcefully. There were so many missed opportunities—at the early start of the Barrow government, the issue of diaspora voting, term limits, etc., could have been taken care of the same way the firing of parliamentarians and the age limit for the vice presidency were seated. Some moons ago, when some of us advised that Barrow should wrap it at three years, many others took it personally and argued in favour of the constitution. The honeymoon was on. Now, Barrow has fully grown, tasted the sweetness of power, and mastered the art, and he is yearning for another term. 

The Massembeh ward elections will be on Saturday, February 22, 2025. Why is this election so important? Take a thorough look at 0.18% of Gambia’s voters. It has nothing to do with the number of voters. The contesting political parties want to pass a clear message, in short, to teach the other party a bitter lesson. This will also help keep the fighting spirit alive—that blue energy from the winner goes a long way. 

From every indication, what we had was a “regime change.” Now we must be very careful not to go in for another regime change. What the Gambia needs is a “system change.” The VAR has long since vindicated Halifa; most of his fierce critics, including those who boasted of firing him from the coalition, have long since bitten the dust. What I fear is that some people like to sell us democracy, but in their actions, political hypocrisy looms. There is also this rotten habit of misrepresenting people’s ideas, selective memory, and lack of appreciation. Case in point, the PDOIS folks were sidelined in the coalition government. Think about this!!

Elections have dire consequences; vote wisely, Massembeh!