Bishop Manga Calls on Political and Community Leaders to Tone Down Unhealthy and Distateful Rhetoric
By Yusef Taylor, @FlexDan_YT
During his 2025 New Year Speech and 2024 Christmas Speech, Bishop Bannie E.F. Manga of the Methodist Church of The Gambia, who doubles as the Chair of The Gambia Christian Council, highlighted his concerns that “the rhetoric emanating from our political and community leaders is unhealthy” and “distasteful”.
He called for the “sustainability of our peace” and that “recent rhetoric by our esteemed religious and political leaders needs to be toned down and revisited”. He re-echoed his 2024 Christmas message, which highlighted that “peace is the absence of conflicts. It is not necessarily the absence of differences and temporary misunderstandings among people”.
“When love is the bond uniting us, peace will be built up step by step, negative encounters and confrontations will disappear, and relationships will become more transparent,” he noted.
According to the Bishop, he stands “very much afraid that the rhetorics emanating from our political and community leaders are unhealthy and distasteful. We are not seeking to develop a United family called The Gambia, but it is so obvious that we are grooming a society that will be divided by selfish and unpatriotic tendencies that will destroy our sustained heritage as Gambians”.
Similarly, during his 2024 Christmas message, he noted that “this heritage, which is celebrated on Christmas in the various family traditions, celebrations, and community engagements, must be preserved and strengthened for the benefit of our children”.
He urged Gambians to love one another and quoted 1 John chapter 4 verses 7 and 8 from the Bible, which notes, "Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."
