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| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Momodou |
Posted - 28 Jan 2021 : 14:57:50
NPP Launch And Possible Repercussions On The COVID 19 Pandemic
By D. A. Jawo
Sometimes it looks as if President Adama Barrow either does not listen to his advisers or they are too incompetent to give him the correct advice. We are all witnesses to an obvious surge in coronavirus cases and according to predictions; the pandemic is likely to increase drastically before it begins to slow down. We have, for instance, seen the exponential increase in COVID 19 cases in neighbouring Senegal, and it is quite obvious that it is just a matter of time before anything (good or bad) happening in Senegal arrives in this country. Therefore, every reasonable person would expect President Barrow and his government to be in the forefront of strictly observing the WHO health guidelines as well as all other protocols put in place by the Ministry of Health in order to minimize the surge.
We have constantly been reminded by the ministry that we should strictly follow the guidelines in order to protect ourselves and the rest of society from the pandemic. However, we have all seen the large crowds that President Barrow had been attracting during the recently concluded ‘Meet the People Tour’, with hardly any social distancing or other COVID 19 protocols being observed. Yet, the Minister of Health Dr. Ahmadou Samateh was part of the entourage throughout the tour.
As if the tour was not enough flouting of the COVID 19 protocols, we are told that President Barrow’s National People’s Party (NPP) would be launched on Saturday at the Independence Stadium with plans for much fanfare and according to the ongoing advertisements for the launch, they are expecting 100,000 people to attend. It is also said that a Senegalese music maestro, Waly Seck would be the guest artist. Obviously, under such circumstances, it is nigh impossible to observe the social distancing protocols.
Therefore, all this seems to border on irresponsible behaviour on the part of the Ministry of Health to allow such a forum to go ahead under the present circumstances. Alternatively, do we assume that either the health authorities have failed in their duty to advise President Barrow and his party executive, or their advices have been ignored? Whatever the case however, we seem to be treading on dangerous ground, which can lead to catastrophe for our fragile health system.
Recently for instance, we have heard the ministry issue a statement lamenting the failure of certain people who have been tested positive of COVID 19, as well as others who arrived in this country from hot-spot countries to respect the isolation protocols. Therefore, with such irresponsible behavior from members of the government, it would be quite hard to enforce the COVID 19 protocols on ordinary members of the society.
Indeed, by insisting on going ahead with the launching of the NPP in the middle of the pandemic, inviting the whole country to the event, President Barrow is certainly making it extremely hard for the Ministry of Health to henceforth have the moral fibre to enforce the COVID 19 protocols on the other political actors and the rest of the society. It therefore means that President Barrow and his NPP are not helping to empower the Ministry of Health to enforce the COVID 19 protocols. We are definitely not in the era of ‘Do as I say and not as I do”. We expect our leaders to be more disciplined so that they can become our role models and we do not therefore expect any irresponsible behavior from them.
Source: FB |
| 3 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| toubab1020 |
Posted - 01 Feb 2021 : 12:51:50
https://standard.gm/npp-is-out-to-sustain-the-2016-change-barrow0/
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By Omar Bah on February 1, 2021
President Adama Barrow on Saturday said the formation of his National People’s Party (NPP) is the outcome of the commitment to sustain the change of 2016 and the public outcry for freedom, justice, peace, progress, and dignity, as well as fundamental rights and liberties.
Addressing tens of thousands of supporters at the party’s inauguration Saturday, the president who was welcomed and escorted by an enthusiastic crowd from Denton Bridge to the Independence Stadium further stated that the NPP represents the present and the future, and that it is here for all Gambian citizens within the framework of a new political consciousness and direction.
“Be assured that this is a party devoted to creating, expanding and sustaining space for popular participation in development as politically mature, democratic, patriotic and economically independent citizens,” he said, adding that it is also the party for all categories of people, based on the concept of true democratic and patriotic Gambian citizenship.
In what was a show of strength, President Barrow punched the air and told the teeming crowd that he accepted to form the party, ‘together with all of you to provide a platform for us to collectively fight the social divisions, political cracks and institutional failures that have persistently undermined the peace, stability, progress and development of our dear motherland.”
To guide the party, he went on, a comprehensive manifesto has been developed which is now available, adding that that document is the result of an in-depth search for options and possibilities that meaningful change can bring about in the country. “In it, we offer alternatives to rescue the Gambian citizens whose talent and potential have either been wasted, untapped or ruthlessly exploited for decades. We also offer a governance construct that is truly rooted in uprightness, sincerity and accountability, complemented by the drive to promote and sustain equitable and efficient service delivery and justice for all. We bring a new and vigorous infusion of vision, talent and leadership that boldly maintains that our democracy must be re-energised to broaden and secure the scope and grounds on which our people can make informed choices and live decent lives,” the President said.
The Gambian leader said the NPP’s vision is to build “a nation we can be proud to call home and this is derived from the desire for positive, transformative change that will result in an all-inclusive, all-progressive and an accomplished society of happy, peaceful, dignified and united people who are proud to call The Gambia home.”
“We denounce and reject all forms of dictatorship and degrading treatment of human beings or communities. We believe that all are equal before the law, and all human beings have the same fundamental rights to life and good living,” the President said.
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| toubab1020 |
Posted - 29 Jan 2021 : 18:02:00
Editorial – Of The Government And Its Spree Of Super Spreader Events…
EditorialCOVID-19
By Frederic Tendeng Last updated Jan 29, 2021 55
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https://www.chronicle.gm/editorial-of-the-government-and-its-spree-of-careless-super-spreader-events/
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Apparently, just a few people in The Gambia seem now to worry about the surge in contamination of the Coronavirus. From all indications, both President Adama Barrow and the Chief Justice, Hassan Jallow, will go ahead with the Sunday planned gathering marking the official “Opening of the legal year” 2021, at the courtyard complex in Banjul. Willfully ignoring the danger posed by the risk of contaminating people attending the Sunday event is reckless and uncalled for.
Of recent, the signs and the message transmitted to citizens of this country by the Executive, especially the President and his ministers, is appalling. The President, the Attorney General, cabinet ministers, the Judiciary, the Bar and other dignitaries are expected to grace this event, with over 300 people expected to attend. Some of these attendees would have already been in an early super spreader mass gathering a day before, with the President’s National Peoples’ Party launching Saturday, at the Independence Stadium in Bakau.
While the deadly virus is in the air, threatening lives and indiscriminately spreading illness and death, the government continues to organize super propagator political events. These dangerous gatherings are disguised as laying foundation stones, meetings in the Yahya Jammeh inherited tent of the Banjul State House or rallies shelled in a “Meet the people’s tour“.
Risking the lives of Gambians in a quest to raking electoral votes is the worst form of deception a careless leadership can lead this country to. Leadership is not the display of a flashy lifestyle in the shelter of the cozy nest of power. Shifting the risk assumptions on attendees of these perilous events that the President and his government continue to organize, is a crime.
Clearly, there is an increasing number of Covid19 cases in the country. From the very warnings of the Ministry of Health, the rapidly contagious new variant of the Coronavirus is already here, in The Gambia. Meanwhile, the early form of the virus continues to gain territory as clearly established in the very graphs of the Ministry of Health, below.
Gambia government’s Covid19 official dasbord as of 26th January 2021
Arguing that the attendees engage their personal responsibility is a mockery. Equally, the government’s laissez-faire attitude in letting super spreader events be organized by everyone to escape criticism from political opponents of the ruling regime is immoral.
Even the Gambia Red Cross Society has temporarily suspended its participation in large public gatherings. Therefore, what is so important about holding an official Opening of the legal year to risk the lives of Gambians? The Chief Justice as the third in line, an erudite jurist of international repute, is expected to know better. What about the Bar, the Judges? We really expect people in these bodies to lead by example and not jump on the bandwagon like the career politicians.
By the powers vested on him, since the outbreak of the pandemic in The Gambia, the Minister of Health can restrict or prohibit mass gatherings of persons subject to any exceptions. Yet, his ministry seems to be looking elsewhere, as if everything is alright. The Covid19 expert committee has suddenly turned mute. Yes, citizens cannot be absolved in that everyone must adopt some attitude of responsibility and protect each other. But this obligation begins with the leadership of the country and the people in the Public sphere.
The crude truth is that until this government takes its responsibility, nothing will be alright to the great joy of the Coronavirus. Neither the reactionary and irrelevant press releases from the government, nor the political rat race towards December presidential election can make the situation look otherwise. For once, be patriotic and demonstrate some love to the Gambia and its people.
Adama Barrow
Chief Justice
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| toubab1020 |
Posted - 28 Jan 2021 : 17:43:00
Only one word for this Launch of NPP.if the article is accurate.
UNBELIEVABLE.
https://standard.gm/govt-shelves-planned-banning-of-festivals0/ |
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