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Screensize: 640 x 480 800 x 600 1024 x 768 1280 x 1024 UserName: Password: Format Mode: Basic  Help  Prompt  Format: Videos: Font Andale Mono Arial Arial Black Book Antiqua Century Gothic Comic Sans MS Courier New Georgia Impact Lucida Console Script MT Bold Stencil Tahoma Times New Roman Trebuchet MS Verdana   Size 1 2 3 4 5 6   Color Black Red Yellow Pink Green Orange Purple Blue Beige Brown Teal Navy Maroon LimeGreen Message: * HTML is OFF * Forum Code is ON Smilies [quote][i]Originally posted by Momodou[/i] [br]IN OUR RENDITION OF HISTORY, WE SOMETIMES ARE CAPTURED BY THE TRIGGER RATHER THAN THE ANTECENT: THE CASE OF BUKARY NYAADU AND FABALA CAMRA IN KUNTING’S SHOWDOWN WITH LAMENG WALLY, THE FAALIFO OF THE KING OF KAATABA By Dembo Fatty First things first. The Mandinka title Faalifo is rarely used these days but what it simply means is a representative of the king. These men were appointed to represent the king across the length and breadth of kingdoms. They are the scouts for trouble and secretly report back to power. In addition, the Faalifo also collects taxes and enforces orders as issued by the king and have powers of arrests and in extreme cases, can adjucate on behalf of the king especially if one is close knit and kin of the king. In this theatre of war, the Faalifo of Lower Niani on its south-eastern part was one Lameng Wally who was said to be the nephew of the King, resident at Kataba at the time. Lameng Wally did make a name for himself as an enforcer of policy and directives. In the case of Niani, specifically Lower Niani, the seat of power was initially Pallang and later Kaataba and it’s between these two settlements that the seat of power rotates. Pallang today has lost its former glory located a few miles from Wassu. With the advent of colonialism, the seat of power would move to Nyanga Bantang most probably beginning with the Chieftaincy of Ngari Sabally. It must be noted that Lower Niani was ruled by the Sabally family who were originally of Camara origins; a story quite tedious to elaborate here. But the Sabally are generally believed to have descended from Jenung Camara, a Camara prince who fell in the river and was swept away by the waves only to found on the banks of the river after many days of search. That spot is today called Jenung Tenda where some resort life is today trudging to survive. Sabally is said to be from two mandinka words: Saa amd Bali; the former meaning death and bali meaning not. So Sabally means the one who does not die because the people were surprised to see him alive after what was thought to be a drowning incident. So the prince became known as Sabally. There is a lake in Niani called Koli Bolong where an annual fishing event is conducted called KOMO in Mandinka. It was the tradition that the big catch (FANTANG, SU YEW) goes to the king and his entourage when his subjects gather to fish. In a particular year, and I am deliberately estimating it to be between 1860 and 1862 for an obvious reason because the leader in Kunting called Hafoday Jawla died in the later part of 1863 most likely in December who led the attack on Lameng Wally. ENTER BUKARY NYADU, THE INSTIGATOR Between 1860 and 1863, the people gathered once gain to fish at Koli Bolong but that year was different. One of the king’s subjects named Bukary Nyaadu refused to give his bet catch to the King’s entourage and that he would instead give it to his patrons, the Jawla in Kunting. A crisis erupted but for the quick thinking of Lameng Wally, he decided to let go. In his defence of this decision was that history will not be kind to him that the King of Niani went to war because of food. One thing I know about the people of Niani is that in matters of food, they would die of hunger than show the slightest sign of being hungry especially outside of their compound. Ask a Nianinka if he wanted to eat, you sure be answered in the negative despite. Secondly, a Nianinka, can never finish the food you dish out to him even if they are not full. They must always leave some in the bowl. Trust me, it is still practiced to this day. And so when lameng Wally decided to call off a potential siege on Kunting, he had always been looking for an opportunity to attack Kunting as he still harboured how Bukary Nadu treated him. An opportunity will lay bare, when Bokarr Sada entered Niani and the people gathered to go to war. The location of the battle was to be Kusalang which settlement I believe is still in existence. ENTER FABALA CAMARA, A FINA (RELIGIOUS POET) A Fina is a title given to a religious poet who composed poems in honour of Islamic leaders. The Fina is the opposite of the Jali. The former attend to the religious clerics whilst the latter to the secular authorities. Just as in the time of Sundiata when the fighting force of the Mande speaking gathered ate Sibi under the direction of Kamanjang Camara, so did the people of Niani gathered to prepare their war plans at a placed called NYONGKOTO FARA. This was a rice field. Fabala Camara too prepared to go war against Bokarr Sada and as he was about to leave, he decided to visit his would be wife to say his goodbye only enter into an altercation with some and he slashed the guy on the back and cut off his ears. Upon hearing this, Lameng Wally, who all along was looking for the opportunity to Kunting now had good reason to wage an attack. He organised his troops and surrounded Kunting and demanded that Fabala Camara be handed over to him which the people refused. After days of stalemate, Fabala begged his people to allow him surrender to lameng Wally knowing fully well he was going to be beheaded. After several pleadings, Fabala was let go. History would have it that Fabala was beheaded and his head brought to kunting as a warning to the rest. Hafoday Jawla sometimes called Hafoday Baa, was not happy and decided to take revenge for the death of Fabala because he believed he died not because of the fight but for the actions of Bukary Nyaadu who defended the Jawla family, Here is where we have some differences in accounts. Whilst many believed that it was a large force of troops that went to attack LamengWally, written accounts show that Hafoday in fact went with a handful of men under the guise of darkness and raked havoc on the residents. Below is an account in a colonial correspondence: “Ha Fodi with a few followers went to the town of Lamin……… and secreted themselves outside the wall. When everything was quiet in Lamin and the inhabitants had retired to rest for the night, these men constructed a temporary ladder for the occasion, scaled the wall and made for the house of the Chief Walli. They then murdered him in a most brutal manner. One of his wives, happening to be present, threw herself on the body so as to prevent their cutting him to pieces. The child that was on her back was beheaded. His two brothers and another follower shared the same fate. His wives carried off. The town pillaged and burned” What is obvious here is that there were two attacks organised by the people of Kunting. The first was against Lameng Wally lead by Hafoday Jawla with a handful of men and even managed to destroy Lamin Koto as it appears Lameng Wally was resident at a place called Lamin and Lamin Koto is the only settlement that bears an exact name to this day. Secondly, the larger war against Kataba (the King) was organised by a wide spectrum of the people of Niani involving many settlements. That siege of Kataba was in 1863, during which sadly Hafoday would die but not before disrupting the ruling dynasty of the Sabally. Twenty years later, colonial rule would rear its head disrupting the gains made. So yes, Fabala was prominent in the history but the real instigator was Bukary Nyadu who defied the king. Fabala became the catalyst. Not sure of the Nyadu are still in Kunting. They most likely be identified with the Jawla clan. [/quote]   Check here to include your profile signature.