|
Note: You must be registered in order to post a reply.
To register, click here. Registration is FREE!
|
| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Momodou |
Posted - 29 Jul 2025 : 14:30:41
Essa Faal hits at gov't for 'backing corruption' with counter-protest
The Point: Jul 29, 2025
By: Jankey Ceesay
https://thepoint.gm/africa/gambia/headlines/essa-faal-hits-at-govt-for-backing-corruption-with-counter-protest
In an interview on Coffee Time show with Peter Gomez, prominent international lawyer and App-Sobeya leader, Essa Mbye Faal has taken direct aim at President Adama Barrow’s administration, calling its planned counter-protest against the Gambians Against Looted Assets (GALA) movement "a betrayal of national values" and a "shameful endorsement of corruption."
Faal criticised the decision by the ruling National People's Party (NPP) to stage a counter-demonstration in response to GALA’s peaceful anti-corruption protest, which took place recently and drew hundreds of passionate young Gambians calling for accountability and transparency in governance.
“This is a government that has lost its bearings,” Faal declared. “Gambians are protesting the rot in their society. They did it peacefully. And instead of listening, this government chooses to organize a rally against those protesting corruption? What does that tell us? That they are promoting corruption?”
According to the minister for Works, the NPP led rally aims to show the world that The Gambia is thriving under President Barrow’s democratic leadership, a narrative Faal dismissed as "an insult to the intelligence of Gambians" and a "blatant misuse" of state resources.
Faal threw his full support behind GALA, emphasising that their cause is not partisan but a moral one.
“The Gala is fighting for you. The Gala is fighting for me. That’s why I am Gala,” he said passionately. “This is about young Gambians standing up and saying, we’ve had enough of corruption. They are doing it within the law, and they deserve our support not state sponsored resistance.”
Faal also raised serious concerns about the government’s tactics, alleging that the planned counter-protest could involve bussing in youth and paying them small sums to manufacture support; a practice he described as manipulative and exploitative.
“You are protesting against your own interest,” Faal warned the young people potentially lured into the government’s rally. “You’re being used to defend the very system that is stealing your future.”
Faal also challenged the idea that GALA was being manipulated by political actors.
“These are some of the brightest, most fiercely independent young Gambians. To say they’re being used is not just wrong, it’s arrogant. These young people are smarter, more educated, and more committed than most of the people in government today.”
He said instead of organising counter-protests, Faal called on the government to seriously address the concerns raised by GALA.
“They should be looking at that petition and say, how do we fix this? Where is the anti-corruption blueprint? Where is the leadership we were promised?”
“By organizing a counter-rally, you are not only wasting taxpayers' money you are wasting time and squandering public trust,” he concluded. |
|
|
| Bantaba in Cyberspace |
© 2005-2024 Nijii |
 |
|
|
