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Momodou
Denmark
11662 Posts |
 Posted - 10 Jan 2013 : 12:24:29
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COLLECTIVELY RESPONSIBLE HAS THE GOVERNMENT DIGESTED THE PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT?
Foroyaa Editorial: Published on Wednesday, 09 January 2013
According to Section 74 of the Constitution:
"The Vice-President and Secretaries of State shall be collectively responsible to the National Assembly for any advice given to the President in Cabinet, and the Vice President and each Secretary of State shall be accountable to the President and the National Assembly for the administration of the departments and other business of Government committed to his or her charge."
The country is facing its most trying diplomatic contradictions that it has faced since the first days of the coup. It is the duty of the policy makers to put the interest of the people first. Days are gone when Africans used to say that they prefer poverty in freedom than prosperity in slavery. This is an era when the people prefer both freedom and prosperity and despise both poverty and slavery. They want Governments that will be shining examples in promoting liberty and prosperity. All peoples and governments of the world would hold such governments in high esteem and give them all the solidarity they are capable of giving. Such government s would also be able to convey the interest and constrains of their people resident in other EU states and governments for redress.
It is important for the Government to understand the agreement it signs and use them to make its points known in a proactive manner rather than simply react to the initiatives taken by others.
It is the Gambia government which signed the Cotonou Agreement. Article 8 of the Agreement deals with political dialogue. It reads:
Political dialogue
1. The Parties shall regularly engage in a comprehensive, balanced and deep political dialogue leading to commitments on both sides.
2. The objective of this dialogue shall be to exchange information, to foster mutual understanding, and to facilitate the establishment of agreed priorities and shared agendas, in particular by recognising existing links between the different aspects of the relations between the Parties and the various areas of cooperation as laid down in this Agreement. The dialogue shall facilitate consultations between the Parties within international fora. The objectives of the dialogue shall also include preventing situations arising in which one Party might deem it necessary to have recourse to the consultation procedures envisaged in Articles 96 and 97.
3. The dialogue shall cover all the aims and objectives laid down in this Agreement as well as all questions of common, general, regional or sub regional interest. Through dialogue, the Parties shall contribute to peace, security and stability and promote a stable and democratic political environment. It shall encompass cooperation strategies as well as global and sectoral policies, including environment, gender, migration and questions related to the cultural heritage.
4. The dialogue shall focus, inter alia, on specific political issues of mutual concern or of general significance for the attainment of the objectives of this Agreement, such as the arms trade, excessive military expenditure, drugs and organised crime, or ethnic, religious or racial discrimination. The dialogue shall also encompass a regular assessment of the developments concerning the respect for human rights, democratic principles, the rule of law and good governance.
5. Broadly based policies to promote peace and to prevent, manage and resolve violent conflicts shall play a prominent role in this dialogue, as shall the need to take full account of the objective of peace and democratic stability in the definition of priority areas of cooperation.
6. The dialogue shall be conducted in a flexible manner. Dialogue shall be formal or informal according to the need, and conducted within and outside the institutional framework, including the ACP Group, the Joint parliamentary Assembly, in the appropriate format, and at the appropriate level including regional, sub-regional or national level.
6a. Where appropriate, and in order to prevent situations arising in which one Party might deem it necessary to have recourse to the consultation procedure foreseen in Article 96, dialogue covering the essential elements shall be systematic and formalised in accordance with the modalities set out in Annexe VII.
7. Regional and sub-regional organizations as well as representatives of civil society organisations shall be associated with this dialogue.
EU and ACP states should scrutinise each other's policies. The EU has raised its concerns. If the Gambia Government has issues it should also raise them. Taranga FM, Daily News and The Standard are closed down. If the Government does listen to Gambians the ban would have been lifted.
Gambians have called for the release of Baba Leigh but no effort is forthcoming to do so.
This has compelled other governments to issue statements.
For example, on 12 December 2012 Foroyaa published the EU Statement on the arrest and detention of Imam Baba Leigh and Amie Bensouda. Amie has since been released. However, Imam Baba Leigh is still detained incommunicado without trial. The statement stated among other things that:
"Such conditions and actions by the Gambian State are incompatible with the human rights commitments made by the Government of the Republic of The Gambia to a range of international treaties. These detentions also call into question the commitment of the Government of The Republic of The Gambia to the human rights provisions of the EU/ACP Cotonou Agreement. The EU looks forward to discussing human rights issues during its next political dialogue with the Government of The Republic of The Gambia."
The Gambia Government should register the early warning signals and satisfactorily address the governance issues.
In our view, the Government of the Gambia needs to look at what is at stake in its relation with the EU. It is evident from EU publication, that the EU supports Gambia's poverty-reduction goals such as the medium term (2012-15) – Programme for Accelerated Growth and Employment (PAGE) to help Gambia achieve the Millennium Development Goals and long term - Vision 2020.
The EU development strategy for Gambia focuses on infrastructure (transport & energy) and regional interconnectivity and governance.
On Aid, the EU is providing €73m (D3258 million) up to 2013 under the European Development Fund, including support under the MDG Initiative.
The Gambia also receives aid from regional, intra-ACP and specific programmes, as well as EU humanitarian aid to tackle the consequences of the Sahel food crisis.
Nothing could be lost by removing the ban on media houses, engage in electoral reform, stop detention without trial and be an example in respecting and protecting fundamental rights and freedoms.
Source: Foroyaa
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