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Momodou
Denmark
11645 Posts |
 Posted - 16 Jun 2007 : 19:33:03
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FOCUS ON POLITICS
1982 ELECTION CAMPAIGN
THE INCUMBENT INVOLVED IN PLANE CRASH WHILE THE OPPOSITION CONFINED TO BARRACKS
With Suwaibou Touray
We have been focusing on politics in general in this column, so that young Gambians, in particular, can know where their country had come from and where we are heading. But this can only be effectively done, if we review the history of politics in The Gambia from the pre-colonial to post independence era. We are now analysing the politics of the first Republic under the leadership of Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara. We are now advancing into the happenings of the early 1980’s. We have stopped where we opined that many felt that the July 30 rebellion had indeed influenced the course of events because Jawara had always argued against such an inquiry. Let us pick up from where we have stopped.
Continued from: http://www.gambia.dk/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3808
Now that the two contending parties have set themselves for a country-wide campaign to win the hearts and minds of the people, campaign started in earnest.
Honourable Sheriff M. Dibba, the leader and only presidential candidate against the incumbent, Alhagie Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, could not himself join his campaign team. He had to wait for the outcome of the elections at his place of detention.The job was left with few of his lieutenants, like Foday Makalo and Fodayba Jammeh, who were themselves, busy with their own constituencies.
The PPP, however, were very much set for the battle which was not of equals. They had the National radio, as well as, The Gambia News Bulletin at their disposal. They also had the Government vehicles, mainly Land rovers of the Public Works Department, (PWD) trucks and drivers and fuel at their disposal. They had the security personell, the cowed civil servants and the Senegalese soldiers, as well, at their disposal.
With all these apparatus and human resources at their disposal, it was inconceivable how an opposition leader who was held in detention could in any way marshal support to defeat such a force. To many people and to the PPP itself, their victory was a forgone conclusion.
Despite all these, no one could sit comfortably to wait for the outcome. The militants of the PPP led mainly by ministers of state had to criss-cross the country to ascertain victory. This was why they concentrated on areas such as the URD, and the Badibus, where the Independents were concentrated and also where the opposition leader hails from.
The intimidation and harassment witnessed during the 1982 election campaign was said to be the worst recorded in the history of The Gambia’s democratic process. Reports indicated that the campaign teams of the ruling party would take along Senegalese soldiers with guns to villages mainly opposed to them; that they would stand at “Bantabas” (platforms) where elders sit, and a person like Mr. Momodou Manneh,a fprmer cabinet minister, would hold a whip in his hand and rained all kinds of insults on village elders. They would threaten elders and told them that there was no law in the country, referring to the state of Emergency; that they have all the powers to whip any intransigent elders who opposed them,. According to reports, when the PPP entourage approached certain villages who were in support of the NCP leader in Central Badibu, women gardeners would tremble and loose their pales of water in the wells because of fear that the thugs had come again to terrorize them. Some elders were said to have been so terrified that they took refuge in their food stores. Others were said to have left the country to avoid embarrassment.
1982 was the first time in Gambian history when a helicopter had been utilized in electioneering campaign. According to the Gambia Outlook of Mr.Melville Jones, people had been seeing president Jawara boarding and disembarking a helicopter on what it called his hazardous rounds of electioneering campaign, both on his own behalf and on behalf of his party’s candidates.
The reason given was that it was indeed boring and tiresome for the president to traverse the country and gaining access to those constituencies by either road or by river boats or both.
The PPP also announced the purging of those they considered as the dissident members, such as Buba Baldeh and others like Kebba Fadera of Kiang East, who was bent on standing against Honourable J.L B. Daffeh of the PPP. This came about when everything was done and said to convince or bribe them with words not to stand against their own party such as, “Don’t risk your career” keep your worthwhile jobs as civil servants; that you have a brighter future if you hold on to your jobs a little longer, etc, and that promises of not only upgrading their salaries but status as well, were made to them. But these independents were said to have maintained that it was not money that was their motivation but to give effective representation to their people.
As the campaign was heating up at high gear, on Friday 23rd April 1982, the president boarded a Senegalese military helicopter with his entourage and headed for a grand political rally at Brikamaba in the Lower Fuladu District, where he was to meet, almost all, his cabinet ministers on the ground. Little did anyone knew that something of a national catastrophe was about to happen.
The Senegalese helicopter, reports said, developed an engine failure in mid air and crashed on its way somewhere near Brikamaba which was about 120 miles from Banjul, the capital. The crash was said to have happened on a big “netoo” tree but nothing was initially made clear to the people.
The BBC however reported the accident but allayed fears when it said, “Nothing serious happened to the president, except that he was suffering from a great shock after emerging from a terrible ordeal’.
According to reports, radio Gambia later reported on the accident confirming the crash and went further to announce the death of retired Member of Parliament, Hon. A.B Njie.
With the elections just a week to go, the president was flown to Dakar for what the reports said was a check-up. Many feared that something worse must have happened.
The opposition leader, however, remained in strict confinement and unable to meet his constituents, let alone give inspiration to them. And with the curfew and state of Emergency imposed, the question that remained was that ‘was there a political campaign actually going on whereby the people of opposing factions would be better informed of what was actually transpiring?’.
The plane crash, infact, increased the tension and fear that anyone found saying anything adverse against the regime got himself effectively behind bars.
Many reports indicate that only those diehard supporters of the opposition, such as one Landing Sonko, Omar Sonko, all of Sika in Niumi, one Lamin Bojang, alias Bamail of Brikama, Momodou Lamin Camara of Jambanjelly, Momodou Bah of Brikama and Karamo Saula of Kiang Jali and so many elders found themselves in trouble. Little did they know that nothing could be said or done during the state of Emergency with the Emergency Powers Act, Section 12 and 19 without having oneself put in trouble.
The 1982 elections also witnessed one woman candidate, a Nyimasata Sanneh Bojang, who stood against an NCP candidate for the Kombo North Constituency. She was to be the first woman to enter parliament through the ballot should she emerged the winner in that contest.
The history of women politics is a sad case study, for The Gambian women participate fully in campaigns but hardly as candidates seeking to serve the people. They have always been used as clappers, praise singers and dancers, since Independence. This was due mainly to the low level of literacy amongst them. There was no encouragement given to them . The first woman to be nominated to parliament for her devotion and duty to the ruling PPP was Mrs. St. Clair Joof. Before that she was then a nominated Councillor to the then, Bathurst Town Council.
See next issue as we discover the aftermath of the 1982 elections.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 69/2007, 15 – 17 June 2007
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