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Momodou
Denmark
11645 Posts |
 Posted - 06 Jul 2007 : 21:59:53
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FOCUS ON POLITICS
THE 1981 POLITICAL CRISIS
IS IT A CONFEDERATION BASED ON PRINCIPLES OR A MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE?
With Suwaibou Touray
We have been focusing on political developments in The Gambia in this column which inspired us to follow the political trail from pre-colonial to post-Independence era. We have been covering the history of the first Republic up to the 1980s. We are now reporting about the happenings surrounding the 1981 political crisis.
Continued from: http://www.gambia.dk/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=3949
In the last issue were it was reported that Sam Sarr’s wife Amie Sillah and her one month old baby were arrested together with other colleagues should read ‘an eleven months old baby boy’. They were also detained for seven months before being released. The report that a press conference that was scheduled for Monday 30 October 1983 was later postponed and rescheduled for Monday 31 October 1983 should have read rescheduled for Tuesday 31 October 1983.
Many of our readers sent opinions in letters and text messages and even in the net encouraging the columnist. The objective really is meant to help the people to learn from the mistakes of the past in order to shape the future. So we are welcoming all ideas and information that would be useful in our analyses and the columnist is quite thrilled with the public response so far. In the last issue we have stopped where we said the forced retirement of IJK Tambajang, particularly, surprised many because quite a number of people were with the illusion that he and former IGP A.S Mboob had played a lead role in defending the capital city.
Apart from the security concerns of the period the Government which signed the Agreement establishing the Senegambia Confederation in Dakar since 1981, now had to work hard to convince the many sceptics and critics that the Agreement was for real or a no turning back.
Here is the full text of the Agreement signed between the two respective governments to establish the Confederation.
Here is a part text of the Agreement signed between the two Governments.
AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE REPUBLIC OF THE GAMBIA AND THE REPUBLIC OF SENEGAL CONCERNING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SENEGAMBIA CONFEDERATION
Aware that they constitute a single people divided into two States by the vicissitudes of History;
Taking due account of the geographical fact of their ties;
Conscious of the historical, moral and material imperatives, which unite the two countries;
Considering the many past and present experiments made with a view to rapprochement, solidarity and sub-regional and regional cooperation; Respectful of the Charter of the United Nations, the Charter of the Organisation of African Unity and the Treaty of the Economic Community of West African States;
Affirming their devotion to the rights of their peoples declared in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948; in the United Nations Covenants on Human Rights; and in the African Charter of Human and Peoples Rights of 1981; Intending to strengthen the unity of their defence and their economies and the coordination of their policies in other fields; Resolved to establish an institutional framework, consistent with national sovereignty and democratic principles, within which these intentions may be gradually realized;
HAVE DECIDED to create a Confederation and have agreed as follows:
SECTION I: PRINCIPLES
Clause 1:
By this Agreement a Confederation of the Republic of The Gambia and the
Republic of Senegal is constituted with the name of the Senegambia
Confederation.
Clause 2:
The Republic of The Gambia and the Republic of Senegal shall constitute the Confederation known as Senegambia; each State maintaining its independence and sovereignty.
The Confederation shall be based on:
- the integration of the armed forces and of the security forces of the Republic of The Gambia and the Republic of Senegal, to defend their sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence;
- the development of an economic and monetary union;
- the coordination of policy in the field of external relations;
- the coordination of policy in the field of communications and Clause in all other fields where the Confederated States may agree to exercise their jurisdiction jointly;
- joint institutions.
Clause 3:
The institutions of the Confederation shall be as follows:
The President and Vice-President of the Confederation;
The Council of Ministers of the Confederation;
The Confederal Parliament.
Clause 4:
The Official languages of the Confederation shall be such African languages as are specified by the President and Vice-President of the Confederation; English and French.
Clause 5:
Within the framework of this Agreement the Confederated States shall enter into protocols of implementation for the realization of the purposes set out in Clause 2.
SECTION II: THE PRESIDENT AND Vice-President OF THE CONFEDERATION
Clause 6:
The President of the Republic of Senegal shall be the President of the
Confederation.
The President of the Republic of The Gambia shall be the Vice-President of the Confederation.
Clause 7:
In agreement with the Vice-President, the President shall decide on the policy of the Confederation on matters of Defence and Security.
He shall co-ordinate the policies of the Confederated States on matters within the responsibilities of the Confederation.
In agreement with the Vice-President, the President of the Confederation shall make appointments to all confederal posts.
Clause 8:
The President of the Confederation shall command the Armed Forces and the Security Forces of the Confederation. He shall be responsible for the Defence and Security of the Confederation.
A Protocol shall establish the modalities of implementation of the provision in accordance with the constitutional requirements of each State.
The President of the Republic of The Gambia shall continue to be Commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of the Republic of The Gambia in accordance with its constitutional requirements.
Clause 9:
The President of the Confederation shall preside over the Defence and Security Council of the Confederation.
The Defence Council shall comprise the President and Vice-President of the
Confederation and such other persons as the President, in agreement with the
Vice-President of the Confederation, may determine.
SECTION III: THE COUNCIL OF MINISTERS
Clause 10:
There shall be a Council of Ministers of the Confederation whose members shall be appointed by the President of the Confederation in agreement with the Vice-President.
The President and the Vice-President of the Confederation shall be the
President and the Vice-President of the Council of Ministers respectively. The Council of Ministers shall deal with matters submitted to their consideration by the President of the Confederation.
SECTION IV: THE CONFEDERAL PARLIAMENT
Clause 11:
The Representative Parliament of the Confederation shall be known as The Confederal Parliament.
Its members shall have the title Members of the Confederal Parliament. One-third of the members of the Confederal Parliament shall be selected by the House of Representatives of The Gambia from among its members, and the other two-thirds shall be selected by the National Parliament of Senegal, from among its members.
The Confederal Parliament shall elect its President.
The Confederal Parliament shall establish its rules of procedure.
Clause 12:
The Confederal Parliament shall deliberate on matters of common interest.
Furthermore, the President of the Confederation or the Vice-President of the Confederation, may consult the Confederal Parliament by submitting to its vote any other matter of social, economic or financial interest to the Confederation.
Clause 13:
Only the President of the Confederation, the Vice-President of the Confederation and the members of the Confederal Parliament can initiate matters or proposals.
The Confederal Parliament shall convene when matters are submitted to it by the President or Vice-President or at the request of one third of the members of the Confederal Parliament.
Clause 14:
The rules governing the submission of matters to the Confederal Parliament by the President or the Vice-President of the Confederation, voting of matters or proposals and the promulgation of such rules by the President shall be drawn up in a protocol of implementation.
SECTION V: deals with SETTLEMENT OF DIFFERENCES whilst section VI deals with International Treaties and Agreements.
Section V11 deals with Final Provisions such as when the Agreement entered into Force, Amendments, Reviews, the status of the protocols of Implementation, Depositories, the Authentic texts and signatures. Read the full document at: http://www.gambia.dk/senegambia_confederation.html
By late 1983 to early 1984
The Government also appeared to be doing something inorder to fend off the critics and sceptics of the Senegambia Confederation. The PPP the party in government, organised a series of events with the objective of sensitizing the people on what they deemed to be the merits of the Confederation. For example, on Tuesday 22 November 1983, the PPP held a meeting with the PS (Partie Socialist) of Senegal at the PPP Bureau in Banjul to formulate plans for a joint seminar to take place in Banjul on 10-11 December 1983 on the theme “Senegambia Confederation.”
A group of people were also seen demonstrating in support of the Confederation and who many believed were either encouraged and or sponsored by them.
Continued: http://www.gambia.dk/forums/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4002
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issue
Issue No. 78/2007, 6 – 8 July 2007
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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