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Momodou
Denmark
11634 Posts |
 Posted - 10 Dec 2007 : 21:57:29
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Foroyaa EDITORIAL
ENLIGHTENMENT IS THE WAY FORWARD
On the 24th of April 1970, The Gambia became a sovereign republic. This should have given birth to a sovereign Gambian people who are fully conscious that sovereignty resides in them; a Gambian people with a sense of belonging to and ownership of the country; a people who are fully empowered to defend their rights as a people with the utmost realisation that we are the architects of our own destiny.
Reality however teaches us that while the sovereignty of a republic is declared, the sovereignty of a people must be built by the minds and hands of a people. A people become sovereign when they are in full control of the affairs of their country; when they are capable of making informed choices to determine how their affairs are to be managed, by whom, on what basis, to what extent and at what cost.
To be a sovereign people is a conscious act. It calls for ownership of minds by the people. This is inconceivable without clarity of vision of what it means to own a country and what it demands to ensure that ownership is not usurped through intimidation or inducement. The battle to be a sovereign people is a battle against the culture of ignorance, the culture of silence, the culture of impunity and the culture of autocracy and monarchy.
It is a battle to create a vocal, critical and conscious mass, who are active initiators and participants in their own development rather than passive objects or onlooker; a mass who see the promotion of their liberty and prosperity as the object of all state institutions instead of providing resources to enrich few lords at their expense; a mass who undertake to ensure that the principles of a just and democratic society are embodied in constitutions and other laws for the general observance of those vested with subsidiary powers as representatives who are mandated to serve them.
Source: Foroyaa Newspaper Burning Issues
Issue No. 145/2007, 10 – 11 December 2007
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A clear conscience fears no accusation - proverb from Sierra Leone |
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