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Showing posts with the label Opinion

Opinion | The Surge Of Road Traffic Crashes Cases In The Gambia

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A RECOMMENDATION TO  EVERY CITIZENS, PARTICULARLY RELEVANT AUTHORITIES ON HOW TO ADDRESS THIS ENDEMIC MENACE By Alhagie Sillah  When are we going to hold a serious conversation surrounding this endemic road traffic crashes (RTC) formally called Road Traffic Accident (RTA)? The rate at which Road traffic crashes is claiming lives of our people is seriously worrisome and alarming, if drastic measures are not fully effected or implemented to address this menace would further continue to result to a catastrophic and tragic loss of valuable lives. Are we going to sit, fold our hands and see Innocent citizens continue to loss their lives unbearably on a daily basis due to avoidable accidents? It has now reached to a point, whereby people feel scared to on-board a vehicle whenever traveling, because you will be thinking if you are not going to be the next victim of Road traffic crashes before reaching your final destination.  The relevant authorities have to seriously look into the frequent h

Opinion | Author Shares His Views On Emergency Preparedness And Response In Our Institutions

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A recent tragedy of our Airport By Mod Lamin Conteh  Once upon a time, there existed a small mainland country in West Africa, The Gambia, whose general assessment of health is no other than a minimal priority to her people, the authorities, and even those in charge of their own healthcare sector. Government offices and parastatals that are ought to take care of their own health and make resounding policies that will help boost the health and practices of their people are assess to near zero in terms of their occupational health hazard protection, safety, precautions and even their own personal health. Just of recent, our airport was expose and it is just a matter of time before other institutions face similar or more horrific incidents except we fixed our priorities right.  in terms of emergency preparedness and response at airports, seaports, municipalities, telecommunications, our courts, ministries amongst other departments,  to prioritize the health of the staffs, the passengers, t

Opinion | Almamy Fanding Taal Reacts to Erdogan’s model of leadership

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|Is here such a thing as Democratic Authoritarianism? Turkey under the Leadership of Recep Tayyib Erdogan| By Almamy Fanding Taal On July 9th, 2018, Recep Tayyip Erdogan was inaugurated as the first directly elected President of Turkey with enhanced executive powers following the victory of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) and its Coalition partner the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) at the snap election that was called and held on 24th June 2018.  That victory brought back to the driving seat the two allied parties that had achieved the most parliamentary seats, the AKP and MHP. Coalition Governments everywhere for the sake of stability and development are party led except in the Gambia, it is the case in Senegal, Germany, and Turkey. In the past eighteen months many things have happened in Turkey and around the world. President Recep Tayyib Erdogan secured an emphatic win in the Presidential election which was never in doubt.  His latest victory gives him a wide mandate and k

Column | Does a coup in Niger present an emergency which merits the threat of military action by ECOWAS?

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| The threat of military action in Niger by ECOWAS, and the role which The Gambia must play as a member state |   By Pa Louis Sambou   I t is certainly neither an inaccuracy nor an exaggeration to state that the Western part of the African continent which is officially known as West Africa, has had, and still experience crises which by any measure, are of far greater magnitude and scope than a coup in the Republic of Niger. Boko Haram terrorists kidnapping innocent schoolgirls, ISIS – inspired jihadist terrorising communities and conquering swathes of territory in the Sahel regions of West Africa, Alpha Condé, Alasan Outtara, corrupting their republican Constitutions, and Mackey Sall corrupting Senegalese democracy to prolong their respective times in office but to name a few of the crises which faced and still face the region, albeit without any serious response from the regional bloc, ECOWAS. However, ECOWAS officialdom wish to have us believe that a bloodless mutiny in Niger which e

Opinion | Is Our Education System Preparing Our Children For The 21st Century Globalised World?

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| Legal Luminary Almami Fanding Taal Weighs In His Views On The Gambia’s Education System | By Almami Fanding Taal Charles Jow Memorial Academy held its Senior Secondary School Graduation Ceremony on Saturday July 15 2023 at the school campus in Bundung. The school is located behind the Bundung Police Station and the Magistrate Court. A well-attended ceremony and all the speeches were excellent the Chairmen of the PTA and the Board of Trustees and Principal and His Deputy. The Guest Speaker gave an inspiring address to the students in English Mandinka and Wolof. The day belonged to the students in my view. All the graduating students turn out sharply wearing white shoes and as they walked to their seats under the special Tent for their day, the School Choir sang the School Anthem and a farewell song. I was moved by the lyrics of the Anthem because I do not remember my Gambia High School Anthem. However, I can clearly recall that music or theatre was not part of the curriculum during ou

| Opinion | The Tragedy Of Corruption

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  |Gambian medic hammers his views on corruption, urges resistance against self-greed on power|   By Dr. Mod Lamin Conteh  Corruption has long plagued societies around the world. It permeates every aspect of life, from politics to commerce, undermining the very foundations of trust, equality, and justice. Our modern world is not immune to this disease, as the relentless pursuit of power and personal gain often triumphs over collective well-being. It is crucial to understand that the corrupt systems we build today will eventually turn against us, consuming our values, morality, and potential for progress. Corruption is a cancer that thrives when left unchecked. When individuals in positions of power abuse their authority, bend the rules or manipulate systems, they sow the seeds of their destruction. At any given moment, it may seem advantageous to exploit a flawed system for personal gain, but the consequences are grave. By engaging in corrupt practices, individuals erode the very insti

Encomium | Alpha Robinson pays tribute to late Hon Omar (O.J) Jallow

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Late Hon Omar Amadou (O.J) Jallow  | Former NAWEC boss, Alpha Robinson’s solemn tribute to the late venerable Hon Omar (O.J) Jallow | By Alpha Robinson In memory of Honourable Omar Amadou Jallow, alias OJ, as I remember him. He contributed his quota! Sincere condolences to his family and loved ones. May he Rest In Peace in Janatul Firdaus. He spoke - a poem  He spoke when most were mute He said it as it was, standing on refute  He refused to bow when many froze in salute He spoke  He looked the devil in the eye without a flinch  They could not move him an inch A man wearing a demeanor without a switch Staring at death without a twitch  He spoke So Honourable you are rich While they scramble for earthly material riches Men and women in frantic pitching Yours truly found a niche In the corner of glorious loners by choice He spoke  You looked your tormentor in the eye and smiled  Yes, with a broken eye you looked and smiled To help heal broken hearts To help mend the broken man by a mile

Opinion | The ‘Veil’ Issue in The Gambia

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| Community Leader, Philip Saine sheds light on ongoing ‘veil’ issue, urges vigilance against extremist ideologies packaged as something else | By Phillip Saine The Veil Civil Suit in the Gambia initiated by  ‘Concerning Citizens’  came as a surprise to many but never-the-less does not surprise many Gambians   who are versed with their  disturbing  agenda . At this stage of Gambia development, it would have been thought that  ‘Concerning Citizens’ , rather than striving for the wearing of veils at schools, they should have spent time and energy to upgrade standards of education, provision of appropriate school learning materials, device ways to improve on school transportation, improving on school performance and examination results. These would have been most ideal tenants for contest for an honest and concerned citizen. It is apparent that the veil issue harmonizes well with the attempt to pursue the ‘Islamic State’ agenda started under Ex-President Jammeh, and his invitation of the