This week has been a bad week for "The Struggle." Factional cracks are apparent everywhere after accusations of embezzlement and other unsubstantiated malfeasance that have yet to be proven. But the damage has already been inflicted, with or without proof, and which may or may not have been the accusers' intent. Things cannot stay the same. They will have to change.
"The Struggle" which is the name given to a loosely-assembled groups of Gambian dissidents in the United States, Europe and West Africa has faced challenges in the past, which they've succeeded in overcoming, not necessarily because they've been adequately addressed but because they were not as visible and accountable now as they were then.
Thanks to the online media which, in itself, is proving to be a blessing as a curse by publicizing the activities of "The Struggle" as well as blowing it apart through irresponsible reporting and outright partisanship and personal agendas. There also exist a clear and discernible partisan divide within the media which is normal and expected. We wish they'd stop pretending that they are non-partisan and - to borrow Fox News' faux mantra - 'fair and balanced'. The online media has contributed immensely to the muddles messages filtering through the various organizations that constitute a significant chunk of "The Struggle."
We believe that the muddled messages of the 'civil organizations' in the dissident communities are a direct results of conflicting and competing political philosophies and leanings of the major players in the Struggle which further aggravates an already desperate condition. A return to their respective political parties will reduce the current confusion and allow the non-party affiliates to mount a credible international advocacy against Yaya Jammeh.
Within what we now take to constitute "The Struggle" goes beyond CORDEC, CCG, GGC and NRNG to include individuals who are not affiliated with any of the above groups. It just so happens that the most influential of the lot are the non-affiliated individuals who happens to be the proprietors of the online radios and newspapers.
And if this category of membership of the Struggle insists, as they always do, that they are impartial in their reporting, as their profession dictates, yet they take on overtly partisan stance against other members of "The Struggle" because he happens to be a Ousainou Darboe, Omar Jallow, B.B.Dabo or Mai Fatty, it inevitably poses a problem. It exposes leaders of political parties who decided to, in good faith and in the common interest, join a broader coalition to fight the enemy that is Yaya Jammeh.
We have seen Ousainou Darboe, Omar Jallow, B.B. Dabo and Mai Fatty attacked personally and the records deliberately distorted because they decided, wrongly, to place themselves and their respective political parties in the line of fire while Halifa Sallah stays out of harm's way - a sensible political move even though we opposed the reasons PDOIS advanced for staying out of Raleigh. Political parties, in our view, should remain political while the other organizations do what they do best - advocacy.
Which brings us to the latest entry into "The Struggle", the National Resistance Movement of The Gambia (NRMG) into the scene with a full-blown press conference to introduce its leaders. They describe NRMG and themselves as a political organization and politicians respectively with military backgrounds that will not hesitate to use military means as last resort to remove Jammeh from power. They are not interested, according to its spokesperson, in political power but yet they claim to be a political grouping and not a military one. They are retired military officers but they do not consider themselves soldiers.
To be fair to the NRMG, they have tried, through their spokesperson and through a couple of press releases and radio interviews but regrettably it left people like us in more confused state than before their arrival. The muddling through continues with an additional layer added to the Struggle that, in our view, further complicates an already difficult situation.
We continue to suggest that the political parties ring-fence themselves from all the structures of the Struggle as GMC has done. And those who belong to and active in party politics should rejoin their respective political parties and help party leaders build, revitalize and rehabilitate them. Those interested in a political career but do not subscribe to the philosophy of existing party should take steps to form their own and join the political fray. A realignment along political allegiances and leanings is inevitable, and the time is now. It will reduce the muddling through that we are witnessing currently.
