Re: Integrity in sports, please stand up

Reference is made to the article “Integrity in Sports, Please Stand Up” by Mr Sheriff Jammeh, President Gambia Lawn Tennis Association, who is also aspiring to be the next president of the GNOC. 

Allow me first to highlight some of the distractions and inconsistencies in the article that now convince me that there is a chicken (as the Americans would say it) and a sheep in wolf clothing who does not have the guts to openly stamp his name on these articles but use the vulnerability of Sheriff to push his failing agenda. 

As a proud Gambian, it offends me when my beloved country is referred to as “tiny”. It is unfortunate that the author who has benefited from the GNOC in the past couple of decades is still convinced that he has to meddle in the affairs of the GNOC. 

Allow me to highlight a major inconsistency in the article which made me to conclude that Mr Jammeh is not the author of the said article. 

According to the article, “the voter list fluctuates on the whims and caprices of the GNOC officials. The first voter list this time around excluded Football, Weightlifting, Rugby and Cycling.

Football was restored when it was realised that football had nominated Mr Sheriff Jammeh, and the GNOC then wrote to nominate football as a member of their team; luckily the football association is composed of men of integrity”.

If Mr Jammeh is the same one running for the President of the GNOC, he should know that football nominated Mr Dibba and the nomination was signed by the highly respected chairman of the normalization committee. 

With regard to Rugby, the author should know the tenets of the GNOC constitution, which according to the IOC, has conformed to the Olympic Charter.

To remind the author, to be a registered member of the NOC, the association has to affiliate with the International Rugby Board (IRB) and in good standing. 

Gambia Rugby is not affiliated; therefore cannot be a member of the GNOC until it regularizes its status with the IRB.

In fact the author went further to insinuate that softball is not known or practised and quoted the IOC Charter as follows: National federations to be recognised by an NOC and accepted as a member of the NOC.

“National Federations to be recognised by an NOC and accepted as a member of such NOC; national federations must be a specific, real and ongoing sport activity, be affiliated to an international federation recognised by the IOC.

Since the author is following international sporting activities, the IOC has included softball in its shortlist of sports to be considered for the 2020 Olympics.

THE EXECUTIVE BOARD OF THE IOC WILL SUBMIT TO THE IOC GENERAL ASSEMBLY 5 SPORTS (FIVE) INCLUDING SOFTBALL FOR A FINAL DECISION. 

Is the author saying the IOC is the Judge and Jury in this case or is it a case of insomnia on his part?

Softball has been introduced and being played in The Gambia. If one is seeking the truth they should lead by example and always say the truth.

Mr Jammeh, in our view, wants the best of both worlds if we go through the article he was emailed to forward.

In his letter to the IOC he made reference to a letter from the IOC in 2005 and now he is talking about “the fiasco of the GNOC”. He however failed to state that he was once elected into the executive of the GNOC through an elective congress but failed to attend meeting thus disappointing his electorate. 

Let me remind the invincible author and Mr Jammeh that it by the tenants of the GNOC constitution that he presented his candidature for the coming election.

He cannot write his own constitution therefore be truthful to yourself and stop playing with the intellect of the spot-loving Gambians.

I therefore wonder what the author and Mr Jammeh really are looking for.  All I know is that they are neither being truthful nor just to the sporting fraternity.  

Let me take this opportunity to urge Mr Sheriff Jammeh to stop being a wingman (co-pilot) and look at the sporting interest of this great nation of ours and not the personal interest of his pilot.

For the information of the readers, the voter list approved unanimously by the extraordinary general assembly is as follow:

 Associations:

Gambia Athletics Association 2. Gambia Basketball Association 3. Gambia Football Association 4. Gambia Boxing Association 5. Gambia Lawn Tennis Association 6. Gambia Handball Association 7. Gambia Wrestling Association 8. Gambia Volleyball Association 9. Gambia Judo Association 10. Gambia Table Tennis Association 11. Gambia Taekwondo Association 12. Gambia Golf Association 13. Gambia Chess Association 14. Gambia Karate Association 15.  Gambia Draught Association 16. Gambia Softball Association 17. Gambia Security Services Sports Association 18. Gambia Primary Schools Sports Association 19. Gambia Cricket Association 20. Gambia Paralympics Sports Association 21. Gambia Secondary Schools Sports 22. Gambia Special Olympics 23, and Gambia Deaf Sports Association

Individuals with single vote:

1. Ms Beatrice Allen - IOC Member

2. Ms Saruba Colley - Active Olympic Games Athlete

3. Mr Suwaebou Sanneh - Active Olympic Games Athlete

Finally the author in desperation is calling for “the honourable people to please stand up and be counted”. 

The majority of the associations have spoken through a letter to the IOC.  Our rights are being violated by the minority and we are patiently awaiting Justice. I have no doubt that justice will prevail and Allah will expose the whole truth.  

Signed

Namory Trawally

Press Attaché

GNOC

Tel:  9444161

02ND June 2013