Time is against us and all the arrangements should have been made well before.
Mr. President, we must get a new constitution, go to referendum and to presidential elections on the slated date December 4th 2021.
Gambians are concerned that governance issues such as voter registration, the elections bill, the draft constitution, TRRC, etc are expeditiously concluded so that elections can definitely take place this year.
Mr. President, the nation cannot be held to ransom because of political greed.
The government has a principal responsibility to ensure that the country is endowed with a new constitution that is reflective of New Gambia. The consolidation of democracy is on the shoulders of the political leadership.
Mr. President, Gambians voted for democratic rule in 2016 and the President should uphold the sanctity of the voices of the people.
Ex-President Goodluck Jonathan has been gallivanting between Abuja and Banjul; he has attempted four times to find an amicable solution to the deadlock on the draft constitution to no avail so far.
Mr. President, political leaders should know that the constitution is not a document for political parties only but it is a national document and it should be seen as such.
The executive and the National Assembly cannot fail Gambians in adopting the new constitution and not giving Gambians the chance for referendum to decide on the constitution.
Mr. President, needless to mention that Senegal and The Gambia are closely related; they have more in common than division. This relationship is always nurtured at the individual and family levels.
But one should respect the fact that Senegal and The Gambia are two sovereign states.
As such, the ECOWAS protocols on transit trade and transportation which pave the way for free movement of people and goods as well as security should be respected.
Mr. President, the security personnel of one state illegally crossing into the other must stop.
The trespassing of Senegalese security forces into The Gambia and opening fire in Gambian territory whilst chasing timber smugglers should be addressed and a solution is found to avoid confrontation between the Gambian populace and Senegalese security forces.
Each time Senegalese forces cross to Gambian territory, there are always victims of gunshots and damages caused on people's properties which cannot continue.
Mr. President, the Sanyang incident should also be a wake-up call for all. The two governments and their politicians should be blamed for not properly addressing the issues.
The governments of both countries decided to keep quiet and ignore the problems as if nothing was happening.
We hope they will have the wisdom and courage to address this.
We commend the Senegalese High Commissioner Bassirou Sene for taking the bold step to apologise to the Gambian people and calling for calm and peace between the two peoples.
Such scenario should be avoided and not repeated in the country. Culprits should also be brought to justice whilst thanking the police for controlling the situation.
Finally Mr. President, there is a general complaint from Gambian importers through this medium that there are some Mauritanian businessmen who are taking credit from Gambian importers in the form of basic commodities like sugar and rice and sell them at millions of dalasis after declaring bankruptcy. They claimed to be protected under the bankruptcy law.
Your government should not allow such things to continue happening in this country. Foreign traders who are crooks with bad intention should be banned from trading in The Gambia.
Good day!