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Gambia: Dialogue, Understanding and Development
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The Daily Observer (Banjul)
EDITORIAL
6 May 2008
Posted to the web 7 May 2008
The president's dialogue with the peoples tour began yesterday, and from the transcript of the schedule of activities, this year's expedition is packed with festive programs, a rather ideal way of capturing the attention of the people. Apart from being a constitutional requirement, this very important annual activity is in line with our African culture, which demands that we sit and discuss whenever we have pertinent issues at hand. Dialogue provides room for understanding. And it follows that it is only a society whose people understand one another that benefit from the willingness to work for the collective interest of such a people.
One thing that makes this year's tour stands out most is that it came at quite a crucial time, considering the current looming food crisis. For a nation like the Gambia, it is only attitudinal change that can rescue us from whatever affliction that lay ahead. The obvious answer to current crisis is self-reliance in terms of everything that concerns the livelihood of any people.
The president, in addition to him being in charge of the Department of State for Agriculture, will have the opportunity to dialogue with his people, look at ways of circumventing pending problems in order to meet up the challenges of the coming raining season. In essence, the dialogue with the people tour will give His Excellency the opportunity to see for himself as to the situation on the ground. It will as well accord the people the opportunity to lay down their complaints and constraints on the table of His Excellency, for possible redress.
Besides, having been seeing images of one's leader for the greater part of the year, it is quite a jolly good thing to get close to them physically and celebrate with them. Therefore, the victory celebration part of the tour is especially essential. After all, most people in the interior hadn't had the chance to celebrate with their leader, as did those of us in the greater Banjul area, since after the land mark victory.
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In addition, given the charismatic nature of the Gambian leader, his physical presence among the people will make a big impact in the way they view situation around them. Apart from him learning from them, the people, especially farmers, stand a greater chance to learn from President Jammeh, in terms of his personal success in farming.
According to the program schedule, the president will be making brief stops at important community initiative and government sanctioned development project sites, which have the potential to serve as model for other communities in the country.
Again, this will give the head of state the opportunity to meet the good people that are behind such noble initiatives, thereby boosting their morale, which will serve as a motivation for them to continue on the good work. Talking of "brief" it is often the case that the President stops and listens to ordinary people's complaints, sometimes for as long as an hour, throwing his schedule and security detail into turmoil. But then the people love him for that! happy tour Mr. President.
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