Alagie Barrow a member of the 2014 abortive coup plot that sough to remove ex-president Yahya Jammeh in power, has spoken of the sycophancy that obtains in the country.
In his telling piece, the ex-US army captain was blunt in his take.
Below is the piece verbatim
“From the days of The Gambia L to The Gambia Post, one of the weakest defenses Yaya Jammeh associates used against anyone criticizing them was to say “they are jealous.” If you criticize them for anything, they were quick to label you “jealous”. I am not really sure what these people have that one needs to be jealous of. I mean we all know of the corruption in The Gambia (I am not referring to the poor police in traffic; they are saints compared to some of these civil servants). Some of these Yaya associates were so bold that they took it upon themselves to go online and defend Yaya and attack anyone saying anything about Yaya’s evil. That was also a way for some of them to get recognition from Yaya. It was not unheard of to see someone that loudly defended Yaya get promoted quickly. Folks were writing silly books and hailing evil simply to remain in their palass or advance to a higher position. The louder you are in defending Yaya, the more the evil man loved you. And boy, did some people defend Yaya and attack us “strugglers” as they called it. I remember one accusing me of taking his words so I can file political asylum!!! He did not know I was already a Specialist in the Army National Guard of the US at the time. But such was their arrogance and greed for “palasss”. Of course, some of them will eventually join the very critics they called “jealous” when the evil they helped build and nurture consumed them. They would join the same “struggle” and some would become vociferous critics conveniently forgetting everything they said about the “strugglers” they find themselves robbing shoulders with. Talk about becoming a victim of one’s own misguided exuberance.
Few days ago, I came across an idiotic comment from someone saying that those of us that are critical of our government officials are just “jealous”. Oftentimes, such comments come from people who are thick in the affairs of the government but always afraid to face the public and you will hardly see them held accountable for anything. They hide behind “I don’t have time for nonsense.” When in these palasses, they will never engage in any public debates because they are simply too busy. But once fired, they become active and all of a sudden more patriotic than anyone else. While in their Palass, they can afford to ignore critics and genuine query because they know that as long as they toe the line of the ones they serve (not us Gambians), they can ignore the public they claim to be an official of. So what do they do? Some of them get some hound dogs that will be scouring the internet for any mention of their “mentor” and they will bark even if there is no reason to. They are quick to remind anyone that they are not on social media. But check again and you will see them with fake accounts or using the accounts of the missus or mister to browse and in some case come after some of us that are critical of them.
For these people, milking the system, drinking the blood of Gambians and feasting on their flesh is the only way they can accumulate wealth. Their prestige is and will always be in working in government. The “mentors” reward the hound dogs with contracts and access to power. It is a symbiotic relationship between two organisms hellbent on reddening their lips with the blood of Gambians. And if anyone calls them out for their greed, hypocrisy and corruption, it can only mean that those people are jealous. One must be really twisted to be jealous of an incompetent thief, sycophant and hypocrite. These folks cannot address the substance of anything said about them or what they do. They just label you as “jealous”. Somehow, the twisted nature of their simpleton logic simply evades them.
Personally, I know that if I wanted a position in government, I could have gotten it. Not because I am any smarter or qualified than the next person without one, but hell, we all know that getting a position in government definitely does not depend on any smartness or competence. Sometimes, all it takes is a little hypocrisy, lies and sycophancy to get yourself a fancy title. I mean if some of the most spineless and shameless individuals that served Yaya can retain their positions or get certain appointments by simply being more spineless, anyone could do it too. Surely if someone like Seedy Njie can score a position close to power, I am sure Faks can too! He simply prefers evil. The difference is, some of us actually choose not to be part of the abuse of Gambians (if you are a corrupt public official, then you are abusing Gambians) simply because it is wrong. Importantly, some of us don’t need government jobs to survive. Even more importantly, if The Gambia Government is paying you, YOU WORK FOR ME!!! I am not one to be jealous of my workers especially when I know they are stealing from me and even if I don’t have the power to get rid of the bad apples and blood suckers!”
