The final living representative of the historic Marlborough Conference, which negotiated The Gambia’s independence, MC Cham Sr., has expressed dissatisfaction about the lack of honours for the founding fathers in the celebrations of the nation’s 60th Independence Anniversary.
MC Cham Sr. claimed that the contributions of those who battled for The Gambia’s freedom were disregarded in an exclusive interview with Kerr Fatou.
“No one showed me any respect, honour, or gratitude.” I can ask everyone who heard about it. They didn’t create the sense that it began somewhere if they didn’t claim to be the ones who initiated it. Although you don’t have to claim to be the one who initiated it, you should indicate who was present or describe how we gained control, how it was, and how we arrived at this conclusion,” he said.
The people is keeping an eye on whether the current administration is advancing national development or failing to meet the urgent demands of the nation, MC Cham Sr. underlined.
He said, “People are watching to see whether you have ignored the development here or whether you have brought it forward.”
Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara, the first president of The Gambia, former president Yahya Jammeh, and President Adama Barrow all had leadership styles that cannot be compared, according to MC Cham Sr.
He noted that both the opposition and the government were actively involved in the affairs of the country after the Marlborough Conference. Additionally, he emphasised the significance of The Gambia’s relationship with Senegal, pointing out that the nation’s geographic and political location prevent it from thriving in isolation.”The government and opposition persisted for a few years after our return, and some of us joined in because of Jawara’s policies and the state of the nation. Since Senegal is practically encircling Gambia and we are a lesser partner, we cannot exist in policy and governance in isolation, so we began a positive connection with Senegal after that,” he explained.
In his reflection on the difficulties encountered in the early years of independence, MC Cham Sr. mentioned the nation’s significant reliance on foreign assistance as well as the inadequate infrastructure left over from British colonial control.
“It says it everything if I tell you that we were grant aid. Not much was left to us. Just before Brikama’s entrance, we had only one lane of traffic. We had nothing else but it. Previously, the trip to Basse took five days. He recalled that the steamers and river boats were quite popular since they used to cook for us temporary chairman.
“You had the Vampire, well before independence, after we had the lady Denham, then we had the Prince of Wales, they were carrying everything,” he added, recalling the era’s popular riverboats, which were essential for transportation.
