Supreme Islamic Council statement poses danger to national cohesion

DA Jawo

By D. A. Jawo

Demba Ali Jawo, Former president of Gambia Press Union and veteran Gambian journalist has reacted tensely to the Gambia Supreme Islamic council recent statement branding one of the oldest religious sects in The Gambia as ‘non- Muslim’
In a piece written by Mr. Jawo on his social networking site facebook, which The Justice blog deem necessary to reproduce verbatim for the benefit of our readers.
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As the Gambia gears up to celebrate its golden jubilee of independence, rather than realizing advancement in our social cohesion as a nation, we seem to be retrogressing in several aspects.
For instance, just last week, we saw a derogatory statement issued by the Supreme Islamic Council, declaring the Ahmadiya Muslim Jammat as non-Muslims.
It is indeed quite hard for any reasonable being to comprehend what prompted the Council to issue such a divisive statement, 50 years after the Gambia became an independent nation and more than 70 years since the Ahmadis were established in the country. Who gave this unrepresentative clique of talibes the authority to determine who is a Muslim or even to act as guardians of religious purity in the country?
The Gambia is a secular state and as such, the Constitution guarantees everyone the freedom to practice their religion the way they feel or even not to belong to any religious persuasion, as long as they do not infringe on the rights of other citizens. It is clearly stipulated in Section 25 of the Constitution that “Every person shall have the right (b) Freedom of thought, conscience and belief, which shall include academic freedom; (c) Freedom to practice any religion and to manifest such practice;…..”
Therefore, this decision by the Supreme Islamic Council is not only retrogressive but it is also a threat to national cohesion. We all know that the Council is not only a creation of the state, but it also tends to reflect the views of the authorities. Therefore, it is very likely that the authorities are either complicit to the decision or they are ignoring its possible repercussions. However, as guardians of the secularity of the state and welfare of all Gambians and non-Gambians living in our midst, it is the duty of the state to prevent such irresponsible statements that have the potential to create friction within the society, especially by a body created and natured by the state. Obviously, allowing such an unrepresentative group like the Supreme Islamic Council to make such derogatory remarks against the Ahmadis does not auger well for maintenance of peace and national cohesion.
It is quite a well-known fact that the Ahmadiya Muslim Jammat had contributed and continues to contribute quite significantly to the wellbeing of Gambians in various areas; including education and health. They have several educational facilities in the country as wealth as health facilities which are giving invaluable service to Gambians of all religious persuasions.
However, one would wonder what the socalled “true” Muslims, who have been in this country since time immemorial, have been contributing to the social advancement of lives of ordinary Gambians, apart from merely organising numerous social events in which these talibes collect as much money as they can from their poor congregations. There is therefore no doubt that if the people were given the opportunity to choose between the two groups, they would no doubt tend to choose the Ahmadis for being much more beneficial to their daily needs.