Every nation has had remarkable sons and daughters who have shaped the destiny of that country. Of course, the individual never accomplishes it all alone. Part of the individual’s remarkableness is the ability to convince others to have faith in his vision for the nation. Oliver Cromwell, who cut off the English King’s head and established parliamentary rule in England had that vision (parliament was only for the rich).

Napoleon, who established the Code by which France and Francophone Africa is ruled today, had that vision. George Washington, who led the rebellion against English colonial rule and established a free United States of America ("free" for whites only), had that vision. Fidel Castro, who led the revolution against United States colonial rule and established an independent Cuba had that vision.

Ho Chi Min, who led the Vietnamese fight first against Dutch colonialism, then French colonialism and, finally, against United States colonialism had that vision. Amongst many others, Haile Selassie, Senghore, Lumumba, Nasser, Nkrumah, Kenyatta and Mandela all had great vision for our own continent.

Revolution is not, in my humble view, about heading to heaven in a flash of glory. Revolution is not a 100m race, real revolution is a marathon (the best example being Castro’s fifty years and Chairman Mao’s twenty-eight years).

Revolution is first and foremost about building the nation (the "construction" in APRC). To build you need time and therefore the first job of a revolution is to survive (Jammeh and his colleagues first task when they took power was to ensure that the revolution survived – and many thought they would be gone in three months).

During the Russian Revolution the great Trotsky took his eyes off the ball (to go bird shooting!) and perished. With respect so did Sankara and Murtalla Muhammad (just imagine what great strides Africa could have made if these two great visionary sons had survived to establish their vision).

Fidel was very aware of the need to survive (hence his parting company with his beloved friend, the permanent revolutionary Che Guevara).

But Fidel was also lucky in that his revolution happened in the bi-polar Cold War Era when the solidarity of revolutionary Russia & China proved crucial in the freedom of much of the so-called "Third World" including Africa (The Mau Mau leader "General China" was a much loved regular visitor to my school when I was a boy growing up in Kenyatta’s Kenya).

Luckily for Castro and his comrades, the Russians came on board very quickly and threatened the US with nuclear war if they invaded Castro’s Cuba. Thus Castro’s Revolution was able to survive and build homes, schools and hospitals for Cubans – and even for us across Africa (when I took my daughter Jainaba to Bakau Health Centre recently she was treated by a Cuban doctor).

My tribute to Fidel Castro’s efforts all over Africa can be found on the internet (type my name in google and find the piece titled "Viva Fidel!".

I think in a world of selfishness and wickedness, revolutionary leaders who rise up to right wrongs and build the nation are always called for and welcomed by the poor and oppressed – while the local rich and their allies in the West try to eliminate such revolutionaries.

The popular President Jammeh’s first statement when he came to power thirteen years ago was "Those who did not eat will now eat". By this he meant that schools and hospitals will be built for the people – and they have been on a huge scale. Roads have been built, as has been an airport.

Infact, President Jammeh’s achievement literally shine as you drive in the Kombos at night where road lights that never existed in the country illuminate the darkness.

Television, radio and all sorts of communication including fixed-line telephones and mobile phones, and even wireless internet "hotspots" which I had never used in all my years in the West, proliferate throughout The Gambia.

With the very generous commitment of the heroic support of the Taiwanese government and others, Jammeh’s government is also working hard on improvements in the area of agriculture in order to feed the nation.

As I have said elsewhere, the recent development of The Gambia under Jammeh and the APRC becomes even more remarkable when one realises that the country has no natural resources to speak of, and faced hostility from some quarters when Jammeh came to power.

Equally important under the APRC is the attitude change amongst Gambians young and old (the "Patriotic" & "Re-orientation" in


APRC). That old Uncle-Tom smiling and shuffling about became a thing of the past because the nation has work to do.

Cool young Gambians, who are so cool that they put Puff Daddy to shame, run serious real estate and IT businesses. Indigineous Gambian businessmen and women such as Taff, Sarge, Jeck, Bai Mattar Drammeh, Amadou Samba and many others set about the task of building the nation earnestly – encouraged by President Jammeh and the new "Can-Do" attitude pervading the nation.

The encouragement of the government to local businesses, foreign investors (with the remarkable Kharaffi at the forefront) and NGOs has meant that much development has taken place all over the country.

This week we have seen the remarkable University of The Gambia Convocation. I repeat "remarkable", so remarkable that I, a 51-one year old, get goose pimples as I think of and admire the achievement. I find it totally incomprehensible that Gambians, yes Gambians not foreigners, can sit in the West and attack the University of The Gambia – I repeat incomprehensible.

I and many others, Gambians and foreigners, are encouraged by President Jammeh’s total dedication to the development of this country. Apart from a strong nationalism and dedication to the development of his country and people, President Jammeh is also guided, and protected, by his "unique God-consciousness" – to borrow a phrase from Dr. Martin Luther King jnr. No one knows what the future holds (in 1993, before Jammeh came to power, Gambia was being strangled by a total border blockade). Going by President Jammeh’s stupendous track record over the last 12 years, I believe another decade of accelerated development and progress lie in store for this country.

Dida Halake

Kotu