Gambians and members of the neighbouring states within the sub region were shattered and saddened by news of the assassination of Bernado Nino Vieira, president of Guinea Bissau, on Tuesday March 3. 

The entire country is distressed and gripped with foreboding about this turn of events in that country. The president, Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh, must have been disheartened and distressed too when he received the news of the assassination of a fellow president whom he had gotten to know well because of his concern for Guinea Bissau.

The president attempted to broker peace in the region and thus alleviate the economic and political instability which has plagued Guinea Bissau since she gained independence from Portugal in 1974. President Jammeh demonstrated benevolence and brotherly consideration for the Guinean president and made regular visits to Guinea Bissau for talks which must have centered around the state of the country and he also gave advice as to the way forward and the essence of maintaining peace at all costs if Guinea Bissau is to succeed in its development process.  

Some two months ago, President Yahya Jammeh took the bold step to invite a group of politicians from Guinea Bissau to The Gambia as his guests. He displayed much hospitality to the visitors who in turn appreciated his generous gesture and were full of praise for The Gambian leader and Gambian populace who had rallied round to make their visit a memorable one. The assassination of President Vieira must have caused President Jammeh a deadly blow after all his efforts to guide and help a fellow president beset by numerous difficulties, disturbances, unrest, economic instability and the illegal drug trade in heroin and others.

The president is commended for his support, benevolence and his care attitude for a fellow president and for his advocacy of peace within the sub region. We lament the untimely death of the Guinean leader and will collaborate with President Yahya Jammeh and his cabinet to mourn the death of a comrade.

These frequent conflicts within the sub region have caused a great deal of sufferings, thousands of deaths among innocent citizens, hardships, shameful raping of women, maiming of people and a large problem of displaced persons and refuges. They leave countries battered, impoverished and politically and economically unstable. The ill effects of these disastrous wars have been experienced in Liberia, Sierra leone, Eastern Nigeria and now Kenya, which had been regarded as a prosperous developing country.

It will be recalled that at the AU (African Union) summit held in Libya in the year 2000, one of the resolutions passed was that no leader would be recognised by African states or the AU if that leader usurped power illegally, through coup d’etat, and that such leaders would not be permitted to attend sub regional functions. It appears that member states have not taken this resolution seriously or accepted it, because these strives continue up to date as Mauritania and Guinea Conakry are in trouble for ignoring this resolution, having assumed power forcefully. Since 2000 the OAU has been  taken over by the AU (Africa Union).

On Tuesday March 3, 2009, we mourned the death of President Vieira of Guinea Bissau.  We hope and pray that this atrocity does not persist in that country. Africans are absolutely weary and disenchanted with these conflicts which result in so much carnage, unhappiness and untold sufferings. There can be no meaningful development in any country where the people engage in killing each other. These conflicts cannot and must not continue; they must cease if Africa is to develop and for the sake of the future generation. We send condolences to President Jammeh and his cabinet and to President Vieira’s family.