Kurang challenges citizens, political parties and the media to ensure sustainable democracy

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By BABOUCARR CEESAY

Alhaji Mamadi Kurang, a Gambian educationist, chartered accountant cum politician made a clarion call on the citizenry, political parties and the media to ensure the implementation social contract between the president and the people for a sustainable and progressive democracy.

The leader of the movement, Youth for Change was speaking in an online interview with The Monitor during which he stated that change has always inspired him since my university days in Asia studying and seeing at first hand how developing countries became industrialized all over south east Asia and uplifting their people.

Stating reasons why he joined force with the People’s Democratic organization for Independence and Socialism (PDOIS), he said they consulted and concluded with the majority agreeing that the party that best matches their Youth for Change aspirations and policies was PDOIS.

He added that he was further inspired for a change in education in The Gambia which he endeavor to effect through Jollof Tutors that impacted on the lives of 10, 000 to 20, 000 people.

After the 2016 change of government and around he mid of 2019 it became clear that the transition agenda was hijacked then we began thinking of mobilizing the youth to bring about political change.

On IEC’s rejection of his candidature as 2021 presidential aspirant in 2016 he noted: “Having acted beyond their powers as proved in subsequent rejection cases, the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC), we felt the country was at a critical point and we can’t sit idly while the fate of our country was being decided.”

“That means we must demand for the implementation of the transition agenda as promised, we must demand for the actualization of the third republic through a new constitution, security sector reform, public and civil service reform, implementation of Janneh Commission, Land Commission and the Truth, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission (TRRC) and take steps to improve youth employment only then can we enjoy the democratic dividend.”

In a message to President Adama Barrow and the citizenry, he observed that it’s important for the head of state and his team to know that the whole country is watching and unemployment is rampant, while corruption remain unsolved.

“Gambian people need to learn from our cousins in Senegal that you can only benefit from democracy when you hold political leaders to account and remove them when they failed to deliver,” he concluded.