Dear Editor,

Following the publication last week of a letter addressed to ECOWAS boss and copied to several heads of regional and international organizations, which listed the names of some journalists I wrongly characterized as exiles of the ruthless Jammeh regime, I received a few reactionary complaints from a few journalists extricating themselves from the list. I, therefore, apologize again to all those on the list who do not fall under the exiled category and wish to assure them that it was not done out of malice nor was it designed to tarnish their employment prospects by Jammeh’s regime. Hopefully, they can continue to return home without fear of being arrested by Jammeh’s security agents for an avoidable error.   

Having said that, I will assure those who wish me to shut up, they may well be talking to the wall, for their calls to shut me up may prove counterproductive, because I will, out of spite for them, be motivated to write even more than I am currently doing. Additionally, I will not allow a small mistake to come in the way of communicating the larger Gambian problem to the rest of the world, and Jammeh and his chorus of Daily Observer lunatics calling for us not to “tarnishing” Gambia’s image abroad, may be hallucinating, because we ain’t gonna stop as long as Jammeh continues to head a corrupt, brutal and tribalist regime in our country. Our ultimate goal is to make Jammeh an unwelcome murderer all over the world, but in particular, in much of Africa, Western Europe and the U.S, and if it hurts his supporters and our detractors, both they and Jammeh can kiss my ass.

Finally, I wish to thank all those who emailed, called me or wrote in my defense and they can rest assured that I am not slowing down for one moment. I will continue to do what I always did, because it is what our victimized, terrorized and traumatized fellow citizens expect from those of us with the gift of knowledge and the responsibility of citizenship. To witness so much injustice and abuse as our fellow countrymen continue to experience daily and look the other way, is the hallmark of irresponsible citizenship, and I refuse to be tagged with such a label. To conclude, I held up emailing and post mailing the letter to ECOWAS and those individuals and institutions to whom it is copied until the issue of who is and whom is not a refugee has some clarity. I, therefore, request any journalist on the list who is not an exile and, therefore, wishes to have their names taken off the list to please kindly contact me through any of one the online newspapers; Senegambia News, Freedom Newspaper, Gainako News, Allgambian.net and Gambia Echo, by next week Monday, before my targeted day of emailing and post mailing the letters on Tuesday next week.