Free Comedian Bora Sisawo! Now!!!
Why is Bora Sisawo still detained at Kairaba police station since in the morning when he was ‘invited’ by the police? Bora has not said anything in his show that warrants questioning much more subject him to a detention. What he is facing right now is nothing but blatant abuse of his rights by the IGP.
A citizen has a right to support or oppose the situation in Niger. A citizen has a right to criticize the President and the IGP and any other public servant. Rightly or wrongly. Pleasantly or unpleasantly.
The President and the IGP are not the father and mother of the Gambia such that a person should talk about them as one would speak about one’s father or mother. If the President and IGP do not want to be severely criticized then they should vacate public office immediately. No one begged them to seek public office. They did it on their own freewill. Let them know that public office is not their personal property nor are they above public criticism.
The harassment being meted out to Bora today was the same harassment Momodou Sabally faced last year. It was the same harassment I, Madi Jobarteh faced in 2020. It was the same harassment Ismaila Ceesay faced in 2018. It was the same harassment many other ordinary citizens and politicians such as Mamma Kandeh faced since 2017! Why?
The IGP must be told that he cannot jump on citizens just because of the divergent and dissenting opinion of that citizen. In all of these cases, the police would nicely call the victim for questioning only to detain the person illegally and then slam them with some bogus charges. This must stop. Now.
Therefore Gambians, if you had condemned the harassment of Momodou Sabally or Ismaila Ceesay or myself among others then speak out and stand up with Bora Sisawo too. Now.
Remember, the number of people illegally invited and illegally detained is increasing. If we don’t stand up today to put a stop to this tyranny we will all be called and detained one by one sooner or later. That’s dictatorship.
We voted out the Jammeh Tyranny precisely to never again face such harassment. We opted for democracy and human rights. Therefore the Gambia Government should protect human rights and democracy and not undermine it as it is doing now.
I demand the IGP to immediately free Bora Sisawo right now and refrain from harassing citizens. The Gambia Police Force is a public service to protect rights of citizens. Therefore the IGP should ensure that the GPF is not weaponized to harass citizens.
I call on the NHRC and CSOs as well political parties and indeed all citizens to continue to defend human rights and democracy.
Free Bora NOW!!!
For The Gambia Our Homeland
