President Jammeh told the people of Foni that by 2009 he would stop providing assistance to them if they failed to heed his call to take up agriculture.

He made this statement on Tuesday at a meeting in Ndemban, Foni Berefet. “You cannot be helping people until you yourself become poor. By 2009, I will stop helping from Bullock to Kalagi,” he stated.

The Gambian leader cited the current absence of magnificent non-public infrastructure in the Fonis as a glaring indication of searing poverty, a situation he blamed on the failure of the people of the area to “go back to the land” to earn a living. “How many storey buildings can you find in the Fonis?” he asked.

He went on further to recall his school days, saying that despite living in the urban areas, he used to return to the Fonis to harvest baobab and palm tree fruits to sell for his own welfare.

According to President Jammeh, the youths in Foni are not doing that now, leaving all in the hands of non-Gambians who he said come to harvest their fruits and sell it back to them again. He stressed the importance of food self-sufficiency, saying: “People are saying that I am a doctor and I can cure any sort of sickness but when it comes to hunger, I cannot do anything about it.”

The President used the occasion to call on the youths of Foni, whom he said abandoned the Fonis for fear of witchcraft, to return home, assuring them that there is no longer anything to fear.

Mr. Jammeh revealed that his government would be coming up with a $12m (Twelve million dollars) project to adequately build the capacities of farmers in Foni.

The project, he went on, would provide bore holes and other relevant equipment for them to engage in actual farming for a decent living. “You cannot go on begging all the time for a living,” he said.

From Ndemban, President Jammeh and entourage proceeded to Sibanor in Foni Bintang where he visited the CCF water pyramid.

Impressed by the project, he vowed to establish seven of such projects each year across the country with the ultimate objective of providing clean and potable water to the populace.

Meanwhile, President Jammeh will today continue his tour with a visit to the Holland Foundation-sponsored clinic in Kololi from where he will proceed to the buffer zone in Tallinding for a victory celebration.

The Gambian leader will tomorrow end his ‘Dialogue with the People tour’ with a mass victory celebration at the 22nd July Square in Banjul. 

The issue of the employment situation in the country has not failed to claim mention in President Jammeh’s discourse as he traverses the country in the ongoing Dialogue with the People tour. The President maintained that government could not provide employment for all but indicated that he would do his utmost to try to create employment opportunities for Gambians.

Addressing a mass political rally on Monday in Kalagi, Foni Jarrol, Western Region, President Jammeh noted that there is no country in the world that has provided employment for all its citizens.

He called on the Gambian youth to learn skills so as to attune themselves to the drumbeat of progress for the development of the country.

Mr. Jammeh revealed that before long, his government would come up with a project called Green Project, which would provide employment for at least 500 youth.

The Gambian leader vowed to take the country out of poverty given the requisite support from the citizenry, most especially the youths who, he added, are the backbone of every country’s progress. “With the support of the youths of this country, this country can be transformed to a modern country that can become an envy to the entire African continent,” he enthused.

He acknowledged that without the participation of all in nation building, the wheels of progress would move too slowly for the country’s good. “The youths should not be left roaming while their parents strive for their living,” the President added.

Meanwhile, President Jammeh yesterday received a special envoy from Guinea Bissau at his home village in Kanilai. Joao Gomenz Cardoso is the Minister and Director of Cabinet of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau.

Speaking to journalists shortly after meeting the Gambian leader, Mr. Cardoso said his visit to the country is to lay the groundwork for new co-operation between the two republics.

Referring to the already existing fruitful diplomatic co-operation between The Gambia and Guinea-Bissau, he said that this time around, they want to go further than that by entering into economic and socio-economic co-operation for the benefit of the two countries.

He revealed that his visit is also to convey special invitation of the President of Guinea Bissau to the Gambian leader to pay a state visit to the Republic of Guinea Bissau.