Last weekend before our (now) dear friends Marian and Allan (above, at right) returned home to England, one of their closest Gambian friends, Mr. Seikou Susso (left) came to visit. Accompanied by his secretary, Mr. Tamba Saho (third from left), he traveled about 220 miles, which took 20 hours on public transportation, including crossing three rivers and various security checkpoints from his home village in western Gambia. (Seated second from left is my brother-in-law Bozorg Tavangar.)
14 years ago when Marian and Allan first moved to the Gambia, they befriended a hard-working young man employed at their hotel – Seikou. Over the years Seikou assisted them in building a home and a life in their new country. And in turn, the couple helped mobilize support for an undersupplied and undersupported clinic in Seikou's home district which serves about 30,000 people. (About 80 percent of the clinic's patients have malaria.) The impetus of their support got Seiko involved in the public welfare of his village, through desperately needed healthcare and education initiatives.
Over the years since their friendship, Seikou channeled his new-found confidence, skills, know-how and connections in service to his village and district. With the government's decentralization of decision-making for village development, Seiko got involved in helping organize and register village development committees, women's groups, microenterprise projects and HIV workshops, among others. He eventually entered politics in the most interior district of the country, working his way up from a municipal counselor in his village. He continued to take on more responsibility with various issues and groups impacting local development, to get him where he is today.
He was distinguished in this election as the only unopposed candidate for Gambian Parliament outside of the President's own home district. (N.B: On Thursday, the President's party, of which Seiko also is a member, won 42 out of 46 seats.) This is Seiko's first term as a Minister of Parliament (MP). Now that Seiko is going to take on this important role, he must move his wife and children to Banjul. His wife is a prominent woman of their region in her own right: her father is the area chief and she is the deputy head of the area school.
Per local custom, people from his home area will be calling on him to personally assist them. With his limited government income he will be expected to respond to any and all constituent requests, from paying for medicines to assisting with fees for a wedding or burial. In its own way, this is the country's social security system: whoever has resources must share them with whoever needs them. This generous custom is like a double-edged sword. Some are discouraged from striving for personal wealth, as their motivation is cut when they think of the prospect of having to give so much of it away. And when there is a naming ceremony, death, marriage, birth or other festival, he also is expected to make the long trek home and offer additional contribution. But Seiko shrugs off what appears to a westerner as a burden: "as a politician, the people put you there, so I have a responsibility. Sometimes people even have to take out a debt in order to help out" he explained. And, as a junior MP, he has to "give out even more."
Asked about some of his biggest concerns and agenda items moving forward in his new role, Seiko responded: "How can I get access to international funding to support the needs of my village and my country?"
International donors form a major part of the Gambia's economic landscape and Seiko has seen the power of private assistance through Marian and Allan's contributions and mobilization of their friends back home. One elderly friend of theirs contributed ten pounds (just under $20) and this paid for malaria medication for 100 children.
(Currently I'm trying to find a good non-profit organization that could effectively manage donations from any interested US friends. If you'd like more information, email me and I can let you know what course of action can be taken.)
If the Gambia's House of Parliament is filled with individuals like Seiko, and if he can maintain his strong sense of responsibility for the well-being of his country, I think there is much to be hopeful about here.
14 years ago when Marian and Allan first moved to the Gambia, they befriended a hard-working young man employed at their hotel – Seikou. Over the years Seikou assisted them in building a home and a life in their new country. And in turn, the couple helped mobilize support for an undersupplied and undersupported clinic in Seikou's home district which serves about 30,000 people. (About 80 percent of the clinic's patients have malaria.) The impetus of their support got Seiko involved in the public welfare of his village, through desperately needed healthcare and education initiatives.
Over the years since their friendship, Seikou channeled his new-found confidence, skills, know-how and connections in service to his village and district. With the government's decentralization of decision-making for village development, Seiko got involved in helping organize and register village development committees, women's groups, microenterprise projects and HIV workshops, among others. He eventually entered politics in the most interior district of the country, working his way up from a municipal counselor in his village. He continued to take on more responsibility with various issues and groups impacting local development, to get him where he is today.
He was distinguished in this election as the only unopposed candidate for Gambian Parliament outside of the President's own home district. (N.B: On Thursday, the President's party, of which Seiko also is a member, won 42 out of 46 seats.) This is Seiko's first term as a Minister of Parliament (MP). Now that Seiko is going to take on this important role, he must move his wife and children to Banjul. His wife is a prominent woman of their region in her own right: her father is the area chief and she is the deputy head of the area school.
Per local custom, people from his home area will be calling on him to personally assist them. With his limited government income he will be expected to respond to any and all constituent requests, from paying for medicines to assisting with fees for a wedding or burial. In its own way, this is the country's social security system: whoever has resources must share them with whoever needs them. This generous custom is like a double-edged sword. Some are discouraged from striving for personal wealth, as their motivation is cut when they think of the prospect of having to give so much of it away. And when there is a naming ceremony, death, marriage, birth or other festival, he also is expected to make the long trek home and offer additional contribution. But Seiko shrugs off what appears to a westerner as a burden: "as a politician, the people put you there, so I have a responsibility. Sometimes people even have to take out a debt in order to help out" he explained. And, as a junior MP, he has to "give out even more."
Asked about some of his biggest concerns and agenda items moving forward in his new role, Seiko responded: "How can I get access to international funding to support the needs of my village and my country?"
International donors form a major part of the Gambia's economic landscape and Seiko has seen the power of private assistance through Marian and Allan's contributions and mobilization of their friends back home. One elderly friend of theirs contributed ten pounds (just under $20) and this paid for malaria medication for 100 children.
(Currently I'm trying to find a good non-profit organization that could effectively manage donations from any interested US friends. If you'd like more information, email me and I can let you know what course of action can be taken.)
If the Gambia's House of Parliament is filled with individuals like Seiko, and if he can maintain his strong sense of responsibility for the well-being of his country, I think there is much to be hopeful about here.
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