The Gambia: Of culture and crocodiles

The Gambia: Of culture and crocodiles



ANYBODY coming into The Gambia for the first time will hardly believe that there is more to this ode of natural beauty than the rowdiness of the Banjul International Airport, crawling with Europeans and their Gambian escorts smoking at every corner of the airport as if in a cigarette smoking contest.

Richly endowed with white beaches, water, flora and fauna, The Gambia is a nation at peace with itself though there are infrastructural challenges here and there.

Dubbed the smiling coast of West Africa, the nation has come a long way with its history dating back to 9th and 10th centuries AD. Historically, The Gambia was once upon a time part of the old Mali Empire. Between 1651 and 1661, part of the country was indirectly a colony of Polish – Lithuanian Commonwealth. The Courtlanders according to history settled on Kunta Kinteh Island once known as James Island, which they called Saint Andrew’s Island and used it as a trade base from 1651 until its capture by the English in 1661. In 1888, The Gambia became a separate colonial entity. A year later, an agreement with France established the present boundaries, and the nation became a British Crown Colony, divided for administrative purposes into the colony (city of Banjul and the surrounding area) and the protectorate (remainder of the territory).

Back to the present. From the Banjul International Airport to the city of Serrekunda, the well – constructed road with street lights adorning both sides of the road are sights to behold especially in the night. Coming from Nigeria where our oil wealth has not translated into good roads despite huge sums of money budgeted by every successive government, one cannot but appreciate the beauty of Gambian roads. Throughout our long drive to Serrekunda, there was no experience of our vehicle running into any pothole. It was as if we were driving on a sheet of thick glass. And one is tempted to ask: what is actually wrong with our leaders in Nigeria? The Gambia has no oil wells, tourism is the only major industry and yet the leaders are able to manage the scarce resources for the well being of the masses.

Religion

Gambians are predominantly Moslems. The country is a study in religious harmony. Boko Haram extremists of northern Nigeria would faint with shock at the sight of churches and mosques standing side by side without generating bad blood and religious conflagration. Boko Haram may have sent innocent Nigerians to their early graves but the greatest damage is the fear of Islam the group has successfully instilled in the hearts of other Nigerians who are not Moslems. In The Gambia, Islam does not evoke fear. There, I saw another face of Islam totally different from what Boko Haram and their political sponsors have painted about that ancient religion. Religious freedom in The Gambia requires that you must let your neighbour practice his religion of choice without fear of persecution or being killed. Most Gambians are inter – related, regardless of their religious backgrounds. It is not uncommon to find Moslems and Christians in wedlock. Statistically speaking, 85 per cent of Gambians are Moslems. And yet churches are found every where without official restriction. Most of the big Pentecostal churches in Nigeria are fully represented there. And they operate without fear of being bombed or their members beheaded. Cry our beloved Nigeria. Religious fanactics are not at all welcomed in The Gambia according to the citizens. Gambian society frowns on religious extremism and believes that citizens are free to belong to any religious group of their choice whichever they belong among the eight distinct but harmonious ethnic groups like the Mandinka, Wollof, Fula, Jola, Sarahula, Serere, Manjago and Creole.

Wildlife and culture

River Gambia National Park encompasses five small Islands dominated by gallery forests, seasonal swamp and savannah. The park is a home to chimpanzees rescued from around the world and now boasts three generations of wild born chimpanzees. The nation is blessed with 500 species of birds living within six protected areas aggregating about 40,000 hectres nation wide, under the protection of the Department of Parks and Wild Life.

Kachikally Crocodile Pool and Museum is an old establishment and still visitors all over the world are trooping in on daily basis to see the cultural and spiritual side of The Gambia. Located in the centre of the serene ancient forest is a large silk cotton tree which houses the spirit of the forest called Mai and just a walk away from the tree is a pool of water hundreds of metres deep.


Covered with water hyacinths, the pool is a habitat to over 100 crocodiles. Huge and fear – inducing crocodiles move about lazily around the vicinity of the pool to sunbathe. And curious visitors are permitted to touch them. Crocodile worship is as old as the country itself. A lot of ancient stories told by griots are woven around these massive reptiles. Apart from occupying a pride of place among the pantheon of the people, crocodile is the national symbol of The Gambia.

Pool escorts made up of young men from different ethnic groups often warn visitors to the groove not to get closer to the female crocodiles to avoid being mangled. In the words of Musa, a 20-something-year-old escort, “If the crocodiles are hungry, they can be very aggressive. We feed them once a day on a diet of 250 kilogrammes of fishes. If the females are pregnant, they can be very wild and dangerous. We don’t allow people to get closer to the female crocodiles especially during their season of laying eggs. There is an albino crocodile inside the pool, but it comes out once in a blue moon.

There is a lot of spiritual angles to these crocodiles. Most of the politicians in The Gambia come to bathe with the water from the pool for power to win elections. Politicians from Nigeria, Ghana and Senegal often sneak into this place to obtain spiritual powers from the crocodiles. Couples looking for fruits of the womb have always conceived after bathing with water from the pool. When a child is conceived as a result of water fetched from the pool, the child must be brought back for a spiritual bath by the parents. Water from the crocodile pool cannot be taken home. There is a bathroom near the pool where intended users will enter and have their bath. Nobody pays for this service but money can be given to the pool escorts for feeding the crocodiles.”

It is on record that the British, Canadians, Americans, Belgians have made use of the water from the pool to solve their infertility problems. The pool was swarming with Europeans at the time of the visit.

Dogs of The Gambia

The commonest domestic animals in the whole of The Gambia are dogs. Dogs roam about the streets in groups in search of food. The dogs are very dirty and big in size. Huge as they are, they neither bark nor bite. But their size can scare even the most stout- hearted.

Local legend has it that in the days of yore, The Gambia was at war with another nation. The campaign was bloody and enemies began to retreat. As the enemies fled from the war zone, Gambians gave them a hot chase but could not overtake the enemies as they were fleet – footed. A marabout was consulted to empower Gambians to run after the fleeing enemies. And the marabout informed the warriors that he would turn them to dogs to be able to run and overtake their enemies. The warriors agreed and the marabout turned them into fierce – looking dogs. Gambians - turned – dogs ran after their enemies and slaughtered them. But the victory song turned to sorrow as death threw spanner into the works. The marabout had died before human dogs returned from the campaign. And all the warriors remained dogs hence the entire landscape is littered with stray dogs. And nobody harms them for any reason.

Lunchbreak in The Gambia

A visit to Farrafenni after a harrowing experience of sailing from Banjul to Barra on an old, rickety ferry that carries anything from humans to cattles, trailers loaded with granites was like an excursion to the gate of hell. Hot and very dry, Farrafenni residents move about in carts pulled by horses and donkeys. Our driver escort, Jallow, a rastafarian kept swerving from left to right to avoid hitting bulls which walk about the long stretch of well-tarred roads without any herdsman. The few policemen and women we encountered on the road did not even look at our direction though they knew we were foreigners. Our bags did not call for their attention which would have been the first object of an inquisition