QUESTION OF THE DAY
The duty of a representative is to serve the people. When it comes to the National Assembly members, Section 112 of the Constitution states:
“The responsibilities of the members of the National Assembly shall include the following –
(a) all members shall maintain the dignity of the National Assembly both during the sittings of the National Assembly and in their acts and activities outside the National Assembly;
{b) all members shall regard themselves as servants of the people of The Gambia, desist from any conduct by which they seek improperly to enrich themselves or alienate themselves from the people, and shall discharge their duties and functions in the interest of the nation as a whole and in doing so shall be influenced by the dictates of conscience and the national interest.”
Members of Civil society should take the actions of representatives to the people and ask them whether they are in agreement with them or not. It is the people who are the final judges of the actions of their representatives. Hence civil society is fit for purpose if its members keep the people informed and outspoken in telling their representatives what they agree or do not agree with. This will determine their verdict.
