By Salieu Bojang
According to Makasuba (2023) on ARPS Media, “[KMC] demolition [and arrests] have attracted mixed reactions among Gambians, as some welcomed it while others, mainly the victims of the operation, condemned the act and blamed the government for encouraging poverty in the country” (Para. 3); others welcome the demolishment for occupying the road illegally and for non-compliance (Jallow, 2023, paras. 2–3). The action-reaction pair aroused mixed views due to KMC’s market space creation while unavailing others (Bah, 2023), the foul cry by victims for property destruction and damages (Jallow, 2023), and as claimed (ASP Sisawo, cited in Makasuba, 2023) in ARPS Media, that the operation is for the public good and safety.
Claimed in Mckinzey’s 7-S framework that organizations like the Gambia are a composition of “structures, systems, strategy, skills, staff, style, and shared values,” the author contended that such an organizational reaction is inevitable and thus a change initiative is required of The Gambia. The make-up of its composition is an “intentional structure of roles in a formally organized enterprise and a network of personal and social relations not established or required by the formal organization but arising spontaneously as people associate with one another” (Koontz et al., 1986, pp. 162-164.). The spontaneity is attributed to the constant influx of its elements, which respond to occurring events within or outside it. A reason for the “change process be managed and overcome blockers (Fisher, 2019, para. 9).
Change, as informed by Oreg et al. (2013), “is any adjustment or alteration in an organization [like KMC] that has the potential to influence the organization’s stakeholders’ physical or psychological experience” (as cited in Hodges, 2016, p. 21). The adjustments and alterations result in movements from usual to new ways of doing things (Dawson & Andriopoulos, 2017), as led by Mayor Talib Ahmed Bensouda and President Adama Barrow at the local and central government levels in pursuit of city modernization. Hence, it makes it relevant to investigate such movements for problems, analyze solutions, and trace the impacted and resistant elements to help the change process while reducing negative externalities imposed on it. Doing so would require both parties—the public and the government—to drink their portion of the bitter pill (a bargain for acceptance) for the good of all and the future.
The above pondered our questions about why we are initiating the change now. Can business and people’s cultures cope with the new change? Is the change reinforced for significant stakeholders? How long will the change last? Would such change initiatives be avoided in the future? Are all systems in place to support the change initiative? Is the change initiative an integrated approach to other parts of the country? What city development alternatives are there that should be considered?
Follow the Gambia Center for Research and Policy Studies for future publications pending investigation by the author regarding Gambia’s city (or organizational) development initiatives.
References
Bah, O. (2023, December 6). KMC announces market spaces for demolition-affected traders. Retrieved from:https://arpsmedia.com/kmc-announces-market-spaces-for-demolition-affected-traders/
Dawson, P., & Andriopoulos, C. (2017). Managing change, creativity & innovation (3rd ed.). Sage
Fisher, J. (2019). Resistant to change? The ABC technique. Association of Business Psychology. https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/references/examples/magazine-article-references.
Hodges, J. (2016). Managing and leading people through organizational change: The theory and practice of sustaining change through people. Kogan Page.
Jallow, M. (2023, November 6). 28 people were arraigned in KMC court for violating the road demolition order. Retrieved from: https://arpsmedia.com/28-people-were-arraigned-in-kmc-court-for-violating-the-road-demolition-order/
Koontz, H., O’Donnell, C., & Weihrich, H. (1986). Essentials of Management (4th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Makasuba, A. (2023, November 15). Seven people were brought before the KMC court for violating the road demolition order. Retrieved from: https://arpsmedia.com/seven-people-were-brought-before-the-kmc-court-for-violating-the-road-demolition-order/
