It is a new year; we hereto first and foremost wish all our esteem readers, friends and acquaintances who journeyed with us through out the rough year ended a blessed New Year. We pray that this New Year brings with it abundance in every good thing for our people.  We further wish to extend our profound gratitude to all those who have been making suggestions and contributions toward the improvement of both quality and character of this column. We are please to acknowledge that your contributions made great impact on our methodology and data analysis.

Our first piece for this year would feature the tales of a community that lies some two hundred kilometers from Banjul. This community presently found itself in the Sami constituency of the Central River Region and is well reckoned with for hospitality, strong community spirit and sheer determination among it indigenes for the accomplishment of desired goals.

Its historical records show that after ultimate sacrifices were paid to trigger the establishment of the community, the forebears left a trademark which makes it a gene in its natives to posses the rigor to thrive through tertiary work.  In this account, we regard the community as home of spirits because of the ideological foundation of the civilization that preceded the genesis of this community. We would however return to this later.   Please enjoy the rest of our findings on the history of the community of Banni.

The foundation
Situated probably one and a half kilometer off the Kololi Kunda Junction just the other end of the Janjanbureh ferry crossing and a kilometer away from its satellite village of Lamin Koto; Banni is surrounded by partially dense forest which still retains its fearful mark of being possessed by spirits.  

The community in the premier constituency demarcation lies with the Niani Constituency; this was however no co-incidence. Inhabitants of the community are of the conviction that and claim their ancestry from the warriors of the kingdom of Kaabu, thus suggesting that the community was part and parcel of the ancient Niani Kingdom of Kaabu.  Up till today, may regard the community as Niani Banni.

Age corrupted the memories of our sources as our repeated attempts to unearth the actual dates and times of when events unfold in regard to the foundation of the community proved futile. In this respect, we could not ascertain when the community of Banni was born. However, the corroborative narrations of sources suggest that the community came into being shortly after the Fula aggressors in a major onslaught brought the Soninke hegemony of Kabbu to its knees and consequently the empire to ruin.  This Fula invasion dubbed the battle of Kansala was fought in 1868.

Attempts to explore the historical rite of passage of the community of Banni returned us to the ancient African civilization when the believe in deities and spirits occupied a significant space in human though, when human development was deemed possible only when human beings reach a compromise between themselves and apparitions so that a friction between this two species of creation would be avoided, a friction which was deemed deadly and tragic for human beings and their societies.

According to sources, during the early days’ of settlement building, the land that today hosts the community of Banni was a thick virgin forest dominated by spirits. The spirits were deemed to be cruel and deadly to the extend that any human being who goes near the forest with intention of clearing it for human settlement or for farming purposes would have to pay the ultimate price, as the spirits would not spare even an inch of land under their possession to human beings. Inhabitants of the nearby communities thereof lived in fear and constant position to the spirits yet primitive conscience would not allow a try from anyone even the most spiritually regarded elders of the communities.
 
After years of living under that demarcated line between human beings and spirits who possess the virgin forest that would soon become a prosperous center for human habitation cam a far away stranger, who would transcend beyond all bounds of primitive dogma and work through his own spiritual route to clean the forest off spirits and transform that plot of land in a human settlement. This man is no other than Alieu Jafuneh, alias Nfally.

Sources say this Alieu Jafuneh hailed from the kingdom of Kaabu in a village called Bonji. Other versions say his bath village is Kanyenchy. He was said to be a renown Islamic scholar and during his early days, he left his paternal home in search of knowledge in dept in Islam and related religious sciences.

This search for knowledge took him first to Sanjali Kanikunda from where he proceeded to Kolibantang in present day Senegal. At Kolibantang, he perfected the learning of the Quran and was graduated by his teacher and allowed to go around the world to fend for self.  His grand marabou (teacher) however told him that his settlement is destined at a faraway land  and if he could endeavor to settle there his society would be prosperous and renowned in the land.

Sources went on to assert that when Alieu Jafuneh (Nfally) left Kolibantang in search of the treasures of life, the journey brought him to temporarily settle at Niani Kunting, where he was lodged by marabou Jammeh Sillah.  He later proceeds to Madina where he also stayed for few years under Foday Ansumana.

His stay at Madina coincided with the era when the Kaabu Kindom was bracing up for total collapse.  It was the time when the Fula combatants marched on the Kingdom.  When Alieu decided to return to Kabu, Foday Ansuman pleaded that Kaabu was at the time in a state of war and as such he cannot go home, but rather stay for another year to see what the endgame would be like.

Alieu Jafuneh accepted this offer and later on made his intentions to permanently create and build his own settlement. His proposal was without reservation granted by his guidance and without much delay set out to search for signs and symbols of his prophesized settlement.  Soon he came close to the forest of spirits, a forest totally abandoned for centuries but the signs therein suggested to him that it was an ideal home for human beings. He then informed his guidance and the grand scholar of Niani Kujew about the proposal but they advice him to stay away from the forest became any intrusion would send him to the grave.

He however would not bow down and was determined to flush out the evil spirits that possess the forest regardless of what ever price he is to pay. He then carved the forest into four yards notably Madina, Baransaung, Badala and Kutafara an instructed his students to begin the clearing, Sources however stated that when Alieu was set to establish the community, he entered into a spiritual investigation of the prospects and threats of what he was about to undertake but in the final analysis, his dreams come true.  Of course it was not without lost of lives and sometimes painful experiences.

Aborigines and expansion
As we earlier stated, Banni was founded by Alieu Jafuneh who is believed to have migrated from the kingdom of Kaabu.  Alieu was a prominent Islamic and hard large following of students. During the early days of settlement, these students clear the forest for their settlement whilst their marabou leader engaged in spiritual protection of the land and driving away the sprits to a far away distance.  

His family and students therefore became the first inhabitants of the community. However, to avoiding paying the ultimate sacrifice (death) for clearing the forest, he was to bring and stay with someone who he does not share the same surnames with.  This according to sources made him offer invitation to the Jobe family to keep him in the company of the new home.  As the virgin forest is transformed into an environment conducive for human habitation, people began migrating from left, right and centre to come and join the founders in enjoying the treasures of a new home.  Today the community is greatly expanding in size and population

The alkaloship
Sources say the founder of the community was a religious leader and had no interest in governance; this made him appointed his uncle Arfang Madi Fatty to become the alikalo of the community. After his demise the alikaloship became an open seat for contest by anyone though age and tracing ancestry to founders are fundamental criteria.  Up till today, the alkaloship remains in the lineage of the founder, who upon consensus are determined to uphold the old good traditional authority, wherein from generation to generation, the regalia of authority is transferred to each other based on age.

African tradition
Banni is one rare community that does not enjoy African traditional practices and philosophies. Our sources noted that the community was built on the foundation of Islam and as such, Islam was the dominant practice of the community since foundation. We could not ascertain any sacred site of ritual, even for a small group of minority.  

Though the peoples believe that spirits once lived in the land that hosts the community is still fresh in the minds of the people. In fact, two nearby bushes namely Sutunding Saybali and Nyali Sutu are still untouched as the inhabitants believe that whosoever clears the bushes for farming will be killed by the spirits.