By Sainabou Sambou
Gambian writer Sulayman Jeng has published his first novel, The Shadow of the Mansa, a story of power, fear, corruption, prejudice, accountability and freedom set in the fictional African society of Kankary Kunda.
In an interview with The Alkamba Times, Jeng said the book draws on realities experienced across Africa, including political coercion, betrayal, police brutality and social divisions. Born and raised in Basse to the late Alhagie Balabo Jeng and Ajaratou Fatou Dasseh Sam, he attended Nasir Ahmadiyya Muslim High School and Gambia College before teaching at Brikama Secondary School. He later served in the Gambia Police Force as a Cadet ASP and now works as a registered manager of a children’s home in Dudley, United Kingdom.
The struggle against dictatorship was a key inspiration. “Fear is a heavy chain, but chains break when enough people pull together,” Jeng said, underscoring his belief that political power ultimately belongs to the people. The central figure, the Mansa, is an authoritarian ruler whose word becomes law. The character was shaped by leaders such as Idi Amin, Robert Mugabe and Yahya Jammeh. Jeng created the fictional setting to develop characters freely, stressing that even those with Gambian names are invented.
Ordinary citizens drive the change in the novel. Freedom, he argues, is never handed over by oppressors; the oppressed must reclaim it. He warns that ignoring others’ problems eventually brings those problems to one’s own door. The book also examines how political divisions spill into families and marriage, and how love can become resistance, as seen in Jabou and Mbarodi’s relationship.
Jeng sees the family as the foundation of an accountable society. Children learn honesty and responsibility at home, he said, and self-reliance is essential to true freedom—owning one’s mind rather than letting others decide. He challenges citizens to understand their rights, vote on policies and character, reject corruption and speak out against injustice.
African writers, he believes, must tell African stories from African perspectives and offer solutions suited to local realities. “What may work well in the UK cannot quick-fix a similar issue in The Gambia.” Accountability remains one of the continent’s biggest challenges, he added, citing poor public information on how taxes are spent and leaders’ tendency to seek scapegoats.
Time was Jeng’s greatest obstacle; he balanced work, family and studies while writing the novel from around 2016. Three poetry manuscripts are ready for publication. He hopes Gambian readers will recognize the story as their own. In three sentences, he describes the book as a cosmopolitan tale set in Africa that depicts love, accountability, prejudice and fear.
