The “Sonko Movement” regroups around Basirou Diomey Faye

They are stunned but not defeated. Supporters of his rival Ousmane Sonko are demanding a parade after Senegal’s Constitutional Council released on Saturday, January 20, the final list of candidates for the February 25 presidential election, which did not include the name of their candidate. Appear. Champion.

Unsurprisingly, the Sages declined to run for mayor of Ziguinchor, due to his final six-month suspended prison sentence on January 4, making him “ineligible for five years”, in a case opposed by Mame Mbay Niang, the minister. Tourism and Leisure.

The list published by the Constitutional Council ends three years of interminable political-judicial soap opera and violent standoff between the state and the rival, denouncing a conspiracy to prevent him from participating in the elections.

Imprisoned since late July for inciting rebellion, criminal conspiracy and endangering state security, Osman Sonko was also sentenced in June to two years in prison for “corruption of the youth”, but was acquitted of the rape charge in Masaj. Parlor in Dakar.

After several months punctuated by demonstrations and deadly incidents, Osmane Sonko’s party, Osmane Sonko’s party, dissolved on July 31, 2023, is now calling on his supporters to calm down and focus on the presidential election. “We demand the holy union of all the opposition, who have been excluded, for the position of an independent body to organize the elections, but most importantly, we must vote, Basirou Dimaye Faye. Being a candidate, he is “it. Ousmane Sonko who is the candidate”, reacted to RFI Biram Solei Diop, vice-president of the dissolved party.

Officially appointed in November as ex-Pastef’s Plan B, Basirou Diomey Faye, who is also imprisoned, had his candidacy ratified by the Constitutional Council on Saturday. A co-founder of Pastef in 2014, this former tax inspector from Senegal’s National School of Administration is considered very close to Ousmane Sonko, sharing a similar anti-system discourse linked to religious orthodoxy. A copy that prompts some of its detractors to call it a “clone”.

Unprecedented situation of “prisoner-candidate”.

At 43, the former trade unionist appears to be the most legitimate candidate to take over. “He is a long-time ally of Sonko, with a very similar background, who not only benefits from the party’s base, but who was also at the top of the Pastef structure,” analyzes political scientist Gilles Yabi, who is the institute’s founder. Wathi, a Dakar-based civilian think tank. “They embody the Sonko movement, i.e. the youth and the desire for renewal of the political class.”

However, the candidacy of the mayor’s right-hand man of Zinguinchor is not without its many drawbacks. Defeated in its municipality in the 2022 local elections, the “BDF” has no electoral base and seems far from achieving the popularity of the influential Osman Sonko.

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His status as a “prisoner-candidate” also raised doubts about his ability to lead his campaign. Basirou Diomey Faye has also been in prison since last April for “contempt of court” and “defamation against a corporate body”. In a message on Facebook, he criticized several magistrates in their handling of the case between Osmane Sonko and Tourism Minister, Mame Mbe Niang.

“The law does not provide provisions for candidates in this situation. He risks campaigning from prison, unless the President of the Republic arranges an extraordinary situation to allow him to leave temporarily,” suggests AFP constitutionalist Babacar Nguyen.

This unprecedented situation may give opportunity to other alternative applications. Habib Sy, a former member of the Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS), is also one of the credible options, as is Ousmane Sonko’s former spokesman, Chekh Tidiane Deye, during the 2019 presidential election. These two candidates have also been approved on Saturday evening. Constitutional Council.

“From now on, it is expected that the candidates will withdraw in favor of someone who will have the support of Osman Sonko. He is the one who will make the final choice and appoint the one who will wear the colors of the former Pastef. From my point of view “From one point of view, the fact that Osman Sonko Not being a candidate himself, that does not mean that Sonko will not represent the movement well and pose a real threat to the outgoing candidates. power”, estimates Gilles Yabi.

A “very open” election

According to analysts, with less than a month and a half to go, uncertainty hangs over the outcome of these two rounds of elections. Senegal has never experienced an election with so many contenders, a total of twenty compared to the five chosen in 2019. Another unprecedented fact: President Mackey Saul, elected for seven years in 2012, and re-elected in 2019, announced in July that he would not run. Show again.

To succeed him, the outgoing head of state has nominated Prime Minister Amadou Ban, but some heavyweights from the majority are opposing the choice, including former Prime Minister Mohamed Bouun Abdullah Dion and former minister Elie Ngoule Ndia, who are among the 20 shortlisted candidates. is involved. .

“This is an election that promises to be very open. Despite the impossibility of Osmane Sonko and Karim Wade as candidates, we still have a diverse political offer. But in an election like this, the question of financial means will play a role, control of the media space. As, which can go in the direction of candidate and Prime Minister Amadou Bani”, Judge Gilles Yabi.

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“There remain concerns about the credibility of voter lists and the integrity of the electoral process itself,” the political scientist adds. “This should be a priority for all political forces and civil society: to ensure that there will be a transparent process in Senegal and that everyone who wants to vote will have the opportunity to do so.”

In a report published on Monday, the NGO Human Rights Watch (HRW) expressed concern about the worsening climate as the February 25 deadline approaches, condemning “repression against protests, media and civil society”.

“President Macky Saul’s promise to hold free and fair elections is at odds with the fact that authorities have been filling prisons with hundreds of political opponents for three years,” writes the human rights NGO.

The allegations were brushed aside by the justice minister, speaking in Geneva before the Human Rights Council during a periodic review of the country’s situation.

Without referring to the HRW report, Aïssata Tall Sall assured that in her country “all political and opinion freedoms (were) recognized, accepted and exercised” and that the presidential election would be held “with peace, stability and republicanism and compliance.” Democratic principles.