“There has been disappointment since the Assembly allowed the postponement of the presidential election”

Published on: 06/02/2024 – 18:44

5 minutes

Tensions have risen further in Senegal. On the night of Monday February 5 to Tuesday February 6, the Assembly voted in an electric atmosphere, aiming to postpone the presidential election until December 15, 2024. A decision that sinks the country, considered an island of stability in West Africa. , into the unknown and raises the danger of the boiling point.

In a speech to the nation, Senegalese President Macky Saele announced a few days ago that he was revoking the order calling for an electoral college on February 25. Senegalese then learned on Monday that their head of state will remain in office until his successor is installed, as determined by another provision of the law ratified by Senegalese elected officials present during the vote.

Some of them, the opposition parliamentarians, were actually kicked out of the democratic enclave by the racists. Gathering around the platform, these elected officials physically obstructed the vote. The text was adopted without him and received only one vote against. Despite hours of banter, there was no debate on the pros and cons.

For the presidential camp, the decision to postpone the presidential election is the only way to preserve the credibility of the election. Believing Senegal “cannot afford a new crisis” after episodes of violence in March 2021 and June 2023, President Macky Sele on Saturday announced the establishment of a “national dialogue” for “free, transparent elections and inclusive”, reaffirming his commitment. Don’t run for office.

Postponing the vote is intended to “avoid institutional instability and serious political unrest” and lead to a “full resumption of the electoral process”, preparatory committee deputies suggested in a report on Monday. Postponing this for more than six months makes it possible to take into account “country realities”, especially in the middle of the rainy season, the difficulty of conducting election campaigns between July and November, or clashes with large religious groups. Festivals, underlines the report.

The opposition, for its part, criticized the political maneuvering that allowed the president to retain power.

The law, passed by parliament on Monday, must now be approved by the Senegalese Constitutional Council before being promoted.

For its part, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) said on Tuesday that it had “encouraged” member country Senegal to immediately restore the presidential calendar.

To better understand the consequences of this political upheaval, France 24 interviewed Alune Tine, a United Nations independent expert on human rights, head of the AfricaJom Center think tank in Dakar.

France 24 : Is this political crisis unprecedented in Senegal? ?

Alune Tne : Since independence (1960), all successive presidents have respected the date for holding presidential elections. We have never had an adjournment (except for the two-month adjournment set by Léopold Sedar Senghor in 1967 to introduce the power to dissolve the National Assembly by the President of the Republic, editor’s note). Presidential election is something sacred. Mackey Sale’s real desire is to extend his presidential mandate at any cost, and through means that are completely unconstitutional.

By voting on a bill postponing the election until December 15, 2024, the National Assembly overturned the decision of the Constitutional Council (which had approved the list of twenty candidates). This is extremely shocking, we did not expect it. It was done with forceps. The law was adopted without debate. Elected officials of the opposition were expelled from the National Assembly by the gendarmerie. And so, it is with the help of Lingmari and law enforcement that we are slowly establishing a form of dictatorship that is completely new in Senegal. It’s a shocking image not entirely unrelated to military coups (as in some countries in the region in recent years).

What will happen now ? What can the opposition do? ? Is she able to collect ?

What Senegalese felt yesterday is grief. We are witnessing the death of our democracy. We have opened an era of uncertainty and potential chaos. People here are sad and angry. Ever since the National Assembly approved the postponement of the election, there has been an uproar. No Senegalese can tolerate what happened.

People are extremely shocked and trying to organize, they are trying to mobilize. They have started demonstrations since Sunday itself. As for the twenty candidates accepted by the Constitutional Council, some decided to campaign as if there were to be an election. And they appealed to the Constitutional Council against this law, which is totally unconstitutional.

In your opinion, have we reached a tipping point? ? Can Senegalese President Mackie Sell Reverse Course? ?

We don’t know what will happen because people are now organizing and resisting. I fear violence and political tension will lead to unintended consequences. In any case, Mackie seems determined to follow through on his logic of postponing the sale.

with AFP