On February 23, 2024, a resounding chorus of refusals followed Macky Sall’s interview with selected press members. In the interview, the President, who is not widely supported, stated that the date of the upcoming elections would only be determined through dialogue.
During a press conference held by the 16 candidates for the presidential elections selected by the Constitutional Council, the sentiment was unanimous: ‘We will not participate in the dialogue.’
Anta Babacar NGom expressed skepticism, stating that if Macky Sall genuinely sought peace, he could have achieved it effortlessly. “We told you that you don’t need to discuss a date with us,” she said. “You can sit in your presidential palace and choose a date falling before April 2, 2024, and we will have no objection. Besides, we have nothing to discuss with you. We said it last time. We have said it in several press releases and will repeat it: the only meaningful dialogue is the one we will have with the Senegalese people.”
Amadou Ba, spokesperson for the Diomaye President coalition, emphasized, “The Constitutional Council was obvious. He asked the President of the Republic to dialogue with the competent authorities. Referring to competent authorities, the Constitutional Council did not include political actors or other movements in its directive. He wanted the President to dialogue with the General Directorate of Elections (DGE), the Autonomous National Electoral Commission (CENA), prefects, governors, and any other actor concerned by the electoral process to determine a compliant date to the state of distribution of the material… Macky Sall substituted this injunction to dialogue with the competent authorities to delay. This dialogue has no legal basis. This dialogue has no political basis.”
Aly Ngouille Ndiaye, another candidate, added, “I was the Minister of the Interior responsible for organizing the elections in 2019, and I can assure you that elections can be held in March 2024.”
For these candidates, this dialogue is just an excuse for Macky Sall to gain time and stay in power beyond April 2, and they unequivocally refuse to participate in it.
The Front of Candidates for the Presidential Election (FC25) plans to reach out to the Constitutional Council and distribute an open letter directed to the President of the Republic.
The FC25 calls on the Senegalese to respond to the call launched by the Front for the Defense of Democracy, by the F24, and to symbolically mourn and bid farewell to Senegalese democracy by exercising their right to vote this Sunday. This symbolic act aims to convey a strong message in support of democracy and civic participation.
