SENEGAL’S NEXT PRESIDENT VOWS TO GOVERN WITH HUMILITY
DAKAR - Bassirou Diomaye Faye, Senegal’s President-elect made his first public appearance on Monday evening after the ruling coalition’s candidate Amadou Ba conceded defeat.
“The Senegalese people have chosen to break with the past, to give substance to the immense hopes raised by our vision of society. I hope that our vision of society has given substance to their aspirations. I pledge to govern with humility and transparency, and to fight corruption at all levels.”
Faye thanked President Macky Sall and other candidates for respecting Senegal’s democratic tradition by recognising his victory well before official results.
Provisional results had shown the opposition leader on 53.7 percent of the vote from Sunday’s (March 24) election compared to Ba’s 36.2 percent. Sall and Ba hailed the outcome as a win for Senegal.
The country has witnessed three years of unprecedented political turbulence marked by violent anti-government protests.
Further unrest was triggered when Sall attempted to postpone Sunday’s presidential election by ten months. “We intend to turn this page, to reconcile hearts, to reconcile the Senegalese people.”
Faye was backed by popular opposition leader Ousmane Sonko. He had been barred from running in the election due to a defamation conviction he says was politically motivated, which the authorities denied.
Faye and Sonko, who were recently released from prison under a pre-election amnesty law, are particularly popular among the youth, disaffected by economic hardships and unemployment.
Faye promised to dedicate more state resources to help the younger population. His campaign has also promised an economic shake-up including a new currency and the renegotiation of energy and mining contracts.