The opposition leader and mayor of the Senegalese city of Ziguinchor, Ousmane Sonko, did not appear Thursday at the hearing for the process against him for alleged defamation, following the lawsuit filed by the Minister of Tourism, Mame Mbaye Niang.
The minister, who did appear in court, has complained that Sonko claimed that his name appeared in a report by the General State Inspectorate for alleged embezzlement, accusations that he rejects outright, according to the Senegalese state news agency, APS.
The Prosecutor’s Office has also accused Sonko, who will be one of the opposition candidates in the presidential elections scheduled for 2024, of «insults» and «false use of an administrative document», as reported by the newspaper ‘Libération’.
The Senegalese authorities had reinforced the security arrangements around the court in view of the appearance of the opponent, who is also being tried in a case of alleged rape and death threats.
Sonko, leader of the Senegalese Patriots for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (PASTEF), was arrested in 2021 after some twenty opposition parliamentarians lodged an appeal with the Constitutional Court against the withdrawal of his parliamentary immunity.
The arrest of the opponent, who came third in the 2019 presidential elections, sparked a wave of protests that resulted in several deaths. He was eventually released, although proceedings against him are still ongoing.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
