About a hundred political and civil society organizations in Senegal have launched a coalition against the possibility of President Macky Sall running for a third term in the 2024 elections, which they consider unconstitutional.
Mamadou Mbodj, coordinator of this new coalition, Senegal F24, has indicated that the coalition is composed of 112 »entities». Among its leaders are prominent opposition leader Ousmane Sonko and former Prime Minister Aminata Touré, as well as two of the main associations for the defense of human rights in Senegal.
Senegal F24’s mission is to mobilize the Senegalese citizens to achieve Sall’s respect for the Constitution and his word», its leaders state in a declaration, in reference to the Senegalese president’s previous declarations about not running for a third term in office.
They have also demanded the »suppression» of all the articles of the electoral law and the »legal-political artifices» which »could be susceptible» to authorize Sall’s candidacy, as well as »the release of the political detainees and the end of the prohibition of demonstrations» in order to create »optimal and consensual conditions for calm, inclusive and transparent elections».
Sall affirmed in early April that he is »open to dialogue» to address the political crisis in the country following the last weeks of protests against the trial of Sonko — sentenced to two months in prison for defamation against the Minister of Tourism — and the possibility of his running for a third term in the 2024 elections.
The president further rejected allegations about the possibility of violating the two-term limit in case he would run for re-election and stressed that »on the legal level, the debate has been closed for a long time». However, he specified that he has not yet decided whether he will run again.
The opposition has denounced on several occasions that the president plans to run for a third term. The Senegalese Constitution limits the total number of terms to two and an attempt to extend his stay in power could lead to instability.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
