For a fortnight, his supporters had been reigniting their hopes of seeing their leader run in the presidential election on February 25. However, on Thursday, January 4, a new obstacle stood in the way of the country's main opposition figure. In an interminable political-judicial soap opera, the Senegalese Supreme Court upheld Ousmane Sonko's suspended six-month prison sentence and a fine of 200 million CFA francs (€305,000) in damages.
The sentence was confirmed on appeal in May 2023 in a case of "defamation, insults and forgery" that pitted the outspoken leader of the African Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (Pastef) party (dissolved in July) against Tourism Minister Mame Mbaye Niang. At the end of 2022, Sonko alleged he was implicated by a report from the Inspectorate General of Finances for mismanagement when he was coordinating a government agricultural program.
With two weeks to go before the final publication of the list of presidential candidates, the Supreme Court's decision seriously compromises the eligibility of the opponent who has been in detention since July 29 on a number of charges, including "calling for insurrection". According to the Electoral Code, people sentenced to a suspended sentence of six months or less are ineligible for five years.
"Sonko's opponents have succeeded in their objective of eliminating him from the presidential election," responded Cheikh Khoureychi Ba, a member of the opposition lawyers' association, looking defeated as he left a long hearing that ended late on Thursday night. "Very disappointed" by the court's decision, Ciré Clédor Ly denounced "a state conspiracy," "but Sonko will not fall," said the lawyer, who considers the challenge to his client's eligibility to be "premature." He cited a provision of the Electoral Code to argue that the trial court should have expressly indicated the loss of Sonko's electoral status.
Al-Hadj Diouf, representing Mame Mbaye Niang, could not conceal his satisfaction with the Supreme Court's decision. "We have just won a great and important victory," he exclaimed.
Sonko's defense was confident before this hammer blow. "The Senegalese can rest easy," declared Al-Malick Ndiaye, Pastef's general secretary for communications, in an interview with a private media outlet a few days ago. Lawyers for Senegal's main opposition party argued that an article of the country's penal code punishing defamation of a government official was unconstitutional. They hoped to delay the Supreme Court's ruling until after the question of their client's candidacy for the presidential elections had been decided.
The Constitutional Council is currently examining the files of the 93 candidates for the February 25 election. On Friday, it is due to rule on the validity of the Pastef leader's sponsorship and indicate whether his candidacy file is complete, before examining it on its merits and publishing the final list of candidates by January 20 at the latest.
While this case will not definitively settle the opposition politician's chances of taking part in the election, it will provide a first indication. Sonko filed a candidacy application at the last minute, following a mid-December court ruling ordering his re-registration on the electoral roll. But this application contains neither an official sponsorship form nor a certificate for the deposit. Instead, his camp attached a list of sponsors, a receipt for the security deposit and bailiff's affidavits of the refusals of the Direction générale des élections ("General Directorate of Elections") and the Caisse des dépôts et consignation ("Deposit and consignment office") to provide these documents, theoretically essential for candidacy.
Despite the uncertainties surrounding his ability to stand, Sonko was nominated by his coalition on Sunday at a private venue, behind closed doors, after the authorities banned the public rally scheduled for Saturday. To face Prime Minister Amadou Ba, the candidate of President Macky Sall's majority, Pastef's ex-leader has drawn up backup plans. The party has put forward the candidacy of its number two, Bassirou Diomaye Faye. It is also backing the candidacy of Habib Sy, their coalition ally in the Yewwi Askan Wi opposition coalition.
Translation of an original article published in French on lemonde.fr; the publisher may only be liable for the French version.