Senegal, a West African nation, has decided, following a Parliamentary vote, to postpone its presidential election until December 2024. The announcement was made by President Macky Sall, who earlier confirmed he would not be running for another term after 12 years in office. However, he submitted a bill to the Parliament to postpone the scheduled election.
According to Sall, the need for a delay was necessitated by his reservations regarding the constitutional judges authorising the credible candidates, seeing as they needed to be investigated over potential bribery charges. In his words, “I will initiate an open national dialogue to bring together the conditions for a free, transparent, and inclusive election in a peaceful and reconciled Senegal.”
The decision to defer the election resulted in a chaotic debate recorded by Al Jazeera, with security officials ejecting opposing lawmakers. Other remaining opposition candidates joined together to resist the decision, while presidential candidate Anti Engom asserted, “Nothing can stop us.” However, law enforcement rapidly dispersed her supporters and placed her under arrest, as shown in Al Jazeera’s footage.
Moreover, there have been reports of civil unrest in Dakar’s Liberty district, with citizens resorting to obstructing roads and authorities engaging in tear gas dispersal. Amidst potential escalations in civil agitation, the Senegalese Ministry of Communication, Telecommunication and Digital Economy ordered a government-directed shutdown of mobile internet access, citing “the spread of hateful and subversive messages.”
Samira Daoud, Amnesty International’s Regional Office Director for West and Central Africa, criticized the internet shutdown. She called on Senegalese authorities to preserve and ensure the right to information, terming the shutdown a conspicuous confrontation to freedom of expression and press rights.
A discourse on Senegal’s press freedom took a distinct turn in 2021 when a law imposing stricter regulations on media coverage was enacted, warranting considerable concern from Reporters Without Borders. A glaring example of this was the arrest of a popular crime journalist, which triggered outrage among the media, with 78 African journalists appealing to the Senegal government to release the journalist in respect of Article 10 of the country’s constitution.
On the international stage, two months back, the US Senate presented a resolution encouraging the strengthening of the United States-Senegal relationship and asking the Senegal government to conduct free, fair, transparent and inclusive elections on the initially determined date of February 25, 2024. The election would have been the first in Senegal’s history without an incumbent president contesting for the position.