- Bashirou Diomai Fay, a former tax auditor and political novice, has been elected president of Senegal.
- Mr. Fay, 44, was released a few weeks ago and his presidential campaign was backed by popular left-wing opposition leader Ousmane Sonko.
- Sonko himself was barred from running due to his criminal record, but the election was largely perceived as a political ploy by the outgoing government of Macky Sall.
Senegal woke up on Tuesday to the voice of its new president, Bashir Diomaie Faye. He is a former tax inspector and political newcomer who was released just weeks ago, emboldening voters, many of them unemployed young people, who vow to fight corruption and reform the country. economy.
Fay jumped into the presidential race with the support of popular opposition leader Ousmane Sonko, who was barred from running because of his criminal record. When he delivered his first speech as president-elect on Monday night, it marked a dramatic rise for the 44-year-old, who is set to become the West African nation’s youngest leader.
“I pledge to govern with humility and transparency and to fight corruption at all levels. I pledge to do everything in my power to rebuild the system,” he said, reiterating his campaign promise.
Senegal’s former prime minister concedes to opposition candidate in presidential election
Official results of Sunday’s vote are not yet in, but the other front-runner, a former prime minister backed by incumbent President Macky Sall, has conceded defeat. Sal followed with his congratulations and named Faye the winner.
The election comes after months of uncertainty caused by the arrests of Mr. Fay and Mr. Sonko last year and concerns that the president would seek a third term despite constitutional term limits. I was disappointed. The violence has shaken Senegal’s reputation as a stable democracy in a region plagued by coups. Human rights groups said dozens of people were killed and about 1,000 jailed in the protests.
Bashir Diomai Fay holds a press conference after winning the presidential election in Dakar, Senegal, Monday, March 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Mosaab Elshamy)
Considered an anti-establishment candidate, Fay’s campaign message of economic reform and anti-corruption resonated with young people. Almost a third of young people are unemployed and thousands are risking their lives on dangerous journeys to find work in Western countries.
Mr. Fay vowed to improve Senegal’s natural resource management by promoting state-owned enterprises to prevent the country from falling into what his camp calls “economic enslavement.” In his manifesto, he promised to renegotiate Senegal’s oil and gas contracts and introduce a new currency.
On Monday night, Fay outlined several early foreign policy priorities, including reforming the troubled West African regional bloc known as ECOWAS.
Rida Lyamouri of the Center for New Southern Policy, a Morocco-based think tank, said, “The opposition’s victory also means major changes in domestic and foreign policy going forward,” adding that the country must commit to secession from its former colonial power, France. added that it is possible. He defines the foreign policy of the country’s new government.
The election was largely peaceful, with early counts showing voters overwhelmingly supported the opposition. Sonko vowed a landslide victory on his YouTube channel. By Monday evening, Fay’s victory had been declared in Dakar, and celebrations erupted near the capital, with supporters dancing, playing music and setting off fireworks.
Faye’s roots are in a small town in central Senegal. He is a Muslim and has two wives. Ahead of Sunday’s election, Mr. Fay released his own financial statements and called on other candidates to do the same. It lists his home in Dakar and his homeland on the outskirts of the capital. He has about $6,600 in his bank account.
After studying law and graduating from Senegal’s National School of Public Administration in 2004, Fay became a tax auditor. At this time, he met Mr. Sonko, also a tax inspector, and joined his newly formed political party, PASTEF. He quickly became a prominent figure within the party and was appointed general secretary in 2021.
“I can even say that he is more honest than me. I am leaving the project in his hands,” Sonko told supporters at a joint press conference last March. A few weeks later, Fay was arrested and imprisoned on various charges, including defamation.
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Mr Fay paid tribute to Mr Sonko in a speech, but declined to say what role he would play in the government.
