The call follows a court judgement in Dakar that voided the president’s decision to suspend presidential election that sparked condemnation from ECOWAS and international communities
By Bashir Aliyu
West African regional bloc ECOWAS has called on the authorities in Senegal to heed the verdict delivered by the country’s constitutional court that said the decision to suspend presidential election in Senegal is unconstitutional, calling on all the stakeholders in the country to ensure the stability and reputation of Senegal, known as the ones of the most stable democracies in Africa, is not undermined.
ECOWAS, which has previously said the postponement went against Senegal’s democratic tradition, urged “all stakeholders in the electoral process to comply with the decision of the Constitutional Council and called on the competent authorities to set a date for the presidential election.”
It was not clear whether President Macky Sall would respect the ruling and set a new date for the presidential election. The president has reiterated his position that he has no plan to stay in power, and the suspension of the presidential election was borne out of the need to assert national unity after a number of prominent opposition figures are banned from running in the election.
“The answer lies in the Constitutional Council’s decision, which calls on the competent authorities to set a new date for organising the elections as soon as possible,” Sall’s spokesperson Abdou Karim Fofana told journalists.
The opposition have hailed the Constitutional Court’s verdict, and called for elections to be held before April 2 when the tenure of the outgoing president would end.
The pressure from ECOWAS comes as the regional bloc signals it is in talks with Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger over the withdrawal from the community which the commission said was hasty and the withdrawal was ill-thought, and could only hurt the countries and further threaten the stability of the region as a whole.
Nigerian President Bola Ahmad Tinubu raised the stake when he warned against any actions that could jeopardize decades of unity and integration that turned West African country into a single family united by brotherhood, culture and history.
“The drive for a peaceful, strong, and united West Africa is bigger than any one person or group of people. The bonds of history, culture, commerce, geography, and brotherhood hold deep meaning for our people. Thus, out of the dust and fog of misunderstanding and acrimony, we must seize the chance to create a new people-centric era of trust and accord.” the president said.
“To all who care to listen, I declare that if you come to the table to discuss important matters in good faith, you will find Nigeria and ECOWAS already sitting there waiting to greet you as the brother that you are,” he added.
