There are acts that a man performs that remain forever engraved in our memories and spirits. They are landmarks for generations and generations to come, founding acts that elevate a man from the status of a mere individual to that of a legend who will have set a pace, breathe a wind of possibility and helped to carry it all higher through his righteous actions. What President Macky Sall did in his historic speech on 3 July 2023 should be seen as a strong pillar that one man built to further consolidate Senegal’s democratic model and give the country a legacy on which to build institutional stability. As guardian of the Republic, he will have rekindled the faith of thousands of children of a land cherished above all else. He will have spurred on columns of Senegal-lovers who may have lost their way at times with the incessant calls for chaos and all the attempts to destroy what makes this country of union in diversity unique.

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None is a prophet in his own house, as the saying goes, and no one is appreciated as a hero for the true worth of his time. I am firmly convinced that the truth of history and the test of time will be the perfect witnesses to re-establish Macky Sall’s action at the head of Senegal. In a twelve-year reign, Macky Sall has made action his best response. He has always distanced himself from sterile noise, incessant polemics and contradictory arguments fuelled by the simple pleasure of taking the opposite view. He has never allowed adversity to become a visceral hatred, which has become a doctrine in the Senegalese public arena to justify every denial, every tortuosity, every villainy and every dirty trick. He has made patient silence his weapon in the face of all adversity. He has made constructive interventions his response to every confusing situation. He has allowed time to be the best judge of his love of Senegal, the full measure of the office he holds and the historic responsibilities incumbent upon him.

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With Macky Sall, Senegal can proudly proclaim that it has had a great leader who knew how to cash in, take action to improve the well-being of the greatest number and, above all, give fair opportunities and starting positions to populations that had long been neglected. The orientation of the public policies conducted in this country over the last twelve years, with a strong emphasis on socio-economic inclusion, equity between territories and democratisation of access to resources and services, shows the concern of a child of the People who, with age and experience, has matured into a man of the Nation. This son of the real country has made himself the servant of the little hands and will have no qualms about believing that the masses are entitled to everything in a Republic.

You have to be one of the people, to have toiled like them, to know their sufferings, their sorrows, their fears and their insecurities, to be able to serve them by giving them the foundations of everything that makes them dignified. You have to know Senegal in all its depths, and be tested by all its sorrows, to know that nothing is too great in the service of giving people dignity. You have to grow up proud of who you are so that you don’t deny yourself when faced with the gilding of power. You have to have endured everything with dignity and patience to brush aside all the vile attacks, and above all not let them get to you.

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I’m in the habit of telling friends that if Macky Sall were an American, people would have sold him and his career as the best example of a lifetime’s dreams. At all the stations he has passed through, the man has known how to be a patient listener, useful to his community and lucid in his judgement. He is a hero whose story we should have no qualms about telling and sharing. The distance between him and us, as well as the seriousness of his presidential mantle, may put him out of our mould and make him an inaccessible titan, but the approach of humanity and the invitation to restraint and normalcy that he imposes through his actions show that there are many things to learn from him.

One day, I will be able to proudly tell other generations of Senegalese that our country was once led by a great man in the person of Macky Sall, who has made keeping one’s word the supreme value in Senegalese politics. He will have shown that you can come from humble beginnings, reach all the summits on earth and still have a good head on your shoulders. He will make sincere hard work a viaticum for public action. He will show that generosity towards a People necessarily involves creating opportunities to enable them to retain their dignity. He will disqualify all the vices of adversity by always standing above the fray and systematically refusing to play the same game as the mules. He will make respect for traditions, elders and the values that underpin the whole ideal of a People, a vocation.

The « Senegalese all in all », as he proudly calls himself, the fruit of a meeting of our peoples and moulded in the spirit of humility, sacrifice and selflessness that are the essence of the Senegal of our lands, will have shown us that all our dreams and ambitions for this land are within reach. We are happy that he has shown us the way to progress. Hamidou Anne said in these columns that President Issoufou, when he announced that he was leaving the Presidency of Niger, was declaring that he was taking a major step forward for Niger. Macky Sall will have taken Senegal further into the pantheon of lands where republican and democratic ideals are safe and jealously protected. Macky Sall’s watch is drawing to a close, and it has been a most honourable one.

By Serigne Saliou DIAGNE / saliou.diagne@lequotidien.sn

  • Translation by Ndey T. SOSSEH