Ousmane Sonko has been embroiled in a two-year battle with the state, and was placed under a committal order by the Dean of judges, spending last night in prison. This imprisonment, coupled with the dissolution of the Pastef party, is taking him further away from his presidential dream. While some feigned consternation and surprise, it was almost inevitable that this would be the outcome of this « Mortal Kombat ».

What will become of Ousmane Sonko? You have to be an oracle to predict the future. But yesterday, the mayor of Ziguinchor received two charges that will weigh heavily, delaying or preventing the fulfilment of his ultimate dream. Placed under a committal order by the Doyen of judges, who followed the public prosecutor’s indictment, the mayor of Ziguinchor faces eight charges: « calling for insurrection, criminal conspiracy, undermining State security, plotting against the authority of the State, acts and manoeuvres intended to compromise public security and create serious political unrest, criminal conspiracy in connection with a terrorist undertaking, theft, and also dissemination of false news ». An 8th charge was added to his file yesterday when he came face to face with the Dean of judges. He spent his first night in prison.

Sonko’s Imprisonment and the Dissolution of Pastef: The Opposition Stands Up Against Macky

What can one say? This is the end of a tug of war between him and the State. After a quiet entry into politics, Ousmane Sonko managed to build up a media following in just a few months. This is said to be the result of the aura he acquired at the head of the union of the Tax and Lands, of which he was the first general secretary. Logically, this served as a compass for his political rise. Mr Sonko’s anti-Western rhetoric heralded a revolutionary upsurge. He succeeded at a time when the traditional political parties are on a decline and with people weary of a necrotic political system that benefits the same people. He sells a prosperous, egalitarian and forward-looking country which appeals to a section of young people who want to push the geriatrics out of the political sphere.  Buoyed by a populist upsurge and a sovereigntist discourse, Ousmane Sonko, who was removed from the civil service for violating his non-disclosure obligations, managed to become an MP in 2017 thanks to the « the strongest rests » system.

In 2019, he managed to come third in the presidential election, behind Idy and Macky. After the head of Rewmi joined the majority in November 2020, Ousmane Sonko found himself virtually alone in the opposition. The rest of the opposition joined the « patriotic » movement in the local elections, followed by the parliamentary elections in January 2022 and July 2023, which enabled Yaw to achieve major results.

Read the column: Ousmane Sonko Is Only the Symptom of a Senegalese Disease

In the meantime, the Adji Sarr affair prompted him to strengthen his strategy to get out of an infamous accusation of rape. Theorising a conspiracy, he attacked Macky Sall, whom he considered to be the scriptwriter. From March 2021 to June 2023, the leader of the « Patriots » did everything in his power to get out of a « Mortal Kombat ». In his various speeches, he did not euphemise the confrontation, but rather used his own vocabulary to react to the « persecution » he claimed to be suffering. Even if there were men who had the power to oppose this strategy, to amend it to reduce the risks of escalation. These various outings showed that the words chosen by Sonko are as dazzlingly successful as they are widely publicised, but the steps that follow are more chaotic and put the authorities on edge. After a series of arrests with no prison consequences, this time the state has decided to take a tougher line against Ousmane Sonko and the Pastef party, who constitute a « threat to the institutions of the Republic ».

The mayor of Ziguinchor, who was arrested on Friday and held in police custody until Monday, was brought before an examining magistrate the same day. He has two pending convictions for defamation and corrupting young people, and his fate was sealed over the weekend. At the Justice Palace in Dakar, bathed in a fine drizzle, the mixed police-gendarmerie presence intimidated onlookers. The cops and gendarmes « clean up » the intruders who have mingled with the army of journalists massed in front of the Dakar courthouse. It’s almost 15h… Sonko’s lawyers came out of the Temple of Themis with tense faces to announce the news, which sent shockwaves: he was remanded in custody by the Dean of judges…

By Bocar SAKHO / bsakho@lequotidien.sn

  • Translation by Ndey T. SOSSEH / Serigne S. DIAGNE