He is historically the first director appointed by the new regime to be dismissed. And this after just one quarter’s service. It’s as if he didn’t see the pitfalls hidden in the rainwater he was supposed to be cleaning up.

Barely three months in, and then he’s out. At yesterday’s Council of Ministers meeting, Cheikh Dieng was replaced by Séni Diène, a hydrogeological engineer, as head of the National Sanitation Office (Onas). Appointed on 25 April, he was dismissed yesterday. As an Internet user said yesterday on Facebook, history will record that he is the first of those promoted by the new government to experience the effects of the broom, or mop, as the case may be. It was not easy to get explanations due to the late hour that the communiqué of the Council of Ministers was made public. Nonetheless, sources inside Onas have agreed to release parallel information.

Declaration of assets: Diomaye goes public

According to these people, it didn’t take long for Mr Dieng to alienate a large part of the company’s staff. One of them recalled the unfortunate remarks made by the newly-appointed CEO as soon as he took up his post. Addressing some of the managers, he warned them: “Tapalé diekhna!” (No more dishonesty!). Which, for these staff, meant that people were not serious before his arrival in the company. And for some, this was a bitter pill to swallow. So, while the company had set up a more or less efficient time management and attendance system, the new CEO imposed a biometric fingerprint system. As a result, “workers would turn up, sign in and go off to do other things, before returning to mark the end of their shift.”

Good Governance Pact: Civil Society yet to hear from Diomaye

Others also reproached him for his political zeal, which they claim weighed on his professional performance. Even the rapid intervention brigades, set up to help relieve congestion on certain waterways, were seen as duplicating other internal structures that were doing the same job. This reduced their effectiveness. In addition, the political activism of the new CEO of Onas was not always appreciated. Example: His stay in Saint-Louis, following in the footsteps of Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko. Although Sonko only stayed for as long as was necessary, Cheikh Dieng extended his stay by a further 5 days. Some malicious tongues claim that he stayed on to try to ‘recruit’ activists from his former party, the Pds, for Pastef. Outside the framework of political work. As proof, say the same people, when his minister went to Touba and Kaolack after the floods, Cheikh Dieng did not accompany him.