Democracy in Dakar: Episode 3 - Election Day
March 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Democracy in Dakar, Episode 3: Election Day
Sunday, February 25, 2007 - Election Day in Senegal, West Africa. Episode 3 takes place on election day and follows the group Sen Kumpe as they head to the voting station in their neighborhood Medina in Dakar to vote.
The episode continues in the immediate aftermath of the election, as people are sensing that Abdoulaye Wade may have won a slim majority in the election and avoided a run-off election.
Sen Kumpa close this episode with their track "Niawal"
Also featured are interviews with Sen Kumpa, Serigne Ndiaye, Matador (Wa BMG 44), Waa Complex Culture, and Leopold Senghor; as well as performances by: Matador, Sen Kumpa, Baat Sen, Waa Complex Culture, and Leopold Senghor.
Senegal: Robert Sagna On His Coalition
March 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Taku Defarat
Holding
his final meeting in his stronghold, Ziguinchor, Robert Sagna
explaining what motivates him to contest as a President candidate
outlined his main concerns for prevailing peace in Casamance. The
candidate of Coalition Takku Defarat Senegal reiterated that one of his
major concerns is the restoration of peace in Casamance.
He
told the Casamançais to regard themselves as Senegalese, to claim for
the same rights and have the same duties. He said if elected, he will
devote an invaluable time to the Casamance which suffered so much and
in need of peace. Robert Sagna promised to place the Casamançaise in
the topmost of his agenda. Robert Sagna said he counts on all
Casamançais whose conjugation of their efforts will result in peace. He
also count on men and women of Casamance to achieve this goal of the
rehabilitation of peace for peace and prosperous Senegal. The solution,
according to him, is to find a solution to the problem so that
Casamance finds its lasting peace. He expressed his confidence that
Takku defarat Senegal will bring better changes in Senegal, a change
that will bring about justice.
Dilating on the value of justice, Robert Sagna
said his party will work for the re-establishment of the values of
justice in Senegal as left by President Léopold Sédar Senghor. He said
under his administration as head of the coalition Takku defarat
Senegal, they aim at a system where the civil servants will not be
victims of exclusion. He said the drivers, the orderlies and the poor
under his administration would be men and women of worth and respected
on the soil of Senegal, a country in which, he said he wishes also to
re-establish the values of solidarity, in accordance with the ideals
defended by social democracy.
Dieng challenges election results in Senegal
March 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Dakar - The candidate for Senegal’s main opposition party said on
Tuesday that he would contest election results showing President
Abdoulaye Wade had been re-elected in a first round of voting.
"We will not accept these results because we do not regard him as
having been elected by the Senegalese people," Aissata Tall Sall,
spokesperson for Socialist Party candidate Ousmane Tanor Dieng, told a
news conference.
She said the party had evidence some people had been able to vote more than once.
Senegal poll results ‘rejected’
March 1, 2007 | Leave a Comment
Two leading presidential candidates in Senegal say
they do not accept unofficial results that show incumbent Abdoulaye
Wade has won Sunday’s polls.
Partial results indicate that Mr Wade, 81, has more than
55% of the vote making a run-off unnecessary, Senegal’s official news
agency reports.
But Ousmane Tanor Dieng and Abdoulaye Bathily say there were irregularities.
Analysts say that it will be surprising if there is no second round, given the mood in the country before polling.
A candidate needs to gain more than 50% of the vote to avoid a second round.
A commission at the appeals court has until Friday to announce the official results.
Senegal, a predominately Muslim nation, is seen as a rare model of stable democracy in Africa.
Observers from regional body the Economic Community Of West African States have said the voting on Sunday was free and fair.
Suspicion
The BBC’s Tidiane Sy in the capital Dakar, says most Senegalese were expecting there to be a second round.
"We will not accept these results," Aissata Tall Sall, Mr Dieng’s spokeswoman, told a press conference.
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 These results do not reflect the feelings of the population  Abdoulaye Bathily
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The Socialist Party leader Mr Dieng, who served under the previous president, Abdou Diouf, has been seen as a strong contender.
His party, which was in power for four decades prior to
Mr Wade’s victory in 2000, said some people had been allowed to vote
more than once.
"These results do not reflect the feelings of the
population which, in reality, expressed a massive rejection of
Abdoulaye Wade’s authority," AFP news agency quoted leftist leader Mr
Bathily as saying.
Voter turnout was high and long queues left some polling stations open late.
Events since Sunday have been somewhat chaotic, with a series of claims and counter-claims about the results.
Mr Wade, who is seeking a second term, has come under pressure in recent months over high rural unemployment.
Since his election he has fallen out with several of his
allies, some of whom were among the opponents challenging him on the
ballot papers.
Team-up
Mr Wade’s campaign manager has urged the president’s 14 opponents to concede defeat.
Observers say the voting was free and fair
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But the other contenders say they will wait until official results are released before commenting, our reporter says.
A run-off would present an opportunity for Mr Wade’s opponents to team up against him.
That is exactly how the president came to power seven
years ago in one of Africa’s rare peaceful transitions from one
president to a rival.
It is the only West African nation not to have experienced a coup since independence, and polls in 2000 passed off peacefully.
Some five million people were eligible to vote, which is almost double the figure in the last election.
