Senegal is best remembered for its distinguished philosopher-king, former president and exponent of negritude, Leopold Sedar Senghor who helped wean Senegal from harsh French colonialism into a more accommodating association with the erstwhile metropolitan overlord. Senegal under Senghor was stable and never caved in to the post-colonial cankerworm of military coups that ravaged most of Africa. However, the stability that Senghor brought did not automatically translate to the very huge expectations that most Senegalese and Africans envisaged, following the collapse of formal colonialism.
The wind of change that blew across the continent in the early 1990s also left its remarkable impact on Dakar. The Senghor presidency succumbed but he anointed his successor, Abdou Diouf. Meanwhile, Abdoulaye Wade, a history and law professor, has carved a niche for himself as the foremost agitator of multiparty democracy. He was instantly recognized as embodying the sentiments of all Senegalese for a more open and competitive political process. Having serially thrown his hat in the ring for the presidential contest, his hour finally came in 2000 when he was elected to the exalted job. Not only the Senegalese, but the entire pro-democracy community hailed his ascension to power and hoped that the elderly former opposition presidential candidate would bequeath his country the democratic temperament of critical opposition that he had earlier articulated and even embodied.
But recent events in the country have shown that the scholarly and even erudite history professor is hardly a good student of history. Wade is set to plunge his country into anarchy. Having served out two tenures that Senegal’s constitution allowed him, he has manipulated the Constitutional Council to change the constitution to give him a third term. Before Wade’s affront on his country’s constitution, it was rumoured that he had anointed his son, a minister in his government, to succeed him. At 85, no one expected that Wade would become this power-drunk.
Having fought for a competitive and open political process, we had hoped that he would leave behind such process that he benefited from. Sadly, he has employed all kinds of subterfuge to shut out prospective competitors. The renowned musician, Yousuf Ndour, even better known than Wade, was disqualified from last Sunday’s presidential contest on account of not being Senegalese enough. However, Wade, even in a race calibrated to produce a certain and definite result, did not coast home to victory. On Wednesday, the country’s election body announced that there would be a runoff because President Wade fell short of the 50 percent requirement for outright victory. He will slug it out in the second round with his former Prime Minister, Macky Sall. If Wade wins, his victory obviously would be tainted by his brazen manipulation of the constitution. If he loses, he would likely be remembered as one who for personal ambition undermined his country’s democratic institutions.
Because of President Wade, Africa has found itself in the spotlight for the wrong reason again. Last year, another history professor and former veteran opposition leader, Laurent Gbagbo, in Cote d’Ivoire, succumbed to the allure of power and paid a personal high price for it. He is currently at the International Criminal Court at The Hague to answer to charges of crime against humanity.
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