Several hundred demonstrators demanded on Saturday in Dakar the holding of the presidential election before April 2, the date of the end of President Macky Sall’s mandate, during a rally called by civil society and the opposition.

Senegal has been plunged into a serious political crisis since the postponement on February 3, by the head of state, of the presidential election initially scheduled for February 25.

This postponement, denounced as a “constitutional coup” by the opposition, caused a commotion in public opinion and demonstrations which left four dead. The Constitutional Council finally overturned Mr. Sall, and the country has since been waiting for a new election date.

At the call of the “Resistance Front”, a union of civil society and opposition organizations sealed on Thursday, several hundred people gathered on a vast sandy ground in Grand Yoff.

Many of them wore the colors of Senegal and brandished portraits of the opponent Ousmane Sonko, detained since the end of July for “calling for insurrection” and deprived of the presidential election after the invalidation of his candidacy. 

“We want an election before April 2 with the 19 candidates selected by the Constitutional Council and for Senegalese democracy to continue to shine,” explained Assane Camara, a 27-year-old trader.

“Macky Sall dictator”, “Free Sonko”, chanted the demonstrators, who repeatedly sang a song in honor of the latter, “Sonko namenaaalaa” (“We miss you Sonko”).

Several officials representing candidates in the election addressed the crowd.

“What we are asking President Macky Sall is to organize the elections before April 2 and to give the keys to the palace to his successor face to face, and so that we can begin to rebuild our country,” declared Aminata Touré, former Prime Minister and member of the “Bassirou President” coalition.

A national dialogue, organized at the start of the week by the president and boycotted by the opposition, notably recommended organizing the election on June 2. The Head of State indicated that he would refer these recommendations to the Constitutional Council “for opinion”.