Welcome, indeed. You’ve picked an interesting time to drop by.
Any Friday in Dakar is kind of a higher energy day- but today certainly does feel a bit different. Maybe it’s my own sentiments that are being projected onto the people and associated activity, but this city does appear to have a buzz going through it.
Right now in Almadies, the Constitutional Court is getting ready to make their announcement as to whether Senegal’s president, Abdoulaye Wade, can run for a third term. There’s a lot to this soap opera, but in short Mr. Wade (pronounced ‘wahd’) asserts that he can indeed run again, since term limits were imposed after he was already in office. In other words, he doesn’t think the new rules apply to him. Even if he is nearing the century mark and has already served two terms as president.
MAC/RAW is Le mouvement des amis de Cheikh Mbacké Fall pour la réélection du président Abdoulaye Wade (The Movement of Friends of Cheikh Mbacké Fall for the reelection of Wade). Rek is the Wolof word for “only”. Compared to English, it’s kind of an overused word in this country- kind of like how we use “like”.
Wade’s opponents believe that he does not have the right to run again, and at this moment many (but we’re not talking Tahrir Square proportions) are gathering at the Place de l’Obelisque and awaiting the official announcement. Fearing violent reaction (most believe the court will vote in favor of Wade), international and local leaders are calling for people to respect the verdict and remain peaceful- especially after the events of 23 June when violence did break out during protests of Wade’s attempts to massage the political system.
Any wall in this city- whether it be nice and new, or a temporary wooden perimeter- is now covered with some sort of political message. Here you can see an ad for Idrissa Seck- it says (more or less) The Country Stands Up. Seck is a former prime minister (among other things- including a 2007 presidential run) and he is running under a party that is formed from 40 separate parties.
Let me stop here and tell you that I am not going to be able to give you a rundown of all the candidates and their platforms. While the ballot is not as extensive as that of California’s 2003 gubernatorial race, there is a fairly large and diverse field of presidential hopefuls. I simply don’t have the knowledge to communicate the scope of what’s going on right now- although I wish I did. I also wish I knew more Wolof.
MAC/RAW is Le mouvement des amis de Cheikh Mbacké Fall pour la réélection du président Abdoulaye Wade (The Movement of Friends of Cheikh Mbacké Fall for the reelection of Wade). Rek is the Wolof word for “only”. Compared to English, it’s kind of an overused word in this country- kind of like how we use “like”.
Next to the Wade message- which is spray painted just above “the right choice”- you can see “PDS (Wade’s party), liberate Senegal”. Months upon months of graffito create uncertainty as to when and where something was meant to be stitched together into a coherent message.
“The great movement arrives- 2012”.
Right here on the corniche is often the site of manifestations put on by the students who haven’t received their stipends. They will burn tires on the sidewalk, throw rocks, and generally disrupt this main road out of downtown Dakar. On this morning, I am out on a run with my camera in hand. It is calm and beautiful at this time of day.
I run along the side of the corniche with lots of wall space. Here it says “Constitutional Court- stay sensible- or else!!!” (Incidentally, the nuance inherent in translation always kicks my ass- so this is the best I could come up with.)
Again, another mixture of political messages. One is for Aminata Tall, a one-time declared candidate who now supports Macky Sall. You also have “The Republic Shit”, and just below that you once again see “The Right Choice”.
“Youssou N’Dour– the Hope of 2012″. N’Dour is one of the most famous singers to come out of Africa. He is also Senegalese, and threw his hat in the ring at the beginning of the month.
On this particular run I always pass the Supreme Court. People wonder aloud how the scales of justice are going to tip on this particular day- especially given that the head of the Constitutional Court is a supporter of Abdoulaye Wade.
The sunrise over Dakar was gorgeous this morning- I always love to watch Dakar come to life in the morning. Especially on a day like today.
Near the corniche cemetery you’ve got some “American-style” graffiti that is a bit more enduring than everything else I have shown you. The “Idy” bit refers to Idrissa Seck, and the red question mark I can only imagine came along afterward and serves to pose a very significant question.
“Wade, Clear out!”
This country has a lot to be proud of, and anyone here will tell you that the Senegalese are not a violent people. They only react when their backs are truly up against the wall. No one wants to see this country go the way of Ivory Coast during their elections last year– and honestly I just can’t see anything like that happening here.
I used to be a pessimist before moving to Senegal. I really think that seeing how things work (and don’t work) here has changed my thinking. This country is all about tolerance and respect, and in this regard I maintain that it serves as a model for the rest of the world.
More ads for Idy on the base. I am also wondering why some soccer fan felt compelled to spray paint this dude’s leg.
“No to violence. Let’s go Wade!”
There’s a whole lot of future over here. For the moment, we’re all just kind of watching to see what’s going to happen this evening. It has been said by many that the reactions witnessed this weekend will serve as a bellwether for how the rest of the electoral season will go.
We do indeed live in interesting times.
