During a national tribute paid Thursday to former President Abdoulaye Wade, the Senegalese head of state Bassirou Diomaye Faye affirmed that "a quarrel, however heated, does not deserve to tear apart the country that is common to us", in the midst of a crisis with his ex-Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko.
Published on: 04/06/2026 - 19:09
A speech loaded with meaning in the midst of a political crisis in Senegal. During a national tribute on Thursday June 4 to former President Abdoulaye Wade – who turned 100 on May 29 – Bassirou Diomaye Faye indirectly mentioned the conflict between him and his former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko.
“A quarrel, however heated, does not deserve to tear apart the country that is common to us,” said the head of state on Thursday, affirming that “democracy is not a spoil that we snatch and that we jealously guard” but “a flame that we pass from hand to hand and which must never be allowed to go out.”
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Bassirou Diomaye Faye dismissed Ousmane Sonko from his position on May 22 after several months of differences between the two ex-travel companions.
Read alsoSenegal: between Bassirou Diomaye Faye and Ousmane Sonko, are differences now irreconcilable?
Tuesday evening, Ousmane Sonko, leader of the majority party in Senegal and who became President of the Assembly on May 26, affirmed during a press briefing that he was in a "situation of cohabitation" with President Faye. “He (Faye, Editor’s note) does not have all the powers. He needs to come down from his pedestal and we need to talk,” he said.
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“Today’s adversary is not an enemy”
During the tribute to Abdoulaye Wade (in power from 2000 to 2012), political icon in this West African country, Bassirou Diomaye Faye spoke directly to the former president: "You taught us that a quarrel, however bitter it may be, does not deserve to tear apart the country that is common to us (...), you taught us that serving your youth will always be better than using them."
Two days after Ousmane Sonko's declarations, Bassirou Diomaye Faye was acclaimed upon his arrival at this official ceremony at the Grand Théâtre de Dakar. He was then applauded several times during his speech, particularly during implicit references to political uncertainty in the country and his divorce from Ousmane Sonko.
Abdoulaye "Wade teaches us that today's adversary is not an enemy. He is a benevolent compatriot who sees the country differently. And with whom we must, once the fight is over, continue to live in peace in the same house in Senegal", he said, adding: "We can oppose each other without tearing each other apart."
The Senegalese president finally praised the former president's propensity to "never despair of Senegal, or even of a companion who is lost in acrimony and in hatred of others."
With AFP
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