ACPF members go on to express their readiness “to collaborate and work closely with your administration to address the challenges facing the nation and to work together towards building a stronger, more prosperous Senegal and Africa for all.”
President Faye emerged winner of the March 24 reportedly tightly contested presidential poll that had been scheduled to take place on February 25.
According to Reuters, Senegal’s new President “owes much of his success to the backing of firebrand opposition leader Ousmane Sonko, who was barred from running due to a defamation conviction.”
President Faye and Mr. Sonko, both former tax inspectors, were released from jail on March 14. Campaigning alongside each other under the slogan, "Diomaye is Sonko", the duo promised to fight graft in the West African nation and to prioritise economic interests at national level.
“They are particularly popular among young voters in a country where more than 60% of people are under 25 and struggle to find jobs. Faye promised to dedicate more state resources to help the youths,” Reuters reported on March 26.
"In electing me, the Senegalese people have decided on a break with a past," Faye was quoted as telling journalists in his first public appearance since the election, adding, "I promise to govern with humility and transparency."
The immediate former President of Senegal, Macky Sall, had, on February 3, issued a decree postponing the polls indefinitely. This sparked off protests in Senegal's capital, Dakar, and other cities of the West African nation, with some reported deaths.
On February 15, Senegalese Constitutional Council overturned Mr. Sall’s decree, paving the way for the March 24 presidential poll.
Aged 44 years, President Faye is Africa’s youngest elected Head of State.
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