Like all other street protests in recent years, I was out there in the streets of Dakar on Friday evening for another round of the so-called citizen protest aimed at stopping Senegal’s octogenarian president, Abdoulaye Wade from running for a controversial third term.
By 6pm, thousands of protesters scattered around the ‘forbidden’ independence square, the epicenter of opposition protest in recent days. They are Senegalese citizens from all regions across this beautiful West African nation. They are united by one goal: To force their ageing president to quit.
They wore T-shirts and held placards with such clearly spelt messages as
‘Down with Wade’, ‘We are fed up’, ‘You leave in peace or be forced to leave: It’s your choice’, ‘We are sick of your lies’ and ‘Where are the jobs you promised us, Mr. President’. One cheeky placard held by a young
Cafe Touba (local coffee) seller reads, ‘
Coffee for all except Goorgui (Wade’s local name)’.