The battle is more than between president Macky Sall and Ousmane Sonko - Open Gambia Editorial

 

 

 Open Gambia 18/05/2023 by Sulayman Ben Suwareh

 

President Sall seems to have miscalculated by overestimating the limited power of the incumbency under his control in a democratic dispensation.He underestimates the challenges he has to overcome to force a third-term mandate to entrench himself illegally in the democratic system that the people of Senegal are used to. Hence, he failed to learn from the history of liberation struggles and the fights against entrenched dictatorships.

 

It is most often the case that if leaders of the liberation movement organised themselves, winning the trust, and confidence, of the masses and in galvanising the power of the people, victory gets guaranteed against their adversaries

 

Herewith, it seems President Sall and the architects of his plan of entrenchment misjudged the opponent they were facing in their drive to circumvent the will of the people of Senegal. They forget that no power on the earth can control the will and govern a people successfully, however feeble, who withholds their consent. 

 

However, with arrogance, it appears that they base their assessment on assuming that the strength of controlling the power of the incumbency was enough to guarantee them victory.

 

 Additionally, they underestimated Ousmane Sonko and his Pastef party as an insignificant force that could be quickly side-lined by applying the state machinery against them. They underestimated the leadership and the group's solidarity, discipline, intelligence, and willingness to sacrifice for their nation, making them into  a formidable force. 

Hence, President Sall's administration got confronted with the reality of facing an unexpected opponent in the person of Ousmane Sonko and the PASTEF political party.

 

An unlikely force to reckon with that they have never encountered in the history of the Senegalese political landscape. Instead of just a political party, PASTEF became a liberation movement that emerged at a favourable time with a massive advantage to launch an anti-establishment movement.
With technology and the uncontrollable powers of social media, they have the leverage to become the competitive opponent against the Senegalese establishment political order. 

On the contrary, I know that Ousman Sonko is not a Saint; he’s human with faults, just like any individual.  History also teaches us that all great leaders have weaknesses. Nevertheless, what Sonko created, and not many African leaders have ever attained, is making a Pan-Africanist national anti-establishment.

He built a democratic movement from the grassroots, inclusive of the social spectrum of Senegal, in his drive to seek the power that challenges the national establishment of politicians with their imperialist patrons.

PASTEF, under Sonko, uses local Senegalese historical narratives without borrowing from any of the imperialist blocks' ideologies. But he crafted an authentic Senegalese social democratic, pragmatic development agenda to confront the status quo.

 

Henceforth, they created the most successful anti-establishment popular and credible democratic movement in modern times. This structure threatens to depose the old establishment politician in exchange for a modern Pan- Africanist Nationalist political party. 

 

He choreographed progressive agenda that would change the way his country did business with the imperialist nations threatening their strategic interest, especially of France. 

 

 PASTEF, as an anti-establishment party, has defied conventional wisdom by upstaging sub-Saharan Africa’s most established elite system of governance. This threatened to replace the establishment without using the armed struggle to win the battle or having their leaders come from the establishment parties. 

In addition, they are successfully surmounting the obstacles within the system and confronting the power of the incumbent. This advertently exposes Macky Sall’s weaknesses, forcing him to throw everything in his possession to battle them, albeit unsuccessfully.

On the other hand, I can't entirely agree with the people against the position taken by Ousmane Sonko for not attending the sham trial without the state guaranteeing his safety.

In the prevailing circumstances in Senegal, democracy and its political institutions are hijacked by the establishment bent on shamefully upending the wishes of the masses and not wanting to accord Sonko the respect he deserves. In such circumstances, anti-establishment forces must apply the conventional strategy to survive. Therefore, to demand Sonko drop his position means for him to move from his anti-establishment standpoint to join the mainstream politicians. 

This position will define the principles their movement stood for, making them potentially lose their support base. It should be recalled that the only reason Sonko/ Pastef got the support is their anti-establishment standpoint. That’s why whenever they get attacked, they become more popular with the youth and the grass root ordinary people.

The courts, in their contemporary setting, are not the solution, as it is evident that President Sall controls the judiciary. Thus, what is transpiring at the bench is not justice but machinery judiciary weaponising law to achieve a political witch-hunt.

PASTEF is aware that most oppositions or civil society leaders are part of the system that they are battling. The coalition was a temporal marriage of convenience, with different parties coming together to protect their short-term interests.

It is an open secret, and Pastef is aware that some opposition leaders are angling to take over the support base if they fail to put up Sonko as their candidate.

By observing Senegalese politics and the progress Pastef has made since they emerged on the political scene, I am confident that they have an extended strategic plan to battle beyond the elections of 2024 with the firm intention of deposing the establishment system. 

What is prevailing in Senegal is a battle between democratic and anti-democratic forces. It is a fight against corrupt establishment elites and a re-emerge of anti-establishment parties similar to prime minister Momodou Dia's generation.

Ultimately, if Senegalese allows President Macky and the mainstream corrupt elites to hijack the promising repositions of Senegalese democracy, they shall suffer the consequences.

Equally, the rest of Africa will lose the chance to experience a new approach to a democratic liberation struggle, especially in West African countries.

Crisis in Senegal - Déthié Fall: "Enough is enough, Macky Sall is the only one responsible for the situation we are living through"

 

 DAKARMATIN - Pierre Dieme 17 May 2023 

Déthié Fall: "Enough is enough".

"Macky Sall is the only one responsible for the situation we are living through". This is an accusation made by Déthié Fall, one of the members of the leadership of the main opposition coalition, Yewwi Askan Wi (YAW).


"The hour is gave and extremely serious," he said in a statement made on Wednesday, May 17, after the scuffles recorded on the sidelines of the hearing before the criminal chamber of the "Sweet beauty" case opposing the leader of PASTEF, Ousmane Sonko, to the former masseuse, Adji Sarr. The clashes between the security services and protesters in Ziguinchor and Dakar have resulted in at least three (3) deaths.

Surrounded by other leaders of YAW including Khalifa Sall and Biram Soulèye Diop, the president of the Republican Party for Progress (Prp) took the opportunity to present his condolences to the grieving families of those who lost their lives in the demonstrations. He also wished a speedy recovery to the forty or so injured in the southern capital o  Ziguinchor.

For  Déthié Fall, "it's a real pity that we have reached this situation, in a context of Senegal, which was once envied as an island of peace" and which was once respected as "an ocean of stability" which the "President Macky Sall should preserve".

But, asserts the  opposition party leader, "we tell him one thing, his plan to to remove candidates from contesting the presidential election, will not be allowed to pass. Enough is enough. We want peace but we also want our democracy to be preserved,  and its renewal in 2024 to be ensured . We will not accept that he eliminates President Ousmane Sonko as a candidate from the next elections.

Déthié Fall said: "President Macky Sall was with us in 2011 (fighting against a 3rd term of the previous president Wade). He saw how the people were mobilized for him to be the beneficiary of  electoral alternation in 2012. He saw what happened at the Place de l'Obélisque with all the dead (demonstrators killed by security services). We thought we would be done with that when he came to power."

He went on to warn "But today he is the one trampling on this democracy, this stability. He has a status that we recognize, that of President of the Republic, which will end in 2024. It is also up to him to respect the status of opposition leaders, that of Ousmane Sonko. Whether he likes it or not, he is a bearer of hope, of a project and deserves this respect. We say it here once again. The leadership of YAW is united, mobilised and standing up. It will confront the power and bring its support and solidarity to Ousmane Sonko. Khalifa Sall is also a victim of these practices of President Macky Sall. He served 32 months in prison. Unjustly arrested. President Macky isthe one responsible for this. Let him know that in 2024, the only person who does not have the right to participate in an election here in Senegal is him (the consitution expressly rules out a third consecutive term). All the other candidates will participate."

To finish, Déthié Falldid not fail to call on the international community. "I have already said, the hour is grave. This is the time to speak out, to remind President Macky Sall of his responsibilities, to draw his attention to the detrimental direction he has taken the country. We did not want this to happen. Since independence the opposition and the government have had to responibly cohabited in peace"

For the head of the PRP, this is no longer the case. "The government in power is multiplying the obstacles, preventing opposition leaders from playing their role"

Dié BA

 

F24 Civil Society Platform says No to the politicisation of justice in Senegal

 

The Senegal F24 group is an umbrella movement made up of more than 170 political and human rights organisations, trade unions and civil society groups aiming to prevent President Sall standing for an unconstitutiona 3rd mandat.

In a document entitled ''No to the use of justice for political purposes'', the F4 recalls that on 16 May 2023, Ousmane Sonko, President of the PASTEF Party is summoned before the criminal chamber raising fears and questions about the likely consequences on social stability and civil peace in our dear country. Justice is a fundamental pillar of the rule of law and in a democracy, citizens must have a confidence in its integity and processes. F24 calls on the judicial and political authorities to show serenity, restraint and fairness in their decisions and actions in the hours, days and weeks ahead,'' the statement said.

The platform, which says it brings together all the forces of the nation, regrets that the main opposition leader, Ousmane Sonko, is being prosecuted simultaneously in several cases marked by an acceleration of procedures and even a violation of appeal deadlines, a right he has by law. According to the platform, Macky Sall has already succeeded in eliminating two candidates, namely Khalifa Ababacar Sall and Karim Wade in the presidential elections following unfair judicial procedures and will not accept a third candidate to add to the list.

Based on the provisions of its charter, F24 gives its unwavering support to the leader of the PASTEF Party and rejects any legal-political artifice aimed at hindering his participation in the 2024 presidential election. It calls on the police to stop besieging Ousmane Sonko's neighbourhood without a warrant, to refrain from violence against him and those accompanying him, and to guarantee him the security to which he is entitled when he travels to the court. It also reminds the executive and judicial authorities that it is up to them not to jeopardise the stability of the country and, to this end, to give the accused Ousmane Sonko the necessary guarantees both for the preservation of his physical integrity and for the respect of his rights to a fair trial. This has so far been manifestly lacking.

 

 

Macky Sall, Interior Minister Diome, Magistrates and Security forces threatened with the ICC (international Criminal Court) over potential human rights abuses

Following 15th May attacks on demostrators protecting the leader of the opposition Ousmane Sonko from illegal arrest by armed security forces, at least one young demonstrator died from a live bullet fired by the Gendarmerie and scores were wounded.

In response leading international human rights lawyer, lawyer for Julian Assange, and member of Ousmane Sonko's legal team Juan Branco issued the following statement:

Any persecution against a member of a civilian population, targeted and identified for his or her ideas, as part of a systematic attack, constitutes an imprescriptible crime against humanity

"We have been given instruction to take the matter of attacks on civilians and human rights before the international Justice system for each and every breech perpetrated on the the population of Ziguinchor.

 This complaint will be ledged against President Sall, Mr Diome the interior minister and against any magistrate or civil servant who has issued or obeyed manifestly illegal orders. We will track down those responsible, down to the lowest-ranking police officer.

 We recall that any persecution of a member of a civilian population, targeted and identified for his or her ideas, as part of a systematic attack, constitutes an imprescriptible crime against humanity.

 We will be particularly attentive to any attempts on the the physical integrity of Mr. Sonko, his relatives, and any demonstrators.

 Those accused will face prosecution and held to account if they attempt to leave the country. We will make sure that no Senegalese dignitary accused of a crime can set foot in any of the 123 ICC member countries without trembling at the possible consequences for them"

 Spent live ammunition used against protesters by security forces

It should be noted that at least two demonstrators, including a 15 year old boy have died from live ammunition foired by securty forces on the 15 May, and they join at least 15 other demonstrators killed in protests by the security forces or armed pro government militians since March 2021. No enquiry was ever held into these deaths, although the US statedewpartment has talked of credible reports of extra judicial killings by securityforces and pro government actors.

Senegal sees unrest ahead of Ousmane Sonko's trial

Click to watch

Africannews and AP - AFP

The unrest in Ziguinchor, a town in southern Senegal, came one day before the expected start of Sonko’s rape trial in the country’s capital, Dakar. Sonko was charged based on a woman’s accusations that he assaulted her when she worked at a massage salon.

If convicted, Sonko faces up to 10 years in prison and would be barred from running for president.

According to local authorities, a police armoured vehicle struck and killed the officer as it was reversing. The government offered condolences to the officer’s family, calling his death a ‘tragic accident’.

Clashes occurred near Sonko’s home, where he has been staying while vowing to defy any summons to appear in Dakar for the rape trial. Sonko challenged President Macky Sall in Senegal’s 2019 presidential election and was elected mayor of Ziguinchor last year.

Supporters gathered outside his home starting Sunday evening, fearing police would move to arrest him to bring him to court. Messages have circulated on social media calling for supporters to act as Sonko’s “shields.” and defend their leader from arrest.

Sonko recently received a 6-month suspended prison sentence in a defamation case and declared he would no longer respond to court summonses without his safety being guaranteed.

His lawyers told reporters at a news conference in Paris on Monday (May. 15) that Sonko had not yet received a summons but would appear “if conditions were met.”

Senegalese police deployed extra officers in Ziguinchor and elsewhere in Senegal.

 

SENEGAL CONCERN NOTE:

 Ousmane Sonko had announced that he would only attend the trial if his safety from the security forces could be guaranteed. During his last two appearances in court of a different trial, he was attached by security forces, his vehicle window smashed, forcibly extracted and on one occassion sprayed with a highly toxic potentially deadly substance in what has been called an assassination attempt.

The rape accusation case itself is widely viewed as a farce aimed at excluding Sonko (who has a commanding lead in the polls) from the presidential race. The medical certificate from one of Senegal's leading gynacologists cleared him, as it revealed there had been no sexual contact, although the doctor then had attempts to bribe him to change the certificate followed by death threats and attempts on his life when he refused. The leading Gendarmerie investigator faced death threats, sacking and military detention after he revealed that an internal Police enquiry had found that the Chief prosecutor had altered witness statements and infroduced false evidence to implicate Sonko. Leaked audi tapes from the supposed victim (which she does not deny making) reveals her admitting the whole matter was an engineered plot as he had never had any relations with her. The investigating judge refused to accept evidence submitted by the accused revealing clear evidence of conspiracy against him.

It should be further noted that President Macky Sall's two previous main presidential contenders have both also found themselves excluded for running against him due to cases brought against them in the courts.

 

 

 

The Open Society Foundation and African Center for Democracy and Human Rights Studies express concern about political tensions in Senegal and Sudan

West Africa Democracy Radio report:

May 12, 2023

 

 The Open Society Foundation and African Center for Democracy and Human Rights Studies have expressed concerns about regional stability with particular emphasis on Senegal and Sudan.

This was made during the side event of the 75th Session of the African Charter on Human and People’s Rights in Banjul, the Gambia.

Meanwhile, a Senegalese CSO, Africa Jom is calling for the unconditional release of all political prisoners in the country

Our Banjul correspondent Sankulleh Janko has more in this report

 

WADR · OSF, ACDHRS express concern about political tensions in Senegal and Sudan

Protesters take to the streets of Dakar against Senegal President Sall

Africanews 

By Philip Andrew Churm with AFP

 13.05.2023

Thousands or protesters took to the streets of the Senegalese capital Dakar, Friday 12 May, against President Macky Sall's refusal to rule out standing for a third term in office.

The demonstrations were organised by a group callled the "Movement of the living forces of Senegal F24"; referring to the scheduled election date of February 24 2024

Tensions have been stoked by Sall's refusal to rule out running for a third term as president, a move his opponents say would be unconstitutional.

Protester, Famo Dabo, explained why she was at the protest.

"We came here to liberate Senegal, to tell Macky Sall that he has to stop his dictatorial path," she said. 

"He only has to release the political prisoners, we are fed up, we don't want him anymore, we tell him ‘Enough.' 

"He only has to leave our Senegal, we want peace, we don't want problems with anyone."

The Senegal F24 group is an umbrella movement made up of more than 170 political and human rights organisations, aiming to pressure Sall not to stand for election next year.

Opposition leaders and influential members of organisations addressed the rally, calling on Sall to leave power and demanding the release of more than 300 "political detainees."

Another protester, Mamadou, said: "Senegalese democracy is in a coma. Why is it in a coma? The simplest principle in democracy, the free participation of political actors in elections, is biased, this simple principle is flouted. 

"President Macky Sall systematically blocks the democratic process in our country."

Many protesters pledged their support for opposition politician Ousmane Sonko, who was recently sentenced to a six-month suspended prison sentence for defamation and insults against the tourism minister which threatens his eligibility to run for president.

Mamadou believes the sentence is politically motivated. 

"There will be no elections in this country without the candidate Ousmane Sonko, this is very clear, we do not fool ourselves, we do not fool ourselves. 

"And we will have a defensive posture to impose this candidacy of right, whatever the means. We will not let ourselves be taken advantage of, this country is ours, this country has given us everything, this country has given us everything. 

"We are the youth of this country and we want Ousmane Sonko, it is as simple as that."

The opposition has accused Sall's government of using the judicial machinery to target potential challengers.

Although it is widely thought that Sall intends to run for election, he has not confirmed or denied it.

BARACK OBAMA'S SECRET MISSION TO MACKY SALL

 BARACK OBAMA'S SECRET MISSION TO MACKY SALL

africa-intelligence    Cheikh Dieng    Publication 13/05/2023

 According to Africa Intelligence, former US President Barack Obama met with the Senegalese Head of State by phone to discuss the February 2024 presidential election.

Less than a year before a crucial presidential election for Senegal, things are getting more complicated for Macky Sall, president of this country. If on the legal level, the latter can rejoice at the recent verdict sanctioning Ousmane Sonko, his main opponent, to a sentence that could invalidate his candidacy, on the diplomatic level, nothing is even less certain. And in the West, Macky's decision to run for a third term is not viewed favourably.


This is at least what the investigative media Africa Intelligence revealed on 11 May, which tells us that the former US president, Barack Obama, met secretly (by phone) with Macky Sall on this extremely scabrous subject. And the first black president of the United States passed on to his former counterpart the doubts concerning his decision to remain in power a third time. According to the same source, the phone call between Macky and Obama was coordinated through Joe Biden, the current US president.


"According to Africa Intelligence, former U.S. President Barack Obama met with the Senegalese head of state by phone to discuss the February 2024 presidential election. The exchange was held in close coordination with the Biden administration, at a time when the scenario of a third term of Macky Sall is taking shape more and more," says Africa Intelligence.


It should be noted that the call of Barack Obama comes in a very tense political context in Senegal marked by the recent conviction of the main opponent of the country to a fine of 200 million and 6 months in prison suspended. Such a sentence could possibly disqualify his candidacy for 2024, which could trigger strong tensions in the country. It should also be recalled that Barack Obama is not the only Western politician to worry about Macky Sall's third term. Indeed, on March 2, the same source (Africa Intelligence) informed us that at the Elysee Palace, the idea does not seem to please Emmanuel Macron.


"With less than a year to go before the presidential election, the prospect of Macky Sall running for a third term is increasingly worrying France and the United States. The subject was discussed directly by Emmanuel Macron with his Senegalese counterpart. At the same time, the issue is embarrassing in the capitals of ECOWAS member states," the source said.

Background to the Weapons Being Used By Pro-Government Militias on the Streets of Dakar - Shady Deal by Notorious Nigerian Arms Deal and Israeli Arms Firm

 

Notorious Nigerien Weapons Broker Lands Secret Arms Deal in Senegal

 by Chikezie Omeje (OCCRP), Arwa Barkallah (OCCRP)

 

 A contract seen by OCCRP shows how Aboubakar Hima, who allegedly skimmed millions from $240 million in corrupt arms deals in his native Niger, may be up to his old tricks further from home.

 

• Key Findings

• Lavie Commercial Brokers, a firm behind a recent deal in Senegal, was set up by Aboubakar Hima, who has been accused of skimming off the top of inflated arms deals, and sometimes not even delivering weapons at all.
• As well as the accusations against him in Niger, Hima was declared wanted by Nigeria’s anti-graft agency for his role in $400 million worth of fraudulent arms contracts.
• The new Senegal deal was signed on Hima’s firm’s behalf by David Benzaquen, a former employee of a major Israeli arms dealer who is now Lavie’s general manager.

 

 At the beginning of this year, a Senegalese state agency signed a deal to purchase $77 million worth of assault rifles, semi-automatic pistols, ammunition, and other weapons from a little-known local firm that had only been set up a couple months earlier.

The contract was unusual in other ways, too. The agency that bought the arms was not the military, but the Environment Ministry. Still, the contract was never put out to bid, and once the deal was signed it was kept quiet, ostensibly due to Senegal’s defense security law. But OCCRP, in partnership with the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, learned of the deal and obtained a copy of the contract.

The supplier of the arms, Lavie Commercial Brokers, turns out to have been set up by the notorious West African businessman Aboubakar Hima, who is suspected of siphoning millions from inflated arms deals in Nigeria and his home country of Niger. An expert who discussed the Senegal deal with OCCRP reporters said irregularities in the contract suggested its price might also have been inflated.

Hima, who is often known by the nickname “Petit Boubé,” is no stranger to controversy. He has had some of his millions seized by the U.S. and South African authorities over illicit arms deals, and is wanted in Nigeria for his alleged role in making fraudulent arms deals with the government. In 2020, OCCRP revealed that a Nigerien government audit found Hima had brokered corrupt arms deals worth $240 million.

Perhaps conscious of his own notoriety, Hima may have sought to disguise his involvement in the Senegalese arms contract. While he is the only person named on registration documents for Lavie Commercial Brokers, the contract was signed on his firm’s behalf by Israel-based David Benzaquen, the company’s general manager.

Benzaquen founded an Israeli company called Lavie Strategies, which is licensed to export weapons by Israel’s Ministry of Defense. He is a former employee of Israeli arms dealer Gabi Peretz, a close friend of Senegal’s President Macky Sall. Peretz is known to supply military equipment to countries in West and Central Africa. Around the time that Hima’s firm obtained the Senegal contract, Peretz offered a 300-million-euro credit line to the Senegalese military, according to the Africa Intelligence news outlet.

In an emailed response to questions, Peretz said he had not had any contact with Hima since at least 2015 and had no knowledge of Lavie Commercial Brokers. He said Benzaquen had not worked for him since 2018 and “does not represent us,” and that he had no knowledge of Lavie’s contract in Senegal.

 

C’est Lavie

Benzaquen’s company was incorporated in Israel in 2013 under the name Gour Arye Africa Ltd, before being changed to Lavie Strategies in 2019. According to its website, Lavie Strategies is also present in Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Niger, Nigeria and Ivory Coast, and specializes in projects in the military, agricultural and medical sectors.

It’s unclear how (or if) Lavie Commercial Brokers — which was incorporated by Hima in Senegal in November 2021 — is connected to Benzaquen’s Lavie Strategies, but reporters found a number of other similarly named companies around the world, most of them tied to either Hima or Benzaquen.

In Burkina Faso, registration documents show Hima is the manager of Lavie Commercial Brokers and Lavie Consulting Limited, both set up in January 2022. In Niger, Hima is the manager of Lavie Strategies Limited and Lavie Consulting, both incorporated in early 2021. Company records from Dubai show the existence of Lavie Commercial Brokers in the United Arab Emirates. There is no owner or manager named, but the contact email address is david@lavie-strategies.com, suggesting Benzaquen might be involved with the company. Reporters also identified a Lavie Strategies Burkina in Burkina Faso and Lavie Consulting LLC in Delaware in the U.S., although neither Hima nor Benzaquen appeared on these corporate records.

 Senegal has been fighting a decades-long armed conflict with rebels in the southern Casamance region, along its borders with Gambia and Guinea-Bissau. Guerilla groups in the forests have smuggled timber and cannabis to finance themselves, and Senegalese forest rangers — overseen by the Environment Ministry — must arm themselves as a result. But experts questioned whether the Environment Ministry should have signed such a large and secretive weapons contract.

“We can ask ourselves the question if it is really necessary [for forest rangers to have assault rifles],” said Professor Semou Ndiaye, a consultant and researcher in corruption and good governance. “[The arrangement] is opaque. It is a deal that is directly arranged and naturally, there is a risk of corruption…the authorities can do as they see fit and there is a heightened risk of overpricing [of contracts].”

An analyst with experience in the security sector in Senegal, who asked not to be named as he was not authorized to speak to reporters, said it was “very unlikely” the Environment Ministry would need to spend tens of millions on arms.

“There have been recent increases in fighting between the army and rebels in Casamance, but I am not aware of any major incidents with the forest rangers,” he said. “I don’t think such a big contract should be signed by a single ministry without the involvement of security forces. And the Environment Ministry is obviously not buying weapons for the army.”

Experts also said it was surprising and problematic that Senegal would ink a major arms deal with a dealer found to be defrauding other governments.

“No responsible buyer, whether a government agency or a private company, does business with an individual who has a record of fraudulent dealing,” said Richard Messick, a former senior operations specialist at the World Bank who now consults for international organizations on legal development and anticorruption.

“It may be that the accusations against Mr. Hima are without merit. A responsible buyer would make absolutely sure of that before contracting with him,” he added.

 Abdou Karim Sall and Aboulaye Daouda Diallo, who signed the contract in their respective roles as Minister of Environment and Minister of Finance at the time, did not respond to multiple requests for comment.

OCCRP could not reach Hima for comment. Reporters sent detailed questions to Hima’s Nigerian lawyer Kayode Ajulo, but he refused to pass them on to his client. “I don’t run such errands,” he said.

Haaretz contacted Benzaquen by telephone, but he refused to respond to questions. Senegal’s Ministries of Environment and Finance did not respond to written questions.

From Paper to Bullets
Hima’s path to West African arms dealer was an unconventional one, aided by his marriage and the necessities of war.

His first known business was Imprimerie du Plateau, a printing firm he set up in Niger in 2003.

In 2005 he married the daughter of the country’s former president, Ibrahim Bare Maïnassara, who had been killed in a coup some years earlier. The marriage brought him closer to Niger’s political establishment, and by 2010 he was in the arms business in neighboring Nigeria.

In Nigeria, Hima made a fortune during the 2010-2015 administration of President Goodluck Jonathan. He worked frequently with Sambo Dasuki, a national security adviser to the Jonathan government who was later accused of mismanaging $2.1 billion connected to arms deals.

Hima set up a Nigerian arms-dealing firm, Societe D’Equipments Internationaux Nigeria Ltd, in May 2014, not long after nearly 300 Nigerian schoolgirls were abducted by Boko Haram Islamic militants. Facing immense pressure to rescue the girls but under a U.S. arms embargo, the Nigerian government turned to brokers like Hima.

Between 2014 and 2015, Hima netted over $400 million in fraudulent arms contracts, according to the country’s Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, which claimed he received government money for the purchase of military equipment for Nigerian forces but didn’t supply all of the gear.

Hima allegedly bribed Nigerian military officers to win these contracts, according to Nigerian court records. One was Alkali Mohammadu Mamu, a former group managing director of the Nigerian air force’s holding company, who was found guilty of corruption after taking $300,000 in currency and an unknown number of cars from Hima.

The Nigerian findings were similar to the findings of the Inspection Générale des Armées, an independent body that audits the armed forces in Niger. Auditors, looking at the period 2011 to 2019, discovered that many deals Hima facilitated in that country were significantly overpriced and the equipment was sometimes never delivered. Those deals by Hima, according to the audit report, were worth $240 million.

 

Procurement Problems

In addition to fraudulently selling weapons to Nigeria, Hima also ran into trouble procuring the weapons in the first place. In both the U.S. and South Africa, he tried to buy arms from dealers that did not have the proper registration or export licenses.

In South Africa in 2014, officials seized $5.7 million wired to a South African arms brokerage company, Cerberus Risk Solutions, by Hima’s firm SEI because Cerberus didn’t have the required registration to deal in arms in South Africa, according to media reports.

The following year, the U.S. seized more than $6 million from Ara G. Dolarian, a U.S.-based arms broker, who had signed contracts totaling $246.4 million to sell arms to Hima for Nigeria, even though Dolarian did not have the appropriate licenses.

Dolarian’s application to supply the arms had been rejected by the U.S. Directorate of Defense Trade Controls, but he continued dealing with Hima and negotiating with different arms vendors in violation of America’s Arms Export Control Act, according to a civil action suit taken by U.S. authorities, which sought the forfeiture of the money Hima had wired to Dolarian.

Hima had paid Dolarian a total of $8.6 million but never got any arms. Hima later sued Dolarian in U.S. court to recover his money. In 2019, Dolarian pled guilty to brokering an illegal arms deal with the Nigerian government.

 

 Red Flags and Five-Star Travel
OCCRP could not confirm whether the weapons in the Senegal deal have been delivered, but the contract covers a wide range of materials and services, from guns and ammunition to boats, pick-up trucks, cars, uniforms, and even drone training courses. Lavie Commercial Brokers agreed to finance the deal upfront, with the Senegalese authorities then paying the company in installments of about 9.06 billion CFA francs ($15.4 million) annually until 2026.

The Senegal deal also provides for two Lavie-funded trips to Dubai for a six-person Senegalese delegation, so that officials can inspect the items before their delivery to Senegal. The contract says the officials are to travel business class and stay at a five-star hotel.

Experts said the contract has red flags for artificially inflated pricing — the same offense that Hima was previously accused of in Niger and Nigeria. Most concerningly, the costs are not itemized. Instead, only the single lump sum of 45.3 billion CFA francs ($77 million) is cited in the document.

“Good practice in any contract for goods or equipment is to itemize the price of the individual items,” said Messick, the former World Bank specialist and corruption expert.

"When a single price is quoted for numerous items…it is very hard to know whether the government is being overcharged."
– Richard Messick, Anticorruption Specialist

“When a single price is quoted for numerous items…it is very hard to know whether the government is being overcharged,” Messick told OCCRP.

Chidi Nwaonu, a defense expert with London-based Peccavi Consulting, also said the lack of price itemization in the contract was a red flag.

“The arms trade is traditionally opaque and corrupt but in Africa it is even more so as arms purchases are shrouded by ‘national security,’” he added.

A transparency campaign group representative in Senegal called for an investigation into the contract and warned of the damaging effect corruption has on the country.

“Corruption weakens the Senegalese state and compromises the development and stability of the country,” said Papa Fara Diallo, president of the Seneglese office of Publish What You Pay, a global coalition of pro-transparency campaigners. “Even if defense secrets mean certain pieces of information cannot be made public, that does not mean the authorities can allow acts of corruption or embezzlement of public money.”

Fact-checking was provided by the OCCRP Fact checking department

 

Open Letter to to the British Public on the invitation of Macky Sall to King Charles III Coronation

 

 It is with great disappointment that I write this open letter.

I note that President Macky Sall of Senegal has been invited to attend King Charles’ Coronation as a guest .

I am concerned that this will bring a reputational damage on British institutionss by being perceived as “rewarding” someone who is rapidly degrading Senegal’s democracy:

•              Sall and his brother were implicated in a BBC documentary on a $10 billion oil and gas deal corruption scandal involving BP.

•              The Senegalese constitution specifically rejects a third mandate by a sitting president, but the President now says it is his own “personal decision” whether to stand. Bloomberg reports that Sall is “putting the country’s stability at risk by refusing to rule out running for a third term”.

•              The US State Department’s 2022 report on Senegal  highlights “Significant human rights issues included credible reports of: unlawful or arbitrary killings; torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment by or on behalf of the government; harsh and life-threatening prison conditions; arbitrary arrest or detention; political prisoners or detainees”

•              Amnesty International states; “Ahead of the 2024 presidential election, the Senegalese authorities are weakening human rights protection in the country”

•              Article 19 raised concerns; “As Senegal gears up for an election, media freedom and the protection of other rights, including the right to protest, have been severely compromised…. journalists have been attacked, naturally hindering their ability to perform their duties without fear. Reports indicate violations of the right to peaceful protest, with citizens being met with excessive force and arbitrary arrests during demonstrations… political parties are facing a blatant crackdown, their supporters and members have been arrested and prosecuted across the country. These developments are extremely worrying, as they threaten the democratic process in Senegal”.

 I believe that the invitation should never have been issued and that it is grossly inappropritae and embarassing to see a "wanna be" dictator using a British state occassion, in his few remaining months in office, s to try and get publicity at home to desperately prove his international respectability.

This is a gross error of British diplomacy who should as a minimum remain neutral in Senegalese political affairs

 Yours Sincerely,

 A concerned Senegalese resident of the UK