Lessons from President Abdou Diouf, the true builder of Senegalese democracy [By Alioune Ndiaye]

If I had to find acceptable reasons that might have prompted me to write a

text to celebrate, in a small way, the ninetieth birthday of President Abdou

DIOUF, despite the fact that I was part of that youth labeled "unhealthy and

manipulated” since I was in my final year of high school (Terminal D) at Lycée Lamine GUÈYE (where I did

(all my classes) in 1988, I had chosen to follow the strike movement and not

not to pass the second part of the baccalaureate; despite the fact that I also had

I did not appreciate certain parts of his memoirs published in 2014 and I made that clear.

publicly; if I were to try to justify this pressing desire to take

I'm using my laptop to type these few words, I'd say it's because (if we

also rules out the fact that we were born on exactly the same day at thirty-four

years apart) undeniably, the second President of the Republic of

Throughout its rich history, Senegal has given us lessons in humanity, in

citizenship, civility, integrity, authority, humility, accessibility, dignity,

of equanimity. This equanimity, named by the wordsmith Professor

Souleymane Bachir DIAGNE in his work "The Bundle of My Memory", this

The ability to remain calm and impassive regardless of the situation is

certainly President Diouf's most recognized quality. It constitutes both

the foundation and the culmination of all these attributes that made him the most statesman

an undervalued aspect of our Republic which, like many others, is rather inclined to

to celebrate narcissism and egocentrism.

As a citizen, I was able to grasp the lessons he had given to the entire nation.

Senegalese; as a student manager, I remembered those he had

lavished on one of our professors who was his young minister and "apprentice"; and in

As a novice entrepreneur, I absorbed the lessons he had taught me.

directly.

Lessons for the Senegalese Nation

When we talk about President Abdou Diouf, what comes up most often are these

two famous sayings:

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- “ Jàkk jaa ngi nii, ku mu neex nga ndodd ”, which was the starting point of the

full multi-party system in Senegal from the moment he assumed the highest office in

1981;

"I will transmit the text as is to the National Assembly without changing a single thing."

"comma," alluding to the 1992 draft bill to revise the electoral code,

which laid the seeds of the first alternation at the beginning of the millennium.

The mosque is accessible; anyone who wishes may come and make the call to prayer.

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1If we add to this the liberalization of the audiovisual sector which has led to the

the creation of several free radio stations, President DIOUF, as the builder of the

Senegalese democracy has given us a great lesson in citizenship.

In a country where there is currently much talk of accountability and

asset declaration, that of the former Head of State was simply

non-existent, since he had no personal assets when he left power in 2000;

which is a true lesson in integrity.

Similarly, if there was no "de-Dioufization" after his departure, it is precisely because

that he knew how to protect family and allies by keeping them away from the exercise of

power. Very few students at our high school could recognize his youngest daughter, who was there

completed at least one school year, when she walked home after school.

accompanied by only one bodyguard. Almost no one could recognize her

his eldest son when he was out for his brisk walk on the western coast. This is a

A fine lesson in civility.

Lessons for a young minister

During a Political Economy lecture, during our MBA seminars

Executive, our professor, who is also a former minister and close to the President

Diouf recounted a rather revealing anecdote. The young minister that he was,

Having had a run-in with a recalcitrant subordinate, he had made the decision to

to sanction. The president, having heard the story, summoned him to ask him

explanations that he found rather unconvincing. He then gave him a lecture

masterful on what the Republic represented, in the sense that it did not belong to him

not to him as minister, any more than it belonged to him as President of the

Republic. That the statesman's worst enemy remained the ego that was at the origin

of hubris, a symbol of all excess and abuse of power. And to illustrate its

In that moment, he told her how he had had to manage a crucial moment in our life

Nation. Tragic events had resulted in loss of human life.

among valiant servants of the Republic, resulting in anger

legitimate demands from their colleagues who were calling for justice. Their supervisory authority requested

an audience with President Diouf to inform him of this, subtly suggesting

punitive action against the person who would be responsible for these extremely serious acts.

The latter, after listening attentively, replied calmly: "Sir, I

I hold you responsible for the physical integrity of this young man from Pointe-à-Pitre

from his hair to the tips of his toes.” A young man who had nevertheless insisted on

His place, publicly, was filled with the most outrageous remarks. Our professor received this

That day, and all of us through him, received a tremendous lesson in humanity.

2. Lessons for a very young compatriot entrepreneur

It was in July 1993 that I first wrote to President Abdou Diouf

to inform him of my project to computerize high schools and colleges in Senegal,

when I was President of the MICRO MEGA GIE. I still keep, to myself,

the four letters he sent me, by way of reply, through the intermediary of

Minister of State, Minister of Presidential Affairs and Services, the late Ousmane

Tanor Dieng. During our correspondence, which lasted more than a year, he

had put me in touch with the Minister of Modernization and Technology

Magued Diouf and with the Minister of Education, André Sonko. Despite the fact that

This project fizzled out; I was treated with the utmost respect by the ministers and their

teams, both administratively and technically, while they

They reported regularly to the Presidency, which was closely monitoring the situation. I

I remember a tense meeting at the Ministry of Education during which I had

stood up to a dozen Directors and Heads of Departments who were both skeptical and

admiring a young computer scientist of barely twenty-four years old, trained in

Moreover, Senegal, which had the audacity to come and present a proposal...

completely revolutionary for the time. At the same time, I allowed myself, through

our exchanges, to provide advice to President DIOUF, as evidenced by this

letter of November 29, 1993, in which Minister of State Tanor Dieng concluded these

Terms: "With thanks from the President of the Republic for

your suggestions regarding government communication towards

People, I ask you to accept, Mr. President, the expression of my

"Best regards."

While nowadays some high-ranking officials don't even bother to respond

In addition to letters from their compatriots, the young business leader that I was received from

President Abdou Diouf, a sublime lesson in humility and accessibility.

Let us not be mistaken, however, the second President of the Republic of

Senegal was not a naive leader. A situation that occurred in 1991 could

to illustrate it. As is customary at the start of the academic year, the President

The Supreme Court justice was to submit his draft speech to the presidential office.

so that the Head of State could prepare his speech. The text received was

problematic because the senior magistrate, through words deemed discourteous, had

stressed the need to strengthen the separation of powers between the executive and the

judicial. After several interactions with President Diouf's associates, the

The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court agreed to change his opening remarks. On the day,

However, against all expectations, he decided to read the first text, which had been

amended, before a Head of State who was astonished but, as usual, equanimous, who

He then stoically resolved to deliver the speech that had been prepared for him. During the

debriefing with his legal advisors who analyzed the event as

Unacceptable, he asked them, a stickler for the rules to the core: "What is the

"What law allows me to do?" This was the starting point for the reform of the

judicial institutions of 1992, with the abolition of the Supreme Court and the creation

3 of the Constitutional Council, the Council of State and the Court of Cassation. It was

Certainly an excellent lesson in authority.

Legend has it that on the evening of March 19, 2000, when the first results

declared President Abdoulaye WADE the winner in the second round of the elections

presidential elections, a delegation composed of his supporters and allies came to find

the outgoing president, seeking to make him understand, with numerous arguments, the

possibility, or even necessity, of forcing the issue despite the impending defeat.

After listening to them patiently and equanimously, Abdou Diouf, upon their departure,

He called the newly elected president to congratulate him. He had chosen history.

Happy birthday Mister President! 2

By Alioune NDIAYE, MBA, DBAc

Special Advisor to the President

of the Republic