Year 2 of Diomaye Faye's accession to the highest office: The people of Ziguinchor divided between hope and disappointment

March 24, 2024 - March 24, 2026. Two years to the day since President Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye assumed the highest office.

Two years later, people from Ziguinchor are reacting to this revolutionary and generational change, which advocated a systemic break in the mode of governance.

More than 54% of Senegalese people brought the Diomaye-President coalition, embodied by the Diomaye-Sonko duo, to power to manage the "Senegal ship".

The people of Ziguinchor interviewed by La Voix du Sud expressed a variety of opinions, some quite divergent. They seemed divided between hopes and regrets.

For some, nothing has changed. The realities remain the same, the difficulties persist, and the same practices are still in place. "We haven't seen any change since they arrived. What we see is what Macky Sall left behind. We weren't expecting this," says an anonymous source.

The same sentiment was echoed by this shopkeeper, who preferred to remain anonymous. "There is still a lot to be done. There is no change," she said bluntly.

In the southern capital, social expectations remain high, while nothing seems to be changing, according to reactions. Some residents say they are discouraged by the power struggle at the top and do not hide their disappointment. "We voted for a break with the past. But since they've been here, we haven't seen any change. They're just settling scores," complains Moussa Diatta, a pseudonym.

Youth underemployment and rising unemployment are a source of concern for this segment of the population. "There is too much unemployment, especially in Casamance," explains this young man.

While some still consider the record of the Pastef regime to be lacking, others believe it is still too early to assess it.

"We cannot talk about assessment when the country is struggling to recover because of the actions of the former regime. We are talking about hidden debt. We need to talk about what needs to be done to recover the money that these people stole," said the septuagenarian amidst a group of young people fiercely criticizing the regime.

For him, the real problem with young people boils down to "a lack of patience." The old man believes that the Diomaye regime is suffering the consequences of actions taken by a group of men "thirsty" for power and determined to cling to it. "The system is still there. We're fighting to dismantle it. The young people are still there with their motorcycles. I can't assess the situation. My concern is how to recover this money from the hands of these people who should be arrested. It's not a question of bias," he fumes.

Two years after Diomaye and Pastef came to power, hope for genuine systemic change seems to be fading among young people. Their fierce struggle for justice, transparency, and improved socioeconomic conditions is far from over.

But hope for real change is still possible if leaders agree on the common interest and not on political calculations marked by a duality at the top, pray these Ziguinchorois still wounded by the events that preceded this alternation in power.