Kiiraay or Pastef: The very clear answer from Abdoulaye Baldé, leader of the UCS

Members of the Union of Centrists of Senegal (UCS Mbolo) met yesterday, Thursday, in Ziguinchor for the installation of the joint municipal branch. Dr. Abdoulaye Baldé, former mayor of the city and national president of the party, congratulated his activists and gave clear directives. He emphasized reorganization, expansion, and welcoming new leaders, while reaffirming his party's distinct identity. He ruled out any alliance with Kiiraay or Pastef.

In the face of a strong turnout of activists and coordinators, Dr. Abdoulaye Baldé commended the commitment of his members and noted that youth, women's, and departmental structures had been established for several months. The creation of the local branch completes this organizational framework.

“Our party must reorganize, expand its membership, and welcome the new leaders, young people and women, who have joined us,” declared Baldé, emphasizing the importance of grassroots work in the neighborhoods. Regarding a potential candidacy for mayor of Ziguinchor, he clarified that the matter was not yet on the agenda, but that the UCS Mboloo would decide once the date of the local elections was known.

The party president, however, was firm on the electoral strategy: "What is certain is that our party will run in the elections under the banner of UCS Mboloo, in coalition with other parties and movements." He added that the candidacies will be analyzed to choose "the one that will allow us to be victorious."

On the issue of alliances, Baldé clarified his position: "We will not go towards Pastef, nor towards Kiiraay. We have our own path. We will preserve our identity and unite all energies to go victorious in the next elections."

He recalled that the UCS Mboloo had been the leading party in Ziguinchor, a position he intends to regain through the ongoing defections. Among them is Mr. Dial, a former candidate who came in fourth in the last local elections with over 1,000 votes, and who is now committed to the party.

Baldé reaffirmed the UCS Mboloo's commitment to the opposition: "We are members of the Front for the Defense of the Republic (FDR). Strategies are being refined within the leaders' conference to determine, in each locality, the dominant party around which the others will rally."

With this stance, UCS Mboloo positions itself as an autonomous force, rejecting the Pastef and Kiiraay poles, and seeking to embody a main path of unity in the Senegalese opposition.