Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko met with members of the executive committee of the Union of Magistrates of Senegal (UMS) this Friday. Following the meeting, Cheikh Bâ, the president of the UMS, explained the content of their discussions.

 

"We came here to meet with the Prime Minister to discuss with him all the issues that concern the justice system, the various concerns, and also to provide some clarifications on questions that have arisen, which national and international public opinion certainly needed clarification on," Cheikh Bâ explained on national television.

 

He added: "When responsible people, each at their station in the affairs of the Republic, meet within the framework of an inter-institutional or inter-structured dialogue to be able to exchange on current problems and develop perspectives together for the proper functioning of the judicial institution embodied by our leaders," he said.

 

The President of the UMS clarifies that they are open to a process of dialogue, exchange, and clarification on all issues. Moreover, he says, it is with this perspective in mind that they are meeting with the various authorities of the Republic, as well as other actors in national life, such as civil society, religious leaders, and all segments of society.

"Because we deliver justice in the name of the Senegalese people and are therefore interlocutors for all Senegalese, whoever they may be. It is from this perspective that we came to this audience with the Prime Minister," he explains.

 

And with Ousmane Sonko, Cheikh Ba reveals that they have addressed all the issues facing the justice system as well as personal concerns: "We received clarifications and we also provided the answers we had regarding matters of principle. And we favor this path over the infighting or sterile polemics that do not serve the Senegalese people in whose name we all work."

 

As a reminder, this hearing comes just days after Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko launched a vigorous attack against the judiciary and certain magistrates. His remarks, made from Morocco, have generated considerable commentary.