Journalist withdraws from Senegal's presidential election

Senegalese journalist Abdou Latif Coulibaly who had declared his candidacy for presidency has backed out of the race.

His Benno Alliance 2012 movement said the journalist will now team up with Moustapha Niasse, the presidential candidate heading the main opposition coalition Benno Siggil Senegal.

The Benno Alliance 2012 political movement attributed the investigative journalist’s decision to a restricted timeline.

“The timeline for the submission of sufficient funds to undertake an effective campaign in line with ambitions of the Movement is very short,” the statement said.

The journalist’s decision comes barely a week to the official launch of the presidential campaign which will run up to the eve of the polls on 26 February 2012.

Besides the approximately $140,000 that a candidate should deposit as a presidential fee, analysts say about thrice that amount would be required to undertake a substantial campaign.

'Fantasy candidates'

In September, the newly-established ministry of Electoral Affairs set the new deposit for presidential candidates, increasing it from the $55,000 paid by candidates during the last polls in 2007.

The ministry ostensibly upon cue from the ruling party argued that the increase was purposely meant to discourage “fantasy candidates” whose intention was to create “sideshows.”

The ministry explained that candidates who paid the fee and won at least five per cent of the votes during the presidential and general elections will be reimbursed their money.

Benno Siggil Senegal’s Niasse is considered to be among the first five potential candidates that could win the presidency in the upcoming polls.

He served for ten years as late President Sedar Senghor’s permanent secretary and eventually became a foreign minister and finally was the first but ephemeral Prime Minister of President Abdoulaye Wade in 2000.

Over 15 presidential candidates are still in the race including three former premiers, four former foreign affairs ministers and a long list of political journeymen.