SPORTICS, THE NEW POLITICKING GAME ?

CAF’s Ahmad Ahmad and FIFA’s Fatma Samoura are fast falling into the trivialization of Senegal’s political life by lending the reputation of their institutions to an unpopular outgoing-president. They are selling out the huge popularity behind this unique sport –soccer ! They, and their local acolytes, must be stopped, right here, right now, right away !

Barely two months before a high-voltage presidential election in Senegal, all tricks are being used by the contenders, especially by the incumbent, Macky Sall, as he fears a shock outcome from it. Latest strategy has been for him to convene an expensive, high-profile, top-notch, African soccer Awards ceremony replete with the most known players, past and present, in what stands to be the most popular sport across the continent.

The same way the military intrusion into the political field in Nigeria led to the coining of the terms militics to redefine politics in that country, it makes sense to consider that, among other shenanigans, sportics has been the name of the game in Senegal when it comes to profiling the political process.

Over one million dollars have been spent to host the soccer players, ranging from Drogba to Essien, Salah, Mane, Kano, to name but a few. Present in Dakar also were the top brass of the African football confederation (CAF), led by its Chairman, Ahmad Ahmad. The world body of football, FIFA, was equally represented, in the person of Senegal’s Fatma Samoura, its Secretary-General.

It is tempting to hail the hosting of this event in a soccer-crazy country as Senegal is but one should resist doing that: this was actually manipulation of soccer, its politicization, at its worst in a pre-electoral context towards a tense but defining presidential poll due to be held on February 24.

This is very bad. It comes on the heels of other occurrences when the outgoing President used other known names and institutions in his desperate bid to revamp his tarnished image. In January, launching his candidacy, he managed to enrol the likes of Ivorian President Alassane Ouattara as well as the International Liberal, an institution regrouping liberal political mouvements: these were drafted to his event on the sidelines of an event he had convened in Dakar to coincide with his candidature submission. Now, it’s the turn of the soccer world to fall headlessly into his trap. It’s leaders may have acted knowingly, as accomplices to his ploy. What a shame. Is this just another sample of the corrupt practices rocking the shameful football world? May be!

Mid-January, another high-profile event to be convened in Dakar with the aim to bolstering Macky Sall’s standing is the gathering of the advocates of economic emergence, an empty shell, claiming the advent of a new day in Africa.

To be true, few people noticed that Egypt’s Mohamed Salah was declared best African player of the year 2018 and that his country will host the 2019 Soccer African cup of nations, both feats signaling the return of the land of The Pharaohs in African politics.

However the mere fact that CAF, under the watch of a leading FIFA personality bestowed its coveted Platinum award to Macky Sall is the clearest indication that soccer is meddling into Senegal’s political life. This is unacceptable.

Sportics is too vain to be the name of politics in Senegal. Issues at stake are too high to allow such a superficial evolution. Fighting corruption, upholding free and fair elections, Justice, economic progress, the diplomatic positioning of Senegal and other top priorities have all suffered under Sall’s bad governance of our country during the last seven years to permit this trivialization of politics, understood as the high-ground for serious debate.

In a nutshell, CAF and other puppets, please get out of the way. We mean business. It’s about reclaiming our country -it’s present and future, it’s standing ! As a case in point, we can’t tolerate the likes of Samuel Et’oo-fils, coming to Senegal, taking advantage of a soccer event to express their political support for Macky Sall whom our political class, and society at large, want to get rid off. That he can do such mingling in political life in his native Cameroun to the utter disgust of his compatriot is one thing but to export such a reckless behavior in an open democracy like Senegal’s is more than an insult. He is unfortunately not alone in using opportunistically created platform to air unwelcome, out of purpose, political positions.

Let’s be blunt. We will not allow the highjacking of the most popular sport -and other noble ideals- to stand on our way as we strive to salvage our country. The rest of the world should pay closely attention to this political criminalization of such a beautiful game by petty Senegalese political dealers and their international acolytes.

Adama Gaye, a Senegalese journalist and author, is a former Editor of the London-based West Africa Magazine.