Thursday, March 30, 2023 – 04:46 PM
A court in Dakar has sentenced Ousmane Sonko, Senegal’s main rival in the 2024 presidential election, Ousmane Sonko, to two months in prison for slandering a government minister, Bloomberg News reports.
Makudu N’Dour, Ousmane Sonko’s lawyer, told Bloomberg News on Thursday by telephone from Dakar that the court had fined his client 48,200 million CFA francs. It was not immediately clear whether Sonko would run for office, although N’Dour said the decision would not disqualify him.
“Despite this condemnation, Ousmane Sonko still retains his civil and political rights,” Dakar newspaper Soleil said.
The decision came as Sall, 61, could seek re-election following a 2016 constitutional amendment that he said allowed him to extend his term.
Sonko, who is president of Senegal’s African Patriots Party for Action, Morality and Fraternity, was sued for defamation over remarks made by Senegal’s Tourism Minister May Mbyen Young last year.
Sonko faces charges of rape and assault on a beauty salon employee; But he denies this and says the charges are politically motivated.
