Lawyer and spokesman for the Pastef party, Me Abdoulaye Tall, puts on his gown to plead in favor of Ousmane Sonko, quoted in a case of rapes and death threats. The black dress is convinced that all these accusations against the leader of his party are unfounded. In this interview with Emedia.sn, Me Tall is convinced that Sonko will win this case.
The ad hoc commission has just been approved by the National Assembly. Will your client Ousmane Sonko respond to this commission?
Ousmane Sonko will advise when the time comes if he receives a summons from the commission. The party will advise on this point. But allow me to give a brief overview of what has been going on since the beginning. I think it’s theatre. You will see that the National Assembly and the sponsors of this scheme go straight to the wall. The plot has been uncovered. The investigation showed that Ousmane Sonko was not involved in this case. The investigation should have uncovered the conspirators because Ousmane Sonko’s counsels took the matter to the Public Prosecutor to request that these people be heard, that requisitions from telephone companies be made and possibly show the Senegalese that Senegal does not deserve this. Ousmane Sonko does not deserve this. It is a conspiracy that has been orchestrated to unsuspected circles of the state with officials paid by the state. It doesn’t honor the Republic.
Some believe that the reason for this accusation may have been that Sonko had the imprudence to go to that place where he met Adji Sarr—
Ousmane Sonko has a line of defense that has always been to comply with the precepts of Islam. Ousmane Sonko never touched the girl. It is rather the girl who touched Ousmane Sonko. So, all this is a machination and it will not prosper. Because, in reality, it is an attempt to confiscate the sovereignty of the people. Ousmane Sonko is an embodiment of the hope of a whole youth. He reassures the Senegalese youth. Ousmane Sonko is a heritage. It has, at least, contributed to the quality of the political debate in the National Assembly. Where we were accustomed to insults, Ousmane Sonko came to give a speech that reassures the Senegalese. Now, trying to liquidate an opponent, I think we could do it with conventional weapons and not with this machination.
You say that Sonko never touched the girl, but we’re talking about traces of semen that would have been discovered on the girl to the point that we’re talking about the possibility of DNA testing—
No one is talking about traces of semen. The medical certificate never talked about that. The medical certificate unloaded Ousmane Sonko. The medical certificate says no sexual intercourse and that of the last 24 hours, the girl had not had a sexual conjunction. This technical instrument shows that it is a machination. And the doctor who established it was required by the investigators.
Medical certificate discharged Ousmane Sonko
You’re convinced it’s a conspiracy. But don’t you think Adji Sarr has the right to file a complaint if she feels she’s been raped?
Why was Adja Sarr held captive? Her family is asking to see her daughter. She is held captive, secure to prevent her from speaking. His family knows Adji Sarr was manipulated. Ousmane Sonko says he has forgiven Adji Sarr because she is a victim of a system that manipulated her because of her precariousness. Ousmane Sonko’s first role was to forgive, to turn his back on Adji Sarr and to ask that his conspirators be unmasked and punished by justice. The complaint that was announced is not against Adji Sarr but against the conspirators behind Adji Sarr.
Didn’t Ousmane Sonko go to the salon for a massage?
Look, it’s everyone’s freedom to take care if it’s massage or medical care. We need to get beyond that kind of debate. In Senegal, because you are a political leader, you cannot be deprived of certain freedoms that are linked to your private life. We have to clean up the political field and not get into moral considerations. That is too sensitive. In addition, Ousmane Sonko assumed that he went to this salon, if only to receive therapeutic massages. Why should Ousmane Sonko be denied this freedom? This is unacceptable in a rule of law. I think that relations of political adversity must be civilized. But what is important is that every day the conspirators are exposed, and every time we move forward, we discover other faces that are part of this conspiracy. This only restores Ousmane Sonko in his dignity.
It says that the owner of the massage parlour is accused, not of procuring, but rather of complicity in rape. Is that true?
Why she was not brought before the investigating judge to be arrested and placed under warrant of committal. Today, she is free to do her business. She is at home. I think there are so many areas of darkness, so many elements that could push the authorities to pull themselves together and tell the National Assembly to stop because this machination will push them straight to the wall. And it only unmasks the conspirators
In addition to the acts of rape and death threats, other charges including the call for insurrection hang over the head of Ousmane Sonko. Is this another case in the case?
Who called for insurrection? No one called for insurrection. We must not, by the failure of a procedure, try to find a loophole to look for another procedure. This rape and death threat procedure is going down the drain. Now there are Senegalese who have been arbitrarily arrested, abused, tortured, heard and referred. These people have been placed under warrant of committal for various offences such as criminal associations, calls for insurrection among others. We try to muzzle a political party, to discourage activists. But that will not pass. We must know why we should keep it. Ousmane Sonko said in his statement that persecutions will multiply, which is why he invites his supporters to resistance. Resistance is a constitutional right. Since the other side faces acts of oppression, resistance is a legitimate act.
What analysis do you make of the opening argument of the prosecutor who targeted X when there was already a complaint against the leader of the Pastef?
That is a problem. From the moment a complainant has targeted a named person and the prosecutor after receiving all elements of the investigation targets X, this means that the file is empty. What hurts me the most is that at the month of asking that the parliamentary immunity of Ousmane Sonko be lifted, the indictment targets X which is not yet known. The investigating judge did not act. He should have heard the complainant, the witnesses and even Ousmane Sonko. The first thing he does is ask for parliamentary immunity. The fight is political. Now we know in Senegal, sometimes, how justice is instrumentalized and used to satisfy political demands.
What state of mind is Ousmane Sonko in right now?
He is serene. He is Zen. He has nothing to reproach himself with. God will act as quickly as possible because Allah will do him justice. Ousmane Sonko is not afraid of anything. He assumes his truths and positions. I think that the political debate should not have reached this kind of subject, would be that out of respect for Senegalese democracy. It is democracy that will emerge slapped and scarred.That is where the problem lies.
Source : Emedia.sn
