Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has dismissed Cheikh Oumar Diagne, Minister of Administration and Equipment at the Presidency, from his duties, replacing him with Mr. Papa Thione Dieng as Director of General Resources.
This decision follows a controversy sparked by comments by Cheikh Oumar Diagne, who described the Senegalese riflemen as “traitors” during an interview broadcast on December 21, 2024. The government quickly reacted, expressing its total disavowal of these statements and reaffirming the heroic status of the Senegalese riflemen.
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This case comes in a context of persistent tensions surrounding the memory of Senegalese riflemen, particularly with regard to the Thiaroye massacre in 1944.
The departure of Cheikh Oumar Diagne also comes after the filing of a complaint by the African Federation of Descendants of Senegalese Riflemen, which denounced an attack on the honor and memory of these former combatants.
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“The riflemen are traitors who fought against their brothers for crumbs. They were concerned about money which was at the origin of the Thiaroye massacre,” he declared during an interview with Fafa Tv.
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