05 people in an accident in Bignona
It was a traffic accident of rare violence which occurred this Saturday, January 11, 2024, around 11 a.m., on the Bignona-Ziguinchor axis, near the village of Teubi, located in the commune of Niamone. The report shows 5 deaths including four passengers in a vehicle commonly called 7 seats and the driver. According to a security source, the public transport car, coming from Bignona, hit a parked garbage truck. Other testimonies indicate that the driver wanting to overtake another car that was in front did the irreparable by ending his race against the truck belonging to the project for the promotion and integrated management and economy of solid waste in Senegal (PROMOGED ). The three victims died instantly. The fourth died at the Bignona health center immediately after being evacuated by the firefighters. The injured were evacuated to the Bignona health center before being transferred to the Ziguinchor regional hospital center. Among the victims of this tragic accident, there is the former high councilor of local authorities, the honorable Fanta Sagna, activist of the Rally for Socialism and Democracy (RSD). Accidents are often noted on this axis, called national road number 4 or transgambian, where traffic is very intense during the day.
Establishment of two sugar production factories in Casamance
Guest yesterday on the show Point de Vue on RTS, Serigne Guèye Diop announced the establishment of two new sugar production factories in the Casamance region, precisely in the areas of Kolda and Ziguinchor. According to the Minister of Industry and Trade, this initiative aims to strengthen local sugar production and reduce the country’s dependence on imports. “I can tell you that today, there are two projects whose studies are very advanced for the production of sugar by two factories in Casamance. This involves producing sugar locally with sugar cane in the Casamance base, Kolda zone and in the Ziguinchor region. These projects have been submitted to the Prime Minister and it is very advanced,” he said. He also stressed that this initiative is part of a strategy aimed at putting an end to the existing monopoly in the sugar sector in Senegal. “Our government is against monopoly. It’s not even normal that for 50 years a single company has had a monopoly,” said Serigne Guèye Diop.
Creation of 2,000 reference stores
In an intervention on the RTS program Point de Vue, the Minister of Industry and Trade spoke about the recent tensions on the market linked to speculation on prices. In the Point de Vue program on RTS yesterday, Serigne Guèye Diop announced a project to modernize retail with the creation of 2,000 flagship stores across the country. According to him, these stores will be equipped with freezing systems and will operate on solar energy, ensuring the hygiene and conservation of products. The project, he adds, aims to create between 20,000 and 30,000 jobs. He also assured that there was no shortage of essential products such as rice, oil, or sugar. He explained that the temporary closure of imports was intended to promote the flow of local production and regulate the market. Serigne Guèye Diop stressed that significant stocks of sugar are available in the country.
The management of the Emedia Group reaches out to employees
On the occasion of the start of the new year, the General Management of the E-MEDIA Group released a press release to invite “all Staff (journalists, technicians, administrative staff) to regroup in order to open a space for consultations focused on effective return to work and the exploration of avenues for resolving pending cases.” The text explains that “faced with the challenges of life and work, the agents in office held firm and showed real resilience by valiantly overcoming difficulties despite recurring constraints”. “A trying year has just ended with its share of disruptions and agitation resulting from a very unfavorable situation for the company. Everything and its opposite have been put forward to condemn Top Management, imprudently indexed as responsible for the deterioration of the situation. The company holds assets held by order and thus deprives us of revenue, the fruit of our commitments to third parties with accounting documents proving it. General Management does not hide reality but refrains from arguing when, out of necessity, the call of duty justifies the permanent search for solutions. Not a day without this research that we diversify to escape the versatility of a subject clientele,” informs the text. In the press release, the General Management of E-MEDIA also calls on shareholders to make the appropriate decisions to allow the company to continue its development to the great happiness of its workforce and the public.
News from Amadou Ba
Disappeared from the radar since the installation of the deputies and the office of the National Assembly, to the point of pushing a PASTEF deputy to request his removal in front of the cameras and in the middle of a plenary session, the former Prime Amadou Ba surrendered this weekend in Barkédji to offer condolences following the death of Kalidou Sow, son of the mayor of Barkédji, Ousmane Sow. In a post on Facebook, the opposition leader said that this news comes as a profound shock to everyone, because it reminds us of the fragility of life and the pain that comes with losing a loved one. Meeting between MPs and Jakarta men The problem of Jakarta men will not be an easy matter for the government. The revelation of PASTEF MP Amadou Ba on his Facebook page this Saturday shows that the situation is much more complicated than we think. “We deputies meet young drivers facing the difficulties of regularization of Jakarta men. Many of them do not have national identity cards due to lack of civil status documents. They therefore struggle to obtain official documents (registration card in their name, driving license, in particular). This is an essential aspect to take into account to further help them become more formalized. We are raising their concerns with the competent authorities who, without doubt, will make the necessary adjustments,” he indicated.
Suspension of the “Navetanes” in Guédiawaye
The Prefect of the department of Guédiawaye issued an order this Saturday to suspend the competitions of the Popular National Championship (CNP) “Navetanes” in his constituency. The local authority took this decision because of the “recurrence of scenes of violence and aggression after matches”, “the destruction of public and private property”, and the “permanent threats of disturbances to public order”. In the Prefect’s note, the date of the resumption was not indicated. So, ASCs and their supporters will have to wait a long time before resuming their activities.
Women MPs at Diary Sow
The women deputies were in Malika last Saturday to offer their condolences to the family of the late child Diary Sow, brutally killed by his friend’s father. Opportunity for these women parliamentarians including Amy Dia, Mbène Faye and Ramatoulaye Ndom to demand justice for Diary Sow, psychological assistance for the family of the deceased currently traumatized but also community synergy for prevention against rape. Diamaguène wants another cemetery The inhabitants of the communes of Diamaguene Sicap Mbao and Tivaouane Diack Sao grouped together want the erection of another large cemetery at the level of the Mbao classified forest. This, in the face of cramped conditions and the increase in flooding but also stagnant water which affects the Muslim cemeteries of Diamaguéne. These populations made this plea during a day of weeding from which they also requested their relocations.
PDS-Pikine defection
The Senegalese Democratic Party is living in troubled waters in Pikine. Indeed, after its poor results during the last legislative elections with its alliance with the Apr, departures are being recorded. And it is Marième Sy, better known under the name “Rendo Sy”, the current president of the Pds communal section of Mbao, also a member of the movements supporting Karim Wade, who has just slammed the door of the Pds, with her relatives to join Ousmane Sonko’s Pastef thanks to a manager named Ousseynou Pouye. She justifies her choice by her dissatisfaction with the deputy Lamine Thiam and company who, according to her, sold the Pds to ally themselves during the legislative elections with “the bad horse Apr” currently vomited by the populations but also by the absence of democracy in the renewals of the bodies of the national women’s office with the choice made on the deputy Fatou Sow without a vote and without debate at the base. A situation which in the eyes of Rendo Sy constitutes injustice and manifest contempt for grassroots activists.
Unfair dismissals at Ship’s Senegal
Last Saturday, a group of 24 ex-employees of Ship’s Senegal Company held a press conference in Colobane to express their indignation at the dismissals they consider abusive and illegitimate. The spokesperson for the collective, Ousseynou Sonko, denounced the way in which these workers, made up of contract and permanent employees including three staff representatives, were dismissed without respect for their rights. According to him, the situation was triggered during Labor Day celebrations on May 1, 2023. While management was preparing to organize festivities, these employees chose to call the press to denounce their “difficult working conditions and unacceptable. Since that incident, they say the company’s director has targeted whistleblowers, leading to a wave of firings. “We were fired for spurious reasons that have no legal basis. We dared to speak out and today we find ourselves without jobs or benefits,” Sonko said. The ex-employees say that since their dismissal, they have been running after their former boss, but are struggling to get answers and solutions. The Africa Ship’s Company, which has several subsidiaries in Senegal and is particularly known for the manufacture of Ship’s candies, has its headquarters in the Colobane industrial zone. The ex-workers challenge the government of Bassirou Diomaye Faye, calling for the rapid application of the legal system “Jub Jubal Jubanti”, which aims to protect the rights of workers in the country.
