VZCZCXRO8075
RR RUEHMA RUEHPA
DE RUEHDK #0635/01 1391359
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 191359Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY DAKAR
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2421
INFO RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DAKAR 000635 
 
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E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINS KDEM ECON SG
SUBJECT: Senegal's New Vice Presidency-An Empty Shell 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: On May 15 the Senegalese National Assembly voted 
in a favor of a constitutional amendment to create the position of 
Vice President (VP).  Although many deputies belonging to President 
Abdoulaye Wade's own party argued against the move, saying that such 
a position is superfluous, they passed the law nonetheless.  The VP 
has no executive power and his/her terms ends with that of the 
President, meaning that that person is not even in the succession 
hierarchy.  The Senate is expected to vote in favor for the adoption 
of the amendment on Monday, May 25, after which both houses will 
meet in congress to adopt the amendment.  End Summary. 
 
Content of the Law 
------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) The proposed amendment is made up of three articles.  The 
first article, added to article 26 of the Constitution, states "The 
President may be assisted by a Vice President appointed after 
consultations with the Presidents of the Senate and the National 
Assembly.  The Vice President's term shall not exceed that of the 
President."   The Vice President must fulfill all criteria required 
to become Head of State: i.e. hold exclusively Senegalese 
nationality; be at least 35 years old on the day of the election; 
and be able to read, write, and speak fluently the country's 
official language (French).  The law also stipulates that the VP 
will be second in rank after the Head of State.  It also stipulates 
that the President can "by decree delegate to the Vice President 
certain powers," but those powers should not be in the domain of 
what is generally referred to as sovereignty powers.  Powers that 
cannot be delegated are listed as follows in the Constitution: 
defining the policy of the nation (art. 42); accrediting ambassadors 
(art. 46); the power to pardon (art. 47); the power to appoint the 
cabinet (art. 49); the power to initiate a referendum (art. 51) 
exceptional powers when the Nation is in peril (art. 52); the power 
to sign bills into law (art. 72 and 73); the power to dissolve the 
National Assembly (art. 87); and the power to appoint senior and 
Supreme Court judges (art. 89 and 90). 
 
Hesitant Law-makers 
------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) President Wade's ruling Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS) 
and allied parties control 100 percent of the Senate and 90 percent 
of the National Assembly.  For this reason, Wade can usually expect 
easy passage of any of his pet projects.  However, in this case he 
anticipated (correctly as it turns out) that some PDS deputies would 
be reticent to vote for the amendment because its passage would 
appear to run contrary to the will of the Senegalese people who 
recently handed the PDS a defeat in local elections in part because 
of a widespread view that government expenditures are out of 
control.  On May 7, President Wade invited all of his party's 
deputies and cabinet members to the presidency to explain his 
rationale for the Vice Presidency.  He opened the meeting by telling 
them that he wished to hear their views on the issue.  Elhadj Diouf, 
the head of a small party in Wade's coalition told the President 
that "Creating a VP is not necessary and it is dangerous."  Diouf 
was roundly applauded by his colleagues.  A member of the Assembly 
who attended the meeting told the Embassy that it was at this point 
that Wade turned to Alioune Diop, the Deputy Director for Political 
Affairs in the Presidency, and asked him to stop giving the floor to 
the Deputies.  He then berated Elhadj Diouf telling him, "You miss 
the political point here.  I see that you still have a long way to 
go before being a political leader."  The President explained that 
the VP's main task will be to help women in rural areas and deal 
with their socio-economic issues. 
 
Wade Modifies Proposal Under Pressure 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU)  In the first version of the amendment, the VP was to be 
appointed for an indefinite period and the position favored giving 
women access to a senior executive position in the State.  When the 
Assembly's Legislative Committee examined the amendment on May 14, 
the Minister of Justice accepted three changes suggested by critical 
deputies from the ruling party.  The first was to eliminate 
references to women in order to avoid discrimination.  The 
government then agreed to include a line that the President has to 
consult the chairs of the two chambers of Parliament before 
appointing the VP, although their advice will not be binding.   The 
President also agreed that the term of the VP cannot be longer than 
that of the President's.  The legislative report explaining the 
rationale for the amendment was also completely rewritten.  Now 
instead of saying the position is created to promote women, the 
report now reads, "The Vice President will allow the President to be 
better represented and increase the President's efficacy.  The Vice 
President will boost the fluidity of the functioning of 
administrative entities, which are directly under the President's 
authority." 
 
Tiny Opposition 
 
DAKAR 00000635  002 OF 002 
 
 
--------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) In spite of the criticism, the vast majority of deputies 
defended and voted for the amendment.  However, the President's 
coalition did feature two deputies who abstained and one who voted 
against the law.  Those who abstained denounced what they viewed as 
Wade's authoritarian approach and the urgency to create an 
unnecessary position.  Elhadj Diouf who voted against it said in the 
plenary session, "I will not vote for this law because I am not a 
coward, and Senegal is not a banana republic."  He further went on 
"if we cannot say no to Wade, what are we doing in this Assembly? 
Wade makes mistakes and we must tell him so if our goal is to remain 
in power". 
 
A Weakened President 
-------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Minister of Justice Madicke Niang, who defended the law on 
behalf of the government, said that the Government is not creating 
another institution.  In his view, the "Vice Presidency will 
increase the proximity and relations of the State with the people. 
The Vice President will represent the President."  Niang continued 
by saying that with the VP in place Wade could continue to look for 
funding abroad to support Senegal's development.  For NDeye Fatou 
Toure, a deputy with the small Tekki opposition party, the need to 
create a glorified "Assistant President" is a "sign of impotence." 
Imam MBaye Niang, a fiery opposition deputy from an Islamic 
reformist party, noted that this was the fifteenth amendment to the 
Constitution in eight years (Note: This version of the Constitution 
itself was only adopted in 2001.  End Note.); he told the Minister 
of Justice "if you continue to govern this way, you will make it 
easy for us to replace you at the next Presidential election." 
 
 
A women-centered strategy 
------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The creation of the position of VP is pure political 
theater that allows Wade to burnish his pro-feminine credentials. 
This was clearly stated in the original version of the amendment 
that read, "In his continued will to strengthen the power of women 
in the institutions, the President of the Republic had recently 
proposed to women the choice of being offered either the position of 
Prime Minister or of that of Vice President [on the occasion of his 
independence day address to the nation]."    A PDS leader told the 
Embassy that women figure prominently in President Wade's strategy 
to have his son Karim elected Senegal's next President.  Wade plans 
to give them access, via the new VP, to economic benefits with the 
goal of having them support Karim.  The VP will benefit from the 
President's funds and proximity to boost programs targeting women. 
Awa Ndiaye, a former Minister of Family Affairs and a female leader 
of the Generation du Concret created by the President's son, will be 
assisting the VP in her new capacity as a Senior Minister in 
President Wade's office. 
 
COMMENT 
-------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) By the Government's own admission the Vice President of 
Senegal has very little power and one wonders why the position is 
even necessary.  The reality is that the VP is a totally useless and 
unnecessary entity that will add another parasite to Senegal's 
already bloated body politic.  Meanwhile, the gap between President 
Wade and the citizenry continues to widen.  While the people elected 
opposition candidates to run their cities as a warning to Wade to 
improve governance and address their basic needs, he remains 
stubbornly focused on trying to contain the opposition while 
promoting the fortunes of his son. 
Bernicat