Senegal’s opposition leader Ousmane Sonko has been mired in a flurry of legal woes, which he says are a bid to keep him out of politics.
Top Senegal opposition leader Ousmane Sonko was arrested on Friday following a scuffle with security forces stationed outside his residence.
The firebrand politician said in a post on social media that soldiers had filmed him with their phones as he returned from mosque prayers on Friday, prompting him to snatch one of the phones and ask them to delete the video.
Senegal’s public prosecutor said that Sonko “stole” the phone of a soldier whose vehicle broke down near the political leader’s home and issued a “subversive” message on social media.
Sonko, 49, has been mired in a flurry of legal woes, which he says are a bid to keep him out of politics.
In June, Sonko was sentenced in absentia for two years in jail for immoral behavior towards individuals younger than 21, which makes him ineligible to run for president in next year’s election.
He has denied any wrongdoing and is yet to be taken to prison.
What did Sonko say to his supporters?
Since the court proceedings, the opposition leader has stayed at his home in Dakar, saying that gendarmes stationed outside were stopping him from leaving.
The case against Sonko had sparked some of the most violent protests in Senegal’s history with hundreds of his supporters clashing with security forces on the streets.
Following Friday’s incident, Sonko called on his supporters to prepare for resistance in his statement on microblogging site X, formerly known as Twitter.
“They seem to be trying to kick down the door,” he said.
“I ask the people to stand ready to face this endless abuse,” Sonko added.
Media reports said that people could be seen gathering outside Sonko’s home on Friday evening, while protests took place in some areas in the capital as the news of his arrest broke.
dvv/sri (AFP, Reuters)