A week of turmoil

I went to bed late last night after a long bout to restore any data left on my laptop.  After 9 faithful years and several days of triage, rebooting, reloading, and everything else short of mouth to mouth, it finally gave up the ghost.  I bought a new hard drive and DVD to replace the damaged parts.  It looks the same from the outside but it is not the same Fujitsu Lifebook P Series that has seen me through some pretty sketchy environments and kept me in touch with friends and family. I had done what I could to keep clean and looking good on the outside but on the inside, it was breaking down slowly and in serious need of a total overhaul.  I was too late in recognizing that truth.  Hopefully the Senegalese government will have better luck.  
Early last week the government bill to introduce the office of the vice presidency under the pretense of helping to avoid costly election should the head of state die or otherwise find himself incapable of carrying out the functions of his office.  I mentioned the polemics around that topic.  Well, they were really only the tip of the iceberg.    Senegal has long been the darling of the West.  A beacon of democracy in West Africa.  But like my laptop, despite the efforts to keep up appearances, the insides had started to break down over a decade ago and an overhaul is needed to put the country back on more stable ground.

President Wade is 85 years old and is intending to run for another 7 years.  He was the first president ever to be truly elected by the people of Senegal.  France appointed Leopold Senghor, the first president, during its colonial rule and he carried Senegal into independence.  Senghor then modified the constitution to appoint Abdou Diouf as president when he felt he was no longer able to continue to do his job.  Therefore, Wade emerged as the first real challenge -an outsider and lifetime opposition leader with bright ideas.  Expectations ran very high after his 2000 election.  He made many lofty promises and today the population is disappointed and wary that this new law is simply an attempt to allow him to choose his successor, possibly even his son. No one envisions that he would like to serve out another 7 years in office, so they wholly anticipate that he will win the 2012 elections and shortly thereafter surrender his post to his vice-president who would then appoint his own vice-president.

The tensions over this issue have been building: Today the US Embassy asked Americans to stay clear of Dakar if possible to avoid possible violent confrontations expected in the city and around the parliament building where elected officials will be debating and voting on the proposed bill.

This morning thousands of youth descended into the city, placing piles of burning tires in the main entrance points to the city to block all access via bus or car. Reports are coming in of demonstrations around the country but none in the Casamance region where I suppose we have our own more pressing issues that we want to keep in the spotlight.  As I type this, my colleague burst into my office to tell me that the youth managed to smash open the gates to the parliament building.  They are trying to gain entry into the building to force out all the Parliamentary Members and prevent a vote.  Tensions rising still.

I also received an email informing me that I am to expect a termination letter from my employer and an employment letter from the organization that acquired us a few weeks ago.  Not just me, of course.  All of us here at the organization are in the same situation.  I am sure that it will lead to some heated debates especially if the terms are not the same.

Interesting times indeed.