PRIME MINISTER SALL COMMENTS ON SECK CASE AND

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DAKAR 000433 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR AF, AF/W, AF/RSA, INR/AA, INR/B AND DRL/PHD PARIS FOR POL - D'ELIA E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/21/2026 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINS PINR KJUS SG SUBJECT: PRIME MINISTER SALL COMMENTS ON SECK CASE AND CORRUPTION REF: A. DAKAR 0418 ¶B. DAKAR 0316 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: CDA Robert P. Jackson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d). SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (C) Senegalese Prime Minister Sall remains convinced that former Prime Minister Idrissa Seck embezzled funds and illegally enriched himself at the Senegalese people,s expense. Although Seck,s legal team vehemently denies that Seck and President Wade reached any deal, Sall says that Seck agreed to return some funds. Seck,s future in the ruling PDS and future prosecution probably hinge on Wade,s calculations of how much he needs Seck to win reelection. Sall made it clear that he has no desire to be in a party with a rehabilitated Seck, who Sall thinks belongs in jail. For his part, Seck is reportedly focused on &sopi8 (change),the platform that brought Wade and the PDS to power. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) Charge met with Prime Minister Macky Sall for over an hour on February 20. Much of the conversation focused on corruption in Senegal and the &Idrissa Seck/Chantiers de Thies8 (Thies Public Works) case. Sall initiated the dialogue about corruption. Sall remains convinced that Seck conspired with Sud Communications journalist Latif Coulibaly to discredit President Wade as an evil murderer in Coulibaly's two latest books. Sall said the Government had mishandled the Seck case, forcing it to drop the state security and irregular correspondence charges. However, Sall confirmed that the charges of illegal enrichment and embezzlement are still pending, and he believes they have merit. Moreover, he said that the Government is pursuing investigations in France and has transmitted letters rogatory to the Government of Switzerland to identify embezzled funds that may have been deposited in Swiss banks. In fact, Sall alleged that Seck had agreed to return funds to Senegal as a condition for his release )- something Seck,s legal team has adamantly denied. ¶3. (C) Sall said that the Seck/Chantiers de Thies case is the most egregious example of corruption in Senegal. Sall continues to believe that prosecuting Seck is necessary in order to attack corruption in Senegal. Charge told the Prime Minster that U.S. concerns center on the fairness and �A;transparency of the process. NO DEAL? -------------- ¶4. (C) For its part, Seck,s legal team has insisted that there was no deal. Seck,s lawyers claim that President Abdoulaye Wade has badly wanted a deal since December. Seck,s lawyers allege that Wade initiated negotiations through Ousmane Seye and that Seck,s lawyers served as intermediaries. However, they insist Seck never agreed to any terms -- even as the proposals became more favorable to him over time. Part of the reason, Seck reportedly allowed negotiations to occur was to develop evidence that Wade believed he )- not the courts -- controlled Seck's fate. Seck finally took the position that he would have further discussions directly with Wade after he was completely cleared of the charges. Seck refused to ask for a provisional release on the grounds that he knew he was innocent and he would only be satisfied with unconditional dismissal. Furthermore, the lawyers allege, since there was no deal, there was no promise or understanding of any sort that Seck will not run for President in 2007. They say it is something he is considering. SECK, THE PDS AND SOPI -------------- ¶5. (C) Regarding the Senegalese Democratic Party (PDS),Sall said that he has spent months rebuilding the party and eliminating &Seck,s party within a party.8 If Wade brought Seck back into a leadership position, Sall said he might have to resign because he does not want to be associated with an embezzler. Seck,s lawyers assert there is no agreement or understanding on his future in the PDS. Seck,s lawyers say that he will continue to talk about &sopi" (change). Historically, sopi underlay the development of the PDS, and Wade and Seck were the driving forces. Sopi is based on a set of values -- democracy, good governance, raising the status of women and others. Sopi has been the PDS,s platform, but it need not belong to the PDS. Seck has no need for a new party because if the PDS no longer embraces Sopi, other existing parties can. For Seck, Sopi will now include legal reforms, such as judicial independence, changes in state security laws, and pre-trial DAKAR 00000433 002 OF 002 detentions, to which Seck can speak with direct experience and deep conviction. Seck, who is fond of analogies, reportedly compares the PDS to a temple to Sopi. In recent years, the temple has gotten dirty; if it cannot be cleaned, then a new temple will have to be built. COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (C) Probably only Wade, Seck and a few other people currently know the nature of any deal that was made on Seck,s release from prison. For now, Prime Minister Sall seems intent on keeping the embezzlement and illegal enrichment charges alive. We note, however, that Sall said nothing about Karim Wade, who is both in the Government and the PDS. Whether Karim,s father, President Wade, believes that he needs Seck or Sall most may determine both of their fates as the February 2007 elections draw nearer. END COMMENT. JACKSON