The election of the Secretary General for the Southeast Inter-region of the Health Insurance Fund for Education and Sports Workers (MSAES) took place this weekend in an atmosphere marked by high tensions and disputes over the voting rules. Despite the disagreements, the vote ultimately resulted in the election of Ibrahima Diallo, candidate for the Kédougou region.

A procedure that was contested even before the vote

From the outset, several delegates expressed their disagreement with the new guidelines issued for the election. It was announced that coordinators who were members of the Boards of Directors were ineligible to run, and that only coordinators who had been left out of the process were eligible. Some considered this provision irregular and imposed without prior consultation.

The Goudiry delegation, lacking a coordinator due to the failure to hold a general assembly, found itself automatically excluded from the race, further exacerbating tensions.

"They want to change the rules during the game."

Ousseynou Dieng, the MSAES delegate from Tambacounda, was furious and denounced a process he considers profoundly unjust:

"They want to change the rules mid-game. This underhanded tactic will not stand. It is up to the general assembly to decide, not some third party."

Similarly, Souleymane Diallo, also a delegate, preferred to withdraw completely from the process:

"You don't write texts on the eve of something. I prefer to withdraw in this case. I will not witness this treachery."

National oversight is attempting to calm the debates.

Faced with these objections, the supervisors mandated by the national level attempted to refocus the discussions. Mr. Babacar Niang, chair of the session and election supervisor, reiterated the spirit of the national mission:

"The legal debate should not arise at this time. We have been mandated by the national level to supervise elections. If you possess documents that prove the contrary of what is happening, you should make them available to us."

For his part, Mr. Daouda Cissé, secretary of the session, maintained that the process was following the instructions received.

"We have specific mission orders."

Another supervisor, Mamadou W. Niaré, concurred:

"We have specific mission orders. If you have conflicting instructions, prove it."

After these clarifications, the session was able to resume, allowing the president to proceed with reading the list of voters.

The election results

Despite initial tensions, the vote proceeded normally. Of the 17 registered voters, 15 cast their ballots.

• Valid votes cast: 15

• Invalid ballots: 2

• Abstentions: 2

• Ibrahima Diallo: 13 votes

Ibrahima Diallo elected secretary general

With 13 out of 15 votes, Ibrahima Diallo, candidate for the Kédougou region, was overwhelmingly elected Secretary General of the MSAES Southeast Inter-region. He will now represent the Kédougou and Tambacounda regions on the mutual's National Board of Directors.

His victory marks a new stage in the regional structuring of the MSAES, even if the disputes over the procedure could open the way to new discussions at the national level.