Kaolack land disputes spark protests over alleged illegal allocations

Residents of Kaolack say that obtaining even a small plot of land has become a difficult and contested process. They allege that businessman Lahat Babou, a former driver of former mayor Seynabou Cissé who has since become a prominent economic operator, is repeatedly mentioned in testimonies about the occupation and exploitation of large tracts of land.

Witnesses claim that lands previously considered communal or public have been transferred to private hands under unclear circumstances. Examples include a site near the unfinished mosque of the late Ndiouga Kébé that is said to have been built on former communal land, the former Dakar bus station now reportedly occupied by a clinic linked to Babou’s wife, and the current headquarters of the Credit Mutuel of Senegal, which was formerly a football field used by a local youth association. Citizens call for transparency regarding the roles of former governor Alioune Badara Mbengue and other administrative authorities in these alleged transfers, pointing to possible financial negotiations accompanying the allocations. The controversy has heightened fears that public spaces for children are disappearing and has spurred local calls for accountability.