Former Senegalese President Sall withdraws from UN secretary-general race — Premium Times Nigeria
Former Senegalese President Macky Sall has withdrawn his candidacy for the post of UN secretary-general. He announced the decision in a post on X on October 17, following an informal vote held the previous day, Premium Times reports.
Sall said he made the decision after consultations with Burundian President Évariste Ndayishimiye, who currently chairs the African Union, and Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the current chair of the Economic Community of West African States.
Disputes over African Union support
Sall's candidacy prompted objections over the procedure used to seek continental support. He was initially nominated by Burundi. At the same time, according to the publication, Sall's name was not on the list of African candidacies presented to the Executive Council at the African Union summit in February, and heads of state did not formally discuss it.
Burundi later circulated to UN and African Union member states a draft decision on supporting Sall. The document allowed 24 hours for objections and required opposition from at least one-third of the states entitled to participate in the procedure.
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According to the African Union, the silent-consent procedure was interrupted by 20 member states. Fourteen of them formally objected, while another six, including Egypt, requested an extension of the review period. Senegal also said it had not been involved in Burundi's initiative. Egypt and Liberia later withdrew their positions, but this did not change the outcome of the procedure.
Nigeria's position
In April, Nigeria objected to designating Sall as the African Union's candidate. Abuja cited the informal principle of regional rotation in the selection of the UN secretary-general and said that the next candidate should be from Latin America and the Caribbean.
The term of the current UN Secretary-General António Guterres ends in December 2026. Although regional rotation is traditionally taken into account during the selection process, it is not a mandatory rule.
