More than 1,000 supporters turned out to welcome Macky Sall mid-afternoon at a military airport in Dakar, where he greeted the crowd from atop a vehicle.
Senegal's ex-president Macky Sall, who is campaigning to become the next UN secretary-general, arrived in Dakar Friday for a brief meeting with his successor.
The trip marks the first time that Sall, who led the nation between 2012 and 2024, has returned to the West African country since leaving office in April 2024.
More than 1,000 supporters turned out to welcome him mid-afternoon at a military airport in Dakar, where he greeted the crowd from atop a vehicle.
Throngs of supporters then flocked towards the presidential palace downtown as he arrived for his visit, cheering and honking loudly from motorbikes.
Supporters invited
Sall's party, the APR, which he still leads, had invited his supporters to come out to welcome him.
The former president previously said the visit was "part of the consultations and visits I have undertaken in connection with my candidacy."
Sall stands accused by the current government of repression during his last years in office that led to dozens of deaths and of covering up unfavourable economic data.
The meeting granted by President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has sparked controversy within his own camp, which has been divided since he dismissed prime minister Ousmane Sonko, once a staunch ally.
One of Faye's political advisors, Alioune Ibnou Abitalib Sow, announced his resignation on Friday in protest at the visit.
"He is responsible for a large part of the troubles the country is facing today," Sow posted on X.
"Senegalese people have died, and families are still waiting for the truth," he added.
Leave after meeting
The Senegalese presidency did not respond to a request for comment from AFP regarding the meeting.
Sall, who has lived in Morocco since leaving Senegal, announced Tuesday that he would travel to Dakar for the visit.
He said he would leave Dakar "immediately" after his meeting with Faye.
Burundi, which holds the rotating African Union presidency, nominated Sall earlier this year for the UN secretary-general position rather than his own country, which would have been customary.
