Star’s rejection sparks poll pick questions candidates

The European Union election observer mission in Senegal has urged the West African nation’s top legal body to explain publicly why it had accepted some presidential bids and rejected others, such as that of music star Youssou N’Dour.

The Constitutional Council on Friday validated the candidacy of 85-year-old president Abdoulaye Wade and 13 rivals for the 26 February vote, but turned down N’Dour’s bid, saying he did not have the required 10,000 signatures of support.

The decision sparked violent protests on Friday night, and the opposition has vowed to make the country “ungovernable” if Mr Wade insists on running for a third term.

Thijs Berman, the head of the EU mission, urged the council to release the reasons for its decisions. “A candidate such as Youssou N’Dour, who had thousands of signatures backing his bid, should [be able to] look at why they were rejected,” he said.