Fact-check: Were Senegal’s New President Faye, Wife Peasant Farmers as Depicted in a Viral Picture?

Fact-check: Were Senegal’s New President Faye, Wife Peasant Farmers as Depicted in a Viral Picture?

Claims: There is a picture of a young man and a woman on a farm, holding hoes in a selfie pose claiming to be the newly elected President of Senegal, Bassirou Diomaye Faye and his wife’s humble beginnings as farmers. 

Full Text: The text accompanying the picture reads:

“Senegal: Here is the newly elected President and First Lady. Only God can understand the format of the future. Respect everyone in life because you never know.”

Recall that Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the 44-year-old elected president of Senegal, was inaugurated at the Diamniadio Exhibition Centre on April 2, 2024. Mr. Faye’s election marked a new era for Senegal, as he is the country’s youngest president ever and the first to be elected from outside of the traditional political establishment. 

Bassirou’s extraordinary rise in 

Senegalese politics has caught many off-guard. Mr. Faye, nicknamed “Mr. Clean,” is described as “methodical” and “modest.” He is committed to fighting poverty, injustice, and corruption.

Mr. Faye’s inauguration was attended by dignitaries from around the world, including Nigerian President, Ahmed Bola Tinubu, who is also ECOWAS chairman, French President Emmanuel Macron and African Union Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat.

However, is he the one in the viral picture?

Verification: In order to verify the veracity of the viral picture, PRNigeria‘s fact-check team performed a reverse image search and discovered that the viral picture was shared by an X user a few days prior with the caption, “It all starts from the farm.” This caption suggests that the picture is intended to represent the newly elected President of Senegal.

However, further inquest revealed that the picture was originally shared by an entertainment Facebook page on 24 November, 2021 as part of a social media game, asking people how many of them would be willing to do the same with their partners. However, following the election of the new president-elect of Senegal, the picture was taken out of context and misappropriated, with false claims made about it. 

Faye’s public information shows that he was a former tax inspector not a farmer.

Faye was born on March 25, 1980, in Ndiaganiao, a town in the western department of M’Bour, Senegal.

His father, Samba Faye, was a long-time member of the Socialist Party of Senegal, and Faye grew up with left-wing ideals.

His grandfather, who fought for the Free French during World War II, was jailed afterward due to a dispute with French colonial authorities over establishing a district high school in Ndianganao (which Faye later attended).

Faye completed his primary and secondary education in M’bour. He earned his baccalaureate in 2000 and later obtained a master’s degree in law from Dakar’s Cheikh Anta Diop University. Faye enrolled at the National School of Administration of Senegal (ENA) and pursued the magistracy.

He chose to become a tax inspector in the Tax and Estates department, where he became friends with Ousmane Sonko, another alum from the same school.

Faye played a significant role in the PASTEF party, becoming one of its ideologues and designers for Ousmane Sonko’s candidacy in the 2019 Senegalese presidential election.

After Sonko’s arrest in February 2021, Faye became the general secretary of PASTEF.

He successfully united the opposition for the 2022 elections, winning 56 seats under the alliance “Liberate the People.”

Faye won the 2024 Senegalese presidential election

He ran under the slogan “Ousmane mooy Diomaye,” reinforcing the links between him and Sonko.

Faye was sworn in as Senegal’s president, becoming the youngest elected head of state in Africa. Faye practices Islam and has two wives. He is affectionately known as “Diomaye” in the local Serer language.

Bassirou Diomaye Faye’s ascent from a tax inspector to the presidency reflects his remarkable journey in Senegalese politics.

Conclusion: findings by the PRNigeria fact-check team discovered that the picture of a man and a woman in the farm is not that of President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and his first lady. The picture was originally shared by an entertainment Facebook page on 24 November, 2021 as part of a social media game, asking people how many of them would be willing to do the same with their partners. The photo has been misrepresented and taken out of context to make a false claim as President Faye was a former tax inspector not a farmer. 

PRNigeria therefore concludes that the photo depicting Faye and his first lady in a farm as peasant farmers with humble beginnings is misleading. 

By PRNigeria