Tivaouane, March 12 (APS) – The words of Serigne Babacar Sy (1885-1957), first caliph of El Hadji Malick Sy (1855-1922) remain a benchmark that can serve as “solutions for building a Senegal of peace and of concord”, said Sunday in Tivaouane the Minister of Handicrafts Papa Amadou Ndiaye.
”Serigne Babacar Sy was a visionary. His speech and his recommendations are more than current because they overlap with the recommendations of Islam,” said Mr. Ndiaye.
He was at the head of a government delegation at the official ceremony of the General Ziarra of Tivaouane in the presence of the administrative and territorial authorities, the religious notables of the holy city and the mayor of Fez (Morocco).
In 1930, eight years after the call to God of El Hadji Malick Sy, Serigne Babacar Sy had given the authorization to Dahiratoul Kiram, considered as the parent structure of associations bringing together disciples, to organize an annual ziarra in Tivaouane.
All the other Dahiras then imitated Dahiratoul Kiram until the meeting imposed itself on the national cultural agenda as a flagship event.
”Today the speech of Serigne Babacar Sy constitutes solutions of the hour for a Senegal of peace, harmony and discipline”, insisted the Minister of Handicrafts and the Transformation of the informal sector.
In a message delivered at the official ceremony, he invited disciples who are active in religious associations (Dahiras) to get closer to structures such as the DER/FJ or the 3FPT in order to “find funding that will make Dahiras true vectors of development”.
For his part, the representative of the Caliph General of the Tidianes, Cheikh Ahmad Tidiane Sy ”Dabakh” magnified the presence of the government at the official ceremony of the General Ziarra.
He praised the ”efforts made by the public authorities to improve the living conditions of the populations with the realization of structuring projects such as the Regional Express Train, the Blaise Diagne airport or the port of Ndayane”.
Serigne Habib Sy Mansour ”Borom Daradji” for his part thanked the Head of State Macky Sall on behalf of the family for his ”decision to cover the costs of medical evacuation abroad of Caliph Serigne Babacar Mansour Sy”.