Senegalese President Macky Sall commended the participation of a large Moroccan delegation, Saturday, in the official celebration ceremony of the centenary of the death of Sheikh El Hadj Malick Sy, one of the greatest Muslim religious guides of Senegal and a forerunner of the Tidjane brotherhood in Senegal and Africa.
Held under the theme “El Hadj Malick Sy, 100 years later … focus on his life and work”, the event is placed under the high patronage of the President of the Republic of Senegal, Macky Sall, and His Majesty King Mohammed VI, Commander of the Faithful.
Speaking on this occasion, President Macky Sall praised the presence at this ceremony of a delegation sent by HM King Mohammed VI, who “has kindly co-sponsored with me this historic event”, highlighting the resolve of the Sovereign to establish “friendly and fraternal relations” between the Moroccan and Senegalese peoples and also between their leaders.
The Senegalese head of state welcomed the Moroccan delegation led by Mohammed Lekbir Attijani, Sheikh of the Tidjane Brotherhood of Fez, accompanied by Morocco’s ambassador to Senegal, Hassan Naciri, and other members of the delegation.
President Macky Sall also asked the Moroccan delegation to convey to His Majesty the King “all his gratitude and thanks, in his name and that of the Caliph General and the family of El Hadj Malick Sy” for the high patronage of this event and the participation of this delegation in the celebration of the Centenary of the death of El Hadj Malick Sy.
The ceremony took place in the presence of the representative of the Caliph General of the Tariqa Tijania, Serigne Babacar Sy Mansour, Mohamed Mansour Malick Sy, the mayor of the town of Tivaouane Demba Diop Sy, Morocco’s ambassador to Senegal Hassan Naciri, members of the Senegalese government in addition to representatives of the local authorities and the diplomatic corps accredited in Dakar.
Besides Naciri, the Moroccan delegation includes Mohammed Lekbir Attijani, Sheikh of the Tidjane Brotherhood of Fez, Abdellatif Bagdouri Achkari of the Mohammed VI Foundation of African Ulema, Al Mustapha Zamhani, President of the Local Council of the Ulema of Khénifra, and Mohammed Mechan, President of the Local Council of the Ulema of Fidaa Derb Sultan.
It also includes Mohammed Asseban, President of the Local Council of the Ulema of Rabat, Omar Azdadou, President of the Local Council of the Ulema of R’hamna, Adnan Zouhar, President of the Local Council of the Ulema of El Jadida and Ibn Chouaf Bouchaib, advisor to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans abroad.
The celebration ceremony of the centenary of the death of Sheikh El Hadj Malick Sy, which began with the reading of verses from the Holy Quran in the presence of many dignitaries and religious leaders of Senegal, was marked by speeches by President Macky Sall and Morocco’s Ambassador to Senegal. It also featured a message from the Caliph General of the Tariqa Tijania which was read out by Sheikh Mokhtar Kebe, a member of the Senegalese section of the Mohammed VI Foundation of African Ulema.
The program of the celebration, which runs from June 24 to 27, also included the opening of an exhibition and a conference on the life and work of El Hadji Malick Sy and his family.
At the end of the ceremony, the Senegalese Head of State greeted all members of the Moroccan delegation.
Born in 1854 in Gaya (Gaaya in Wolof), a village in the north of the country, El Hadji Malick Sy was a tireless servant of Islam and of the Tariqa Tidjaniya which he contributed in a very large measure to spread throughout Senegal and beyond, via his numerous “muqaddams” (great disciples) whom he trained and sent to several African countries.
El Hadji Malick Sy settled between 1900 and 1902 in Tivaouane. At that time, the colonial authorities were fighting against the expansion of Islamic thought. However, this religious man succeeded in propagating his ideas through a strategy of peaceful coexistence. He died on June 27, 1922.
