By: Abdoulie John
Aminata Diouf, the sister-in-law of the late wife of missing gendarme Didier Badji, publicly declared on Sunday that she does not believe her elder sister died of natural causes, calling for a thorough investigation into possible foul play.
Speaking at Uganda Martyrs Parish in Dakar ahead of a protest march demanding justice for Didier Badji and Fulbert Sambou – two military officers who vanished in November 2022 – Diouf accused the former Macky Sall administration of systematically silencing those seeking answers about the disappearances.
“My sister faced massive resistance from the regime whenever she raised questions about what happened to her husband and his colleague,” Diouf told mourners and activists. “She was blatantly ignored by Senegalese diplomats in France. Her questions remained unanswered.”
Badji’s wife, a mother of three, had staged regular protests outside the Senegalese embassy in Paris for over a year. She died on February 19, 2024, in France under circumstances her family now considers suspicious.
“It seems people in dark shadows do not want the truth to come out,” Diouf said, her voice heavy with emotion.
The case of the two missing officers has become one of Senegal’s most high-profile unsolved mysteries. The recent indictment of Jérôme Bandiacky, a close associate of the former ruling party, has been welcomed by victims’ families and observers as a potential breakthrough toward accountability and closure.
Activists say the indictment could finally shed light on the disappearances – and possibly on the subsequent death of Badji’s wife.
