Freedom of the press threatened in Senegal

Following the victory of his protégé, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, in Senegal's presidential election this year, Ousmane Sonko was appointed as prime minister. With their ascension, Senegal was praised as a bastion of democracy for the region. Now, four months later, the Senegalese Council of Press Distributors and Publishers says freedom of the press under the new leadership is under threat. Sonko, however, justifies government action by saying news outlets were writing whatever they wished without reliable sources in the name of press freedom. For a better perspective on the matter, John Mukum Mbaku, Nonresident Senior Fellow for Africa Growth Initiative at the Bookings Institution talks to VOA’s Yeheyes Wuhib about the importance of press freedom and oftentimes how those in power want to eliminate it.