Hommage à Alassane Cissé : adieu à notre « Presi » (par Yande Diop)
As a child in the village, where the only television channel was RTS, my brothers, cousins, and I eagerly awaited the end of the 8 p.m. news. Jérôme Diouf's ritual phrase made us smile: "The news will come back to you at the end of the evening with Alassane Cissé, the newsroom's night owl." In chorus, we repeated Alassane's response: "The news will come back to you tomorrow evening at 8 p.m. with Jérôme le Bobo Diouf." These seemingly simple words have etched his name and voice into my memory.
Years later, fate offered me the opportunity to meet Alassane Cissé in the press world. As I told him about our childhood ritual, I discovered his genuine smile, mingled with surprise and tenderness. With his legendary generosity, he gave me simple and accurate advice, like great masters like Momar Seyni Ndiaye, Jean Meissa Diop, and Lamine Touré, all of whom are now gone.
Nicknamed "Presi" by members of the Association of Journalists in Health, Population and Development (AJSPD), Alassane Cissé was an attentive mentor, a demanding guide, and a caring elder. He encouraged, guided, proposed ideas, and discussed angles of attack, repeating that "it's the in-depth articles that make journalists." His intellectual generosity touched many young reporters, leaving their hearts in mourning today.
As a close friend described him, Alassane was "discreet, modest, always with a soothing smile." He had a knack for putting people at ease, even in tense moments. Convinced that journalism should serve the public interest, he was particularly dedicated to health, education, and development, areas he considered crucial to the progress of our societies. The more we remember his legacy, the more acute the pain of his loss.
Every year, we wrote to him on his birthday: "Thank you for the lessons, for the example, and for this flame that you were able to light and maintain, for having contributed to our little career." Today, these words become farewell prayers. Alassane Cissé has left us, but his legacy lives on. Farewell, Presi. May your soul rest in eternal peace.
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