Affaire Mouhamed Aly Srour : les surprenantes révélations de Moustapha Ndiaye
The businessman obtained an eviction order against the 56-year-old father, forcing him and his family to leave the house he had built in Cité Mourtalla, on a section of the VDN highway. The story moved the public, who launched an online fundraising campaign to help the man buy the disputed land and keep his villa. The well-known rice importer denies any possibility of relinquishing the plot he claims ownership of, calling the alleged victim a "manipulator." He explained his position in L'Observateur. Excerpts follow.
"On my knees, crying..."
“ […] Seven or eight years ago, I acquired this land and placed people there to safeguard it.
One day, I received a call saying someone had shown up and was clearing land for construction. I went to the site and saw for myself that he was indeed building. I immediately went to the Dscos [Directorate of Land Use Monitoring and Control] to report it. A few days later, a man came to my office. His name was Aly, and he insisted on seeing me in person. I agreed to meet with him. As soon as he walked in, he fell to his knees and burst into tears. I was scared at first: I didn't know who he was, and especially what the situation was. I pressed him to find out what was going on, and then he started telling me his story. He told me he'd been ripped off in the land sale, that he'd put all his savings into it, and that he'd be ruined if I persisted in trying to force him to leave. He went on like this for a long time, and I felt sorry for him. So I asked him what concrete solution he was proposing. He said he wanted me to sell him the land. Given the situation, I didn't see any problem with that. I was so distraught that I immediately agreed, and I even remember asking him how much he could pay. He told me he no longer had the means, but that if I agreed, he could pay me 50 million for the land. […] Honestly, I wasn't planning on selling the land. To make things easier for him, because he said he'd put all his savings into the construction, I offered to make payments until the amount was completely settled. Not only did he agree, but he was so pleased that he kept blessing me. I remember him leaving my office very happy.
Dotting the i's and crossing the t's
“ […] A few days after that interview, I received a call from a friend who works at a notary's office. He said, ‘Moustapha, are you selling your land?’ I was surprised by such a question; I didn't have any land to sell at the time. He told me that someone had come to his office with a power of attorney to sell it. I couldn't believe my eyes. I called him [Mouhamed Aly Srour] to get some answers, and he told me an unbelievable story. He explained that the woman who had sold him the land had approached him to offer to put it back on the market. That he could sell it for more than 50 million… I then set him straight. I told him that there was no longer any agreement between us and that, moreover, I was going to sue him. […] The notary told me that he had taken a copy of my identity card and a power of attorney.” And let's be serious, you get scammed by a woman, and she's the one offering to sell for more. It doesn't make any sense. Why didn't he file a complaint against her? […] And while I was initiating eviction proceedings , he continued building as if nothing had happened. I won in the first instance. He appealed and kept building. By the time the final judgment was handed down, he had finished and moved in.
10 million CFA francs, discharge and witnesses
“ […] The process was long. At one point, a well-connected friend tried to convince me to do a good deed by giving him the land. I didn’t want to hear about it anymore, but out of respect for this person, I agreed to sell it to him according to the terms of the initial agreement. The mediator went to see him to discuss it. He came back to me washing his hands of the whole thing. He told me that this Mouhamed Aly wasn’t actually solvent. So, as soon as the case was closed in 2025, I initiated eviction proceedings. When he found out, he went to the local imam to whine. He told him he was willing to leave, but that he didn’t have the deposit to move out. He said this even though there was a prominent witness who knew me. Moved by his plight, he called me to make sure it was me and convinced me to help him move.” I told him the guy was a manipulator and that he shouldn't trust his tears, because that's how he tricked me. My friend still insisted I help him. The guy wanted the deposit money to move out. If that was all it was, it wasn't a big deal. I gave my friend 10 million CFA francs to give to the guy. The handover took place last December (December 27th) in front of the neighborhood Imam. Mouhamed Aly signed a receipt stating that he had indeed received the 10 million CFA francs [L'Observateur published the document, which we are unable to authenticate] . The receipt bears his signature, those of the witness, and the Imam. […] He promised to vacate the land by February 2026, and that at the end of the period, he refused to leave. It's all on the receipt. During the proceedings, he didn't try to contact me. When he had exhausted all his legal options, he tried, but I had already been burned and therefore systematically refused. It was only later that mediators were involved.
"It's manipulative."
"I would like to ask a question to all those who are talking and to all those who are throwing me under the bus. In this affair, who is really the victim? What does this man really want? He offered to buy the land only to end up saying that he is not solvent."
He went to complain that he didn't have enough money to move out, so I gave him 10 million CFA francs. He cashed it, but refused to leave. I honestly don't know what to do anymore. [On the possibility of selling the land to Mouhamed Aly Srour and a potential higher bid from him] (Laughs) We're no longer in the process of selling. We've been out of that phase since the end of the procedure in 2025. I never mentioned 300 million. Never. I stopped speaking to him eight years ago, ever since he tried to sell me the land. It's really not about money anymore. It's a matter of principle. I want nothing to do with a manipulator like him. If he had a trillion to offer me, I wouldn't take it. If the Senegalese are determined to help him, there's no problem, but I say he's a manipulator; he still has my 10 million with him.
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