Senegal's opposition on Friday pilloried President Abdoulaye Wade, accusing the 85-year-old of being out of touch with his people after vowing to seek a third term in office.
Wade's comments came despite opposition activists insisting that the constitution did not permit him to run for a third term.
In a much anticipated address to the nation delivered late Thursday night, Wade challenged the opposition, saying he was ready to call an early election in as little as 40 days if "necessary for social cohesion and harmony".
Opposition parties, civil society and national media lambasted his speech on Friday, characterising it as a diversion from calls that Wade drop his plans to run elections slated for February 2012.
The country's main opposition coalition Benno Siggil Senegal (which in Wolof, means United to Boost Senegal) said they backed an early election but only if Wade resigned.
The address to the nation came three weeks after Wade's regime faced unprecedented riots over crippling power cuts and his attempts to change election laws in what was seen as a bid to cling to power.
If "the opposition is in a hurry and sure" it will win, "I can see an early presidential election, if that is necessary for social cohesion and national harmony," Wade told members of his government.
But whenever the election was held, he added, "there will be no winner but me."
The violence at the end of June was "totally unacceptable", he said, dismissing as "gossip" accusations that he was lining up his son Karim as his successor.
Wade's critics say he hopes to win the election and then hand over power to his 42-year-old son, who is not popular enough to win on his own ticket.
The younger Wade was made minister of cooperation, regional development, air transport, and infrastructure in 2009, and in October 2010 was given the energy portfolio.
Proposed election law amendments -- which would have added a vice president to the presidential ticket and dropped the winning threshold for a first-round victory to 25 percent of votes from the current 50 percent -- were shelved following the riots.
Ibrahima Sene, a leader of Benno Siggil Senegal, told AFP: "Abdoulaye Wade cannot take part in a presidential election, whenever the date, because the constitution does not allow it."
Wade was first elected for a seven-year term in 2000 and again in 2007 for a five-year mandate after a constitutional change shortened the presidential term. Constitutionally a president can only serve two mandates.
However Wade's supporters say this provision only camesinto play after the change in the law and so he is entitled to another term in office.
The country's Constitutional Council is due to rule on the question.
The opposition Socialist Party (SP) accused Wade of "remaining deaf to the message" of his people. "Instead of giving them answers ... he put on a ridiculous show."
Instead of a solemn address to the country, the president chose to speak in front of his supporters, about 20 of whom sang his praises in a series of speeches which lasted five hours before Wade spoke.
Alioune Tine of local human rights group RADDHO said Wade "did not get to the crux of the matter which is his eligibility. Everything else is a diversion."
The press in Senegal also attacked his speech.
"Wade provides electoral comedy", said one headline; "Wade misses his exit" and "Wade refuses to change" said the major private daily newspapers.
Political analysts at one of them, L'Observateur, likened Wade's speech to that of a "warlord", comparing him to Ivory Coast's former president Laurent Gbagbo.
The ousted Ivorian strongman's desperate attempt to cling to power following last year's elections led to a protracted and deadly crisis.
