Bassirou Diomaye Faye became the President of Senegal in March with a promise of radical reform.
Six months later, as Senegal continues to struggle economically, Faye and the predecessor’s party which still controls the parliament are locked in a blame game.
The feud between the presidency and the parliament is such that the parliament has refused to recognise the prime minister appointed by Faye and Faye has announced he would dissolve the parliament in coming days, which would make way for fresh parliamentary elections.
As the two parties continue to bicker, Senegal remains socioeconomically troubled as the national debt remains above 72 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) and a third of the youth are unemployed.
Senegal grapples with political crisis
After winning the presidential election, Faye appointed Ousmane Sonko as the Prime Minister of Senegal. The announcement is at the core of the feud between Faye and the parliament, which continues to be controlled by his predecessor Macky Sall’s party.
The parliament has not recognised Sonko as the prime minister as it has argued that Sall had abolished the position in 2019 and even though it was reinstated in 2019, the parliament never rectified the reinstatement, according to The Guardian.
As the parliament has not recognised him, Sonko has refused to present his policy agenda to the parliament.
Thierno Alassane Sall, the leader of the party controlling the parliament, has questioned Sonko’s legitimacy.
“[He] wants to impose his law. He forgets that he was not elected by anyone and he only draws his legitimacy … from the president of the republic who appointed him,” said Alassane Sall, as per The Guardian.
As the deadlock continued, Faye announced he would dissolve the parliament. The newspaper reported that, as per law, the parliament can only be dissolved after September 12, as the parliament cannot be dissolved until it has sat for at least two years.
The broken promises of new president
Faye swept to power on a leftist, anti-establishment, and pan-African platform. He had also promised to work on national reconciliation, the cost-of-living crisis, and fighting corruption, according to The Guardian.
Now, six months later, the state of affairs contradicts the promises and pan-Africa agenda appears to be a distraction from the failure to set the house in order. He has sought to mediate between the military-ruled states of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger, and the regional bloc Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas).
Even though the previous administration of Sall was accused of cronyism, Faye has faced the same allegations. The Guardian reported that nearly half of his appointments are affiliated with the party and are not based on merit.
Faye also promised to reassess Senegal’s relationship with France but his first foreign visit after taking office was to France, the nation’s former colonial ruler.
