Opposition MPs have announced they have appealed to the Constitutional Council to request that the National Assembly Bureau’s decision of 24th May, reinstating Ousmane Sonko as an MP, be declared unconstitutional.
They are calling on the Constitutional Council to fully assume its role by putting an end to this “breach of trust” which “undermines the proper functioning” of the parliamentary institution.
Here is the full text of their statement: “The opposition members of the National Assembly who have signed this statement inform the Senegalese people, as well as national and international public opinion, that they have filed a petition with the Constitutional Council seeking to have the decision of the Bureau of the National Assembly of 24th May, 2026, reinstating Mr Ousmane Sonko as a member of parliament, declared unconstitutional.
“Appointed Prime Minister and then elected to parliament in 2024, Mr Sonko was, from the moment of his election, in a situation of incompatibility as stipulated by Article 54 of the Constitution. By choosing to retain his government position, he relinquished his parliamentary mandate in accordance with the Constitution and the rules of procedure then in force. His reinstatement, followed by his election as President of the National Assembly on 26th May, 2026, constitutes a flagrant and manifest violation of the Constitution and the principle of the separation of powers. Only the Constitutional Council, as the judge of the validity of parliamentary mandates and regulator of institutions, can prevent an act of such gravity from escaping all oversight.
“Furthermore, we inform you that we were forced to resort to bailiff’s summonses to obtain the documents necessary for our appeal, namely Mr Sonko’s reinstatement order and the minutes of the plenary session of May 26th, 2026. On 1st June, 2026, Mr Abou Sall, a bailiff, served the Secretary General and the First Vice-President of the National Assembly with these documents, both of whom refused to hand them over. This refusal to provide representatives of the nation with documents that are public by nature, and even through a bailiff, constitutes a serious infringement on the rights of members of parliament and on democratic transparency.
Consequently, we respectfully call upon the Constitutional Council to fully assume its role by putting an end to this breach of trust, which undermines the proper functioning of the parliamentary institution.
We reaffirm our determination to defend, through legal and peaceful means only, the Constitution and Senegalese democracy. No majority, however large, is above the fundamental law of the Republic.
The signatory members of parliament are Daouda Dia, Aïssata Ousmane Diallo, Amadou Diallo, Raqui Diallo, Mamadou Diaw, Salimata Diop Dieng, Mbaye Dione, Thérèse Faye, Barane Fofana, Cheikh Omar Hann, Birima Mangara, Abdou Mbow, Fabineta Ndiaye, Anta Babacar Ngom, Thierno Alassane Sall, Maguette Sène, Abdoulaye Sylla, and Tafsir Thioye.
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