Between the government, which, five months after its installation, is avoiding any general policy declaration before the Assembly for fear of being left in a minority, and the deputies who remain in the majority despite the defeat of their candidate Amadou Ba in the presidential elections in March, the crisis was inevitable in Senegal. The day after the presentation of the motion of censure of the elected officials of the Benno Bokk Yakaar (BBY) coalition, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye surprised his opponents and launched the counterattack on Wednesday, September 4.
By resorting to Article 84 of the Constitution, which establishes “priority” to the executive to set the agenda in the hemicycle, the head of State used the“lethal weapon”As some newspapers write, it is to protect Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and his government, thereby offering a respite to his troops, criticised for their inaction. The president remained consistent with his line.says one of his relatives, Elimane Pouye. The disavowal of the Prime Minister would have been the disavowal of the President. The vote of no confidence is said to have called into question his decision to appoint Sonko as Prime Minister. » This act of defiance would also have weakened his support at a time when a likely dissolution of the National Assembly is expected from mid-September, followed by early legislative elections at the end of the year.
“ Between the use of Article 84 and the motion of censure, we are witnessing a political escalationJudge Alassane Ndao, political scientist at the Gaston-Berger University of Saint-Louis. We are in a transition period in which the new authorities must obtain a majority after early elections. They slow down debates, control deadlines and demonize Macky Sall’s parliamentary majority. [l’ancien président, au pouvoir de 2012 à 2024]. »
Because if Bassirou Diomaye Faye imposed his constitutional primacy, the maneuver did not in any way calm the political climate, electrified in recent weeks by the attacks of his Prime Minister against the media and justice. A few hours before the publication of the presidential statement invoking Article 84 of the Constitution, Ousmane Sonko had questioned the Head of State – who was his right-hand man for a long time before coming to power – assuring that there would be “ no motion of censure “.
Threats against figures of the former regime
The Prime Minister also expressed fears of an upcoming witch hunt against figures from the former regime. Three or four of them managed to escape abroad.he said in Wolof. If we have to look for them, we will bring them back. » These thinly veiled threats have provoked a reaction from supporters of the former president, who has been absent from the political scene since his departure from Senegal in early April.
“ Ousmane Sonko is leaving our institutions homelessdenounces Moussa Diakhate, president of the legal commission and pillar of the parliamentary majority. With his positions, he threatens to destroy our institutions. Why so much contempt? “. An observation shared outside the ranks of the ABY, in particular by Thierno Alassane Sall, a candidate in the last presidential elections. “ Never before had a power, in just five months, sought so much confrontation with counterpowers. “, he lashed out on social network X.
For their part, the ABY deputies took the opportunity to attack the government for its failure to reveal its priorities to the national representation, at the risk of worrying Senegal’s foreign partners. The general policy statement [DPG] It is necessary to work with donors “The government’s vagueness regarding its budgetary priorities led to the suspension of a 250 million dollar disbursement by the International Monetary Fund. Coincidentally or not, the DPG reappeared on the agenda of the third extraordinary session of the assembly, which opened on Thursday, September 5, and could be debated on September 11, according to the conference of presidents of the National Assembly. But a new maneuver by the government to avoid the boos expected in the chamber during this session is not excluded.
“ The objective of this sequence is the dissolution of the assembly to end the blockade of government action.”political scientist Alassane Ndao insists that as the campaign for the legislative elections becomes clearer, political disputes are expected to intensify even further.
