Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has dissolved the country’s opposition-led National Assembly. This decision, announced on September 13, 2024, aims to alleviate the growing tension between the legislative and executive branches of the government.
In a national address, President Faye stated, “By virtue of the powers conferred on me by Article 87 of the Constitution, and after consulting the Constitutional Council on the right date, the Prime Minister and the President of the National Assembly, on the expediency, I dissolve the National Assembly.” He further announced that snap elections will be held on November 17, 2024.
Faye, who was elected six months ago under an opposition platform, explained that the opposition-dominated legislature had obstructed his efforts to implement the “systemic transformation” he promised during his campaign. He urged voters to support his Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity (PASTEF) party in the upcoming elections.
The outgoing National Assembly, elected in 2022, was controlled by members of former President Macky Sall’s Benno Bokk Yakaar (United in Hope) coalition. Recently, tensions escalated when opposition lawmakers cancelled a budget debate and threatened to introduce a motion to censure the government.
The Benno Bokk Yakaar parliamentary group criticized the dissolution, accusing President Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko of “manipulating institutions to serve their own political interests.” Abdou Mbow, president of the majority parliamentary group, stated, “This dissolution is a blatant attempt to silence the parliamentary opposition and avoid any democratic debate on the management of the country.”
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