Senegal parliament elects former PM Sonko as speaker

Senegal’s parliament elected former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko as speaker on Tuesday, days after President Bassirou Diomaye Faye dismissed him from government.

Sonko was the sole candidate, receiving 132 votes. No lawmaker voted against him, with one abstention. Pastef, Sonko’s party, holds 130 of the 165 seats in the National Assembly, giving it a strong majority.

Opposition lawmakers boycotted the vote. Opposition leader Aissata Tall Sall called the process an “institutional coup”. She argued that Sonko’s election as speaker so soon after his dismissal as prime minister violated parliamentary norms.

The previous speaker, El Malick Ndiaye, resigned on Sunday. Political observers said his resignation cleared the way for Sonko to take the post.

President Faye dismissed Sonko as prime minister on May 23 and dissolved the government, citing months of simmering tensions between the two former close allies. On May 25, Faye appointed economist Ahmadou Al Aminou Lo as the new prime minister.

In his first address as speaker, Sonko said he would not use the assembly for personal vendettas. “I will not use this Assembly, nor any deputy alongside me, to carry out personal vendettas,” he said. He described Lo as “a competent, hardworking, and dedicated man”.

Sonko was a key figure in Faye’s 2024 presidential campaign, helping to defeat the former ruling party. Their political relationship has since deteriorated, leading to the recent cabinet reshuffle.

SOURCE: AFP