President Diomaye dissolves opposition dominated national parliament, new elections set for December

Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye hopes to win a majority in parliament in the elections set for November.

Senegal’s president, Bassirou Diomaye Faye, has dissolved the country’s opposition-led parliament, paving the way for snap elections six months after he was elected to office.

His relations with the legislature had become contentious after members refused to start discussions on the budget law and rejected efforts to dissolve wasteful state institutions.

In a national address, President Faye announced; “I am dissolving the National Assembly to ask the sovereign people for the institutional means that will allow me to give substance to the systemic transformation that I promised them. Today, more than ever, it is time to open a new timeframe for our five-year term.”

He said that he dissolved the National Assembly and set legislative elections for Sunday, November 17th, 2024.

The dissolution aims to give him a stable majority to govern, since the previous legislature, elected in 2022 and dominated by the camp of former President Macky Sall, had obstructed the implementation of several of his policies.

The lack of a majority in parliament had been a troubling hurdle for Faye since he took office, and this reached a critical point when a major bill to abolish two institutions deemed to be budget-consuming was rejected by Members of Parliament on September 2nd, 2024. The text received only 83 votes in favour, far from the 99 needed to pass the constitutional reform.

Observers say Faye’s party, PASTEF (African Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity), will likely secure a majority, given his popularity and his victory margin in the March presidential election, which he won with 54 percent of votes.

The Benno Bokk Yaakar opposition platform, led by former president, Macky Sall, has condemned the move, saying that Faye had convened a legislative session under pretences to announce the dissolution and accused him of “perjury”.

During the presidential campaign, Faye promised widespread reforms to improve the living standards of common Senegalese, including fighting corruption and securing a bigger share of the wealth derived from the country’s natural resources for the population.

Six months later, these pledges have yet to materialise. Faye and his political mentor and Prime Minister, Ousmane Sonko, whose support helped Faye win the elections, have blamed the parliament.

The lack of a PASTEF majority in the assembly, political analysts in the country say, has been a major obstacle to Faye’s efforts at executing his promised reforms.

In June, Sonko had a major dispute with parliament when the opposition coalition cancelled a budgetary debate insisting that he was required to issue his government’s policy roadmap, with him arguing that he was not required to.

The assembly has until the end of December to vote on the budget for next year, sources say. However, it is not certain this deadline will be met with the new legislative elections holding only a month from the date.