By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has announced a new 30-member government, excluding the PASTEF party led by his ousted Prime Minister, Ousmane Sonko.
Faye’s announced the cabinet in a live television broadcast less than two weeks after he fired Sonko, his former ally.
The two men fell out amid mounting political and economic tensions, including Sonko’s opposition to an IMF-backed debt restructuring plan.
Lawmakers rebelled against Faye’s decision by reinstating Sonko as a member of parliament and overwhelmingly voted him as the Speaker.
Last week, Faye named senior economist Ahmadou Al Aminou Mohamed Lo as Prime Minister, saying he has the expertise to steer Senegal out of its crippling debt.
A popular figure, Sonko announced on Monday that PASTEF would not participate in the new government of Faye, deepening the country’s political crisis.
In a post on X, he said “points of disagreement” emerged in discussions with Faye on Monday about the future role of the party, which holds a large parliamentary majority.
The political upheaval comes as Senegal tries to navigate a crisis stemming from the discovery in 2024 of misreported debt by the previous government.
The IMF froze its $1.8 billion lending programme with Senegal following the discovery, which pushed the country’s end-2024 debt level to 132 per cent of its economic output.
Senegal expects to resume talks with the IMF this week.
