As the ruling coalition in Senegal prepares for a headline-grabbing political rally in the coastal town of Mbour next Saturday, a growing rift between President Bassirou Diomaye Faye and his prime minister Ousmane Sonko is no longer left to the imagination.
The meeting scheduled 83 km south of Dakar, comes amid growing tensions between the two men over a series of appointments at the presidential palace. The rally is being presented as an “act of loyalty” to the Mbour department, incidentally the president’s birthplace and the site of his last rally before his election in 2024.
Although the official reason for the gathering will be to take stock of the past twenty-four months and to outline the economic and social prospects for the years ahead, the Faye-Sonko feud will hang heavily over proceedings.
Assessment and Solutions
According to Serigne Gueye Diop, Minister of Trade and organizer of the event, the president “is not coming to Mbour to make promises, but to present operational solutions.” He announced that President Faye will unveil an action plan at the meeting, structured around several key areas: targeted tax reductions on essential goods, support for youth entrepreneurship, industrialisation of the country, construction of new healthcare facilities, and agricultural sector reform focused on irrigation.
The minister noted that more than 840 billion CFA francs have been returned to households through price reductions, particularly on rice.
He also highlighted the launch of thirty new agropole-type industrial zones over the past two years, three of which have already been inaugurated.
Dialogue with citizens
For Abdoulaye Tine, spokesperson for the Presidency of the Republic and member of the coalition, the meeting also has the dimension of a “citizens’ convention”: “Senegalese people feel they are not being listened to enough,” he declared, emphasising that the gathering will be an opportunity for “direct dialogue between a son of the soil and his fellow citizens.”
The Caroline Faye Diouf Stadium, chosen as symbolic, in reference to the first woman elected to the Senegalese National Assembly, is expected to host delegations from Thies, Sine-Saloum, and Ziguinchor, according to the organisers, who promise national and international media coverage with a live broadcast for the diaspora.
Tensions at the highest levels of government
This meeting comes amid growing friction between Bassirou Diomaye Faye and his Prime Minister, Ousmane Sonko, president of PASTEF, the party from which the Head of State hails and to which he continues to claim allegiance.
During a press conference last Saturday, President Faye publicly criticized certain practices within the political party, hinting at fundamental disagreements between the two heads of the executive branch.
The prime minister’s creation of a separate coalition, called APTE, is seen as a sign of his independent stance vis-à-vis the presidential camp.
These tensions are also reflected in the appointments. On the same day as the press conference, the presidential palace announced the appointment of Abdoulaye Tine as Minister-Advisor and Spokesperson for the Presidency, replacing Ousseynou Ly, known to be close to Ousmane Sonko.
AC/Sf/fss/as/APA