By Diadie Ba
DAKAR, June 1 (Reuters) – Senegal’s recently ousted prime minister, Ousmane Sonko, announced on Monday that the political party he leads will not participate in the country’s new government, raising the prospect of political gridlock amid a daunting debt crisis.
Sonko said in a post on X that he met on Monday with President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, his ally-turned-rival, and that “points of disagreement” emerged about the future role of the Pastef party, which holds a large parliamentary majority.
Therefore Pastef “will not participate in the next government and will not be represented by any ministers,” Sonko said.
“We wish the new team every success.”
Sonko’s announcement came one hour before his successor as prime minister, seasoned economist Ahmadou Al Aminou Lo, unveiled the new 30-member government, retaining Cheikh Diba in the critical post of finance minister as negotiations continue with the International Monetary Fund over a new lending programme.
Diba’s portfolio is being expanded to also include the economy ministry, something Lo said would create more “coherence” in policymaking.
The roster of ministers appointed by Lo included at least three members of Pastef, seemingly contradicting Sonko’s earlier announcement.
DEBT CRISIS FUELS ECONOMIC WOES
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 International Monetary Fund froze its $1.8 billion lending programme with Senegal following the discovery of the debt, which pushed the country’s end-2024 debt level to 132% of its economic output.
Diba told parliament on May 22 that Senegal expects to resume talks with the IMF in the week of June 8 and hopes to reach agreement on key points by June 30.
Later that day, Faye sacked Sonko and dissolved the government, leading to Lo’s appointment and necessitating the nomination of a new cabinet.
Lawmakers rebelled against Faye’s decision last week by reinstating Sonko as a member of parliament and overwhelmingly backing him as speaker with the support of 132 lawmakers in the 165-member assembly. It was the latest example of Pastef showing strong support for Sonko, even though Faye was also elected under the Pastef banner.
In his new role, Sonko could have considerable ability to obstruct Faye’s agenda.
Sonko is a vocal critic of the IMF who has dismissed the possibility of debt restructuring. Faye has been less vocal and Lo’s views on the issue are unclear.
Sonko “has signalled an intention to exercise strong parliamentary oversight, potentially constraining the executive’s ability to implement reforms aligned with IMF requirements,” Oxford Economics said in a note published on Monday.
Faye will preside over the first council of ministers meeting of the new government on Friday, Lo said.
(Reporting by Diadie Ba; Additional reporting by Anait Miridzhanian; Writing by Robbie Corey-Boulet; Editing by Sonali Paul)
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