Senegalese President Macky Saele has set March 24 for presidential elections, the government announced in a press release on Wednesday. The announcement follows a decision by the Constitutional Council, which rejected a proposal to hold elections on June 2 during the day. For its part, Parliament adopted an amnesty law for acts associated with political violence in recent years, after lively debate.
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This is a new twist in the organization of presidential elections in Senegal. President Mackie Sale has set March 24 for the presidential election, the government announced in a press release on Wednesday, March 6.
The announcement comes as the Constitutional Council ruled earlier today that the June 2 date proposed as the new date for last month’s presidential election would not be legal, as it would come after the end of Mackie Cell’s mandate. , 2 April.
Senegal’s president also dissolved the government on Wednesday and appointed Interior Minister Sidiki Kaba as the new head of government. Prime Minister Amadou Bane has thus been “released” from his post to lead the presidential campaign, the president announced.
The Constitutional Council also rejected another recommendation made to President Sal and declared that the list of 19 candidates already approved by the body should not be revised.
A controversial apology
The Constitutional Council was asked for an opinion by President Sale from Monday. The head of state submitted the recommendations as a result of a “national dialogue” convened last week to try to overcome the crisis caused by the postponement of the presidential election.
Macky Saul’s surprise cancellation of the February 25 election, followed by parliament’s decision to postpone it until December 15, triggered the worst political crisis in decades in a country renowned for its stability. by the multiplication of the coup d’état.
Widely criticized in the country, the decision, which sparked violent demonstrations, was invalidated on 15 February by the Constitutional Council which deemed it unconstitutional.
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A “national dialogue” was one of President Mackie Sale’s responses to the crisis. Another was the amnesty bill for acts linked to political violence in recent years, which was adopted on Wednesday evening.
Parliamentarians approved the text by a vote of 94 to 49, and its opponents called for asylum for serious crimes, including murder.
MEPs debated the amnesty all day Wednesday on facts linked to the political turmoil of the past three years. The question of his application to jailed rival Osman Sonkon, his possible return to the electoral race and the general re-examination of the list of recognized candidates in January have agitated the political class.
The project provides amnesty for all crimes or offenses, whether committed between February 1, 2021 and February 25, 2024, and “with demonstration-related or political motivations”, according to the text submitted to the committee on Tuesday.
Reconciliation, the “only objective” of the Mackie sale
Between 2021 and 2023, Senegal experienced various episodes of riots, clashes, vandalism and looting, mainly caused by the impasse between the opposition Sonko and the government.
Usman Sonko, who came third in the presidential election in 2019 and declared a candidate in 2024, has been detained since July 2023 and disqualified from the presidential election in which he was one of the favourites. In February, Senegal was hit by renewed unrest after the announcement of postponing elections.
Dozens have been killed, hundreds injured, hundreds more arrested since 2021.
The President justified the pardon by the need to “appease the political and social climate”. The law “has the sole objective of reconciliation (…) President Mackie Sale does not hide any bad intentions”, assured the deputy of the presidential camp, Farba Nogom, during the debate.
Many political and social actors rose up against the project and expressed outrage that no member of the security forces or any government official would be held accountable.
“This law is a license to continue killing Senegalese. Amnesty law, amnesia law: not in my name. Justice for the murdered and tortured,” said MP Guy Marius Sagna.
The project was not unanimous in the presidential camp, which has an uncertain majority in the assembly.
The status of Pastef, Ousmane Sonko’s dissolved party, was carefully scrutinized. He was absent from the initial committee vote on Tuesday and voted against it on Wednesday. Pastef is “not requesting” the text, MP Ayyab Dafe said on Wednesday. But forgiveness itself is “something to be admired”.
With AFP and Reuters
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