Senegal’s National Assembly convenes today to restore Ousmane Sonko’s parliamentary seat and elect a new leader. Opposition voices cry foul over the move’s legitimacy.

Outside Ousmane Sonko’s residence in the Cité Keur Gorgui neighborhood of Dakar, supporters chant his name in solidarity. Militant Nourdine Diallo, once a vocal advocate of the Diomaye-Sonko tandem, now expresses deep disappointment following the abrupt removal of the Prime Minister from office.

“The decision wounded us deeply. We campaigned on the slogan ‘Diomaye is Sonko—Sonko is Diomaye,’ and we meant every word. We told Senegalese voters that these two are brothers, united by party ties and shared vision for the nation.”

Institutional showdown unfolds

The dismissal of Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko came shortly after he publicly challenged key government policies during a parliamentary session. Now, a high-stakes institutional battle is taking shape. Today’s Assembly meeting will decide whether to reinstate Sonko as a deputy, a role he had temporarily set aside to serve as head of government.

The same session will elect a new Assembly president to replace El Hadj Malick Ndiaye, who resigned Sunday night following Sonko’s ousting. Sonko is widely expected to claim the parliamentary presidency, which would make him the second-highest-ranking official in the country.

Political analyst Malao Kanté warns this shift could trigger a constitutional crisis. “Sonko now embodies the opposition’s new face, yet his party holds the parliamentary majority. That’s a dangerous combination. A vote of no-confidence against the next Prime Minister seems imminent, threatening to paralyze the state and deepen political instability,” Kanté cautions.

Opposition condemns Sonko’s reinstatement process

Adama Fall, a senior figure in the Pastef-Les Patriotes party, urges national unity above personal rivalries. “History shows us cycles of power struggles—from Burkina Faso’s Blaise Compaoré and Thomas Sankara to Senegal’s Mamadou Dia and Léopold Sédar Senghor. But this generation is different. We are conscious citizens. History will not repeat its past mistakes; instead, it will move forward in the right direction.”

The Pastef party is reeling from the crisis. Multiple officials and administrators loyal to Sonko have resigned in protest. The situation escalated after opposition leader Aïssata Tall Sall accused Assembly president El Hadj Malick Ndiaye of violating parliamentary rules by tendering his resignation. Tall Sall has called on President Bassirou Diomaye Faye to challenge Sonko’s reinstatement before the Constitutional Council, labeling the move a constitutional coup.

In response, President Faye appointed banking executive Ahmadou Al Aminou Mohamed Lô as the new Prime Minister in the early hours of Monday. Lô, a former Central Bank of West African States official and former minister, has pledged national mobilization as Senegal stands at a crossroads.