Senegalese President Macky Sall on Wednesday dissolved his cabinet, replaced the prime minister and rescheduled the country’s presidential election for March 24, according to a government statement. The move came weeks after Mr. Saul postponed the vote indefinitely, plunging the country into one of its deepest political crises in recent history as many feared he may try to stay in power beyond his term limit. of.
The election, which is likely to be among the most closely watched in Africa this year, was initially set for February 25, but Mr. Sall unexpectedly postponed it, with no new date announced. He announced an investigation into allegations of corruption at the Constitutional Court, but political opponents and some analysts called the maneuver a constitutional coup. His decision on Wednesday to set a date may ease some fears that he was trying to stay in office.
The political stalemate has worried Senegal’s international allies, including the United States and European countries, which have long considered the West African coastal nation of 17 million a reliable diplomatic partner. It is also a favored recipient of aid in a part of Africa that has been rocked by coups and where aging leaders have held on to power despite constitutional limits.
The Constitutional Court, Senegal’s highest court, immediately overturned Mr Sall’s attempt to delay the election last month. Shortly after the court’s ruling, the president said he would step down on April 2, when his term ends.
But who will lead the country between the April deadline and the inauguration of a new president remains unclear. Senegal may call for a repeat election after the results of the March 24 vote are in, but the government has not set a date for a runoff, nor has it specified who will rule the country in the interim.
Mr. Sall also fired his prime minister, Amadou Ba, according to the statement. Mr. Ba is the presidential candidate of Mr. Sall’s party, and the dismissal on Wednesday created confusion over whether Mr. Sall still supported him.
Interior Minister Sidiki Kaba will serve as prime minister, according to Yoro Dia, Mr. Sall’s spokesman. With the cabinet dissolved, Mr Kamba will form one of his own.
Mr Sall has been in power for two terms and is barred by Senegal’s constitution from seeking a third. The country has faced years of political turmoil and uncertainty. Over the past three years, during Mr Sall’s second term, the government has jailed hundreds of protesters and political opponents, repeatedly banned demonstrations and cut off the internet.
In recent weeks, however, Mr Sall’s government has softened its stance against opposition and civil society groups, allowing protests again and adopting an amnesty law benefiting political prisoners. He also reopened Cheikh Anta Diop University, one of West Africa’s most prestigious and a hot spot for protests. The university was closed last June after anti-government riots erupted in the capital, Dakar.
Mr Sall also said he was ready to pardon Ousmane Sonko, his biggest political rival, who is in prison and barred from running in the upcoming election.
Some analysts said that, despite signs over the past two years that Mr. Saul might try to cling to power, he had backed off to preserve his and Senegal’s global image.
“Maki Saul was for a while the spoiled child of the international community — from France to the United States, but also Russia and the Arab countries,” said Alyun Tin, a well-known Senegalese human rights defender who played an informal mediating role . between the president and the opposition in recent weeks.
“This chapter was in danger of collapsing when he postponed the election,” Mr Tine said, but added that Mr Sall “now wants to leave in an honest way”.
Nineteen candidates are scheduled to compete in the presidential vote now set for March 24, including Mr Ba, a former prime minister, and Bashiru Diomaye Faye, the candidate for the leading opposition party. It is unclear whether Mr Sonko would be able to run in the election if Mr Sall pardoned him. Mr. Fay is his replacement.
Despite Mr Sall’s recent softening towards the opposition, critics argue that during his 12 years in power, he has significantly weakened Senegal’s democracy. Dozens of protesters have been killed in clashes with security forces and Mr Sall is set to step down from the presidency amid deep unpopularity.
Mr. Sall’s defenders have argued that he has never crossed the line into authoritarianism and that Senegal’s young democracy has experienced the kinds of challenges that many other such democracies often face.
But his opponents have not mellowed. Sixteen of the 19 candidates running in the election refused to take part in a dialogue organized by Mr Sall last week to find a solution to the ongoing political crisis.
