Senegal on the Brink as Parliament Extends President’s Tenure

Senegal’s reputation as a bastion of democracy in an unstable region is on the line as protesters clash with police outside the National Assembly.

Inside, lawmakers have passed a contentious bill to extend President Macky Sall’s tenure and delay elections after he called off a planned election with just three weeks to go.

The proposal needed the support of three-fifths of the 165 deputies to pass. The ruling Benno Bokk Yakaar coalition, of which President Sam’s alliance with the Republican Party is part, has a slight majority in parliament.

In the end, 105 MPs voted for the proposal. A six-month postponement was originally proposed, but a last-minute amendment extended it to 10 months, or December 15.

In 2017, Senegalese troops led the West African mission sent to neighbouring The Gambia to force out long-time ruler Yahya Jammeh after he refused to accept he had lost an election. And in a region beset by coups, President Sall has been a key actor in the push by the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) to force military leaders to conduct elections and hand over power to civilians.

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But Senegal’s democratic credentials now hang in the balance, and a constitutional crisis is brewing. The country faces a critical test of its electoral integrity and judicial independence, analysts say.

Tensions have been rising for more than two years following what the opposition says was a deliberate attempt to exclude them from the election by having their candidates charged with crimes they had not committed. One major opposition party was even banned.

The authorities have denied using the legal system for political gain and President Sall said he was trying to calm things down by delaying the vote but this does not appear to have worked so far.

“The decision has thrown Senegal into uncharted waters of a constitutional crisis,” Mucahid Durmaz, senior West Africa analyst at risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, reported.

“The constitution requires elections to be organised at least 30 days before the end of the incumbent president’s mandate. Sall’s rule expires on 2 April. And the decree detailing the electoral calendar must be released 80 days before the vote takes place. Even if he appoints a transitional president after 2 April, the legality of it will be disputed.”