|
Listen to article
|
The top constitutional body in Senegal has ruled in favor of Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, allowing him to contest in the approaching parliamentary elections. The decision comes after the opposition coalition lodged an appeal aimed at preventing his candidacy, which has now been overturned.
Led by ex-President Macky Sall, the Takku Wallu Senegal coalition had mounted a legal challenge claiming that Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko was disqualified from contesting in the upcoming snap polls, attempting to block his candidacy on grounds of ineligibility.
At the heart of their challenge was Ousmane Sonko’s June 2023 sentencing, where he was convicted in absentia and given a two-year prison term for “corrupting youth.” The coalition argued that this criminal sentence disqualified him from competing in the election.
The Constitutional Council, in a decision made public Thursday night, ruled that the appeal was “inadmissible,” effectively throwing out the opposition’s attempt to challenge Sonko’s participation in the elections.
In its decision, the Constitutional Council explained that the power to challenge a candidate’s eligibility rests solely with the interior minister, a step that had not been taken in Sonko’s case, leading to the dismissal of the appeal.
Senegal is set to vote for a new parliament on November 17, after President Bassirou Diomaye Faye dissolved the opposition-dominated national assembly in September.
Read also: 30 Decomposing Bodies Found On Drifting Boat Off Senegal
Longtime rivals Sonko and Sall were at the centre of a three-year standoff between 2021 and 2023 which resulted in dozens of deaths.
Sonko was imprisoned for more than seven months under the Sall administration, and following a string of legal battles was blocked from standing in the March presidential election.
Sonko’s former deputy Faye won the presidency with more than 54 percent of the vote, on a promise of a radical break with the past.
In its decision, the Constitutional Council also authorised the candidacy of opposition figure Barthelemy Dias, mayor of the capital Dakar, who was convicted of homicide in 2011.
