National Assembly president Ousmane Sonko has called on President Bassirou Diomaye Faye to promulgate the constitutional revision law passed by a qualified majority of deputies on Monday. According to Sonko, the head of state cannot pick and choose which constitutional provisions he accepts, nor can he submit the text to a referendum, since in his interpretation the three-fifths vote of the National Assembly constitutes both adoption and approval.
Speaking after the reform was voted through, Sonko reminded that “constituent power” lies with the National Assembly when it is in session. He described the president’s referral to the Constitutional Council as unjustified, adding that the high court has already ruled on the procedure for parliamentary constitutional revisions.
The National Assembly president also criticised Faye’s stance on several reform provisions, particularly the requirement that the president declare his assets at the start and end of his term, and the ban on leading a political party while in office. Sonko noted that these commitments were once defended by the current president when he was in the opposition.
Arguing that the reform is “one of the most consolidating” for Senegalese democracy, Sonko said it will increase transparency in public management and reduce the cost of democratic functioning. He urged the president to reconsider his position and enact the law, calling a referendum on these provisions unnecessary.
