Published On 5/27/2026
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Last update: 14:20 (Mecca time)
In the house of Senegalese President Basserou Diomai Fay, there is a lot that reminds him of his friend and current opponent, former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, especially his child, Ousmane, who bears the name of the dismissed Senegalese Prime Minister. It expresses, in great social symbolism, the friendship that lasted 12 years between the two men, then ended in a political rift after nearly a year of struggle for influence in a country that does not know dual power.
On May 22, 2026, Diomai Faye announced Sonko’s dismissal from office, at least two weeks after the president made statements confirming that he is the de facto ruler of the country, and that he can dismiss his Prime Minister whenever he sees this.
This message was not in vain, as Sonko’s wife – according to Senegalese media sources – began folding the bags and preparing the luggage in preparation for leaving the Prime Minister’s residence when necessary. Indeed, the transportation of the prepared luggage began when the news of the dismissal was announced, because the end was known to both parties.
Faye and Sonko… from struggle to rule
The two men share academic, professional, political and intellectual relations, as they graduated together from the National School of Administration in Senegal, and they also worked together in the Tax Directorate, from which their political awareness began in the fight against corruption, and together they founded the “Patriots for Work, Ethics and Fraternity” (Pastif) party in 2014.
Before that, Sonko – when he founded the Tax Workers Union – was keen to include his close companions, and among them was Diomai Faye, a young black man with calm features and a low voice, in contrast to his colleague, who was tall, with a strong voice, and had prominent stubborn features.
Although Fay was not one of the founding generation, he quickly joined and quickly assumed leadership positions with a high level of loyalty to the founder, Sonko, who had the most vocal voice against the regime of former President Macky Sall. During this period, slogans and chants of “Diomai, Moe Sonko” (meaning, Diomai is Sonko) shook the streets of Senegal, in an expression of the close alliance that brought the two men together and presented them as one political face.
Because opposition political work in Africa often leads to imprisonment, they were also brought together in prison cells in 2023, before Diomaye Faye had a sudden burst of hope towards the presidency, when the Senegalese judiciary banned Sonko’s candidacy, so that the presidency would go to Faye.
In addition, the two parties share a large extent in intellectual orientation, as they express the new Senegalese mixture between cultural Francophonism and intellectual hostility to France, and between the secularism of governance, the liberalism of power, and the Islamic spirit prominent in the discourse and in many of the features of the trends.
Two presidents in one chair
In June 2025, the first manifestations of the rift between the two men began in multiple disagreements over party management, reforms, and priorities, especially since the two men who shared the same leadership did not share the same speed, which made Sonko accuse his president, Faye, of not supporting him in confronting some major files, declaring the existence of a crisis within power.
As for the president, he did not hide his criticism of the attempt to link the Pastev Party to one person, so Sonko’s response after that was close to frankness, with his willingness to return his party to the opposition if President Faye did not “harmonize” with his orientations.
The visions and positions of the two men differ in particular regarding the relationship with the former colonialist, the management of the gas files, the relationship with the neighbourhood, and the implementation of the authority’s diaries, which the new Prime Minister of Senegal considers a difference in method and not in project.
Last April, the mirror shared between the two men seemed to be shattering rapidly, as a number of activists in the Pastev party were dismissed, including presidential spokesman Husseinu Lee.
Finally, the irrevocable divorce came between the two men, and they turned from a meek duo, into two warring rivals in a confrontation that some believe will be open, especially with the developments of the last two days that brought Sonko to the leadership of the legislative institution and the appointment of a new prime minister as his replacement.
The future of Senegal after Sonko’s arrival to the presidency of Parliament?
With Sonko’s arrival to the presidency of Parliament – yesterday, Tuesday – the government in Senegal now appears to be in a confrontation between two opponents, each of whom knows the other’s weaknesses and strengths. Although it seems that the new Speaker of Parliament is stronger politically, he stated that his party has a majority of loyalists and opposition.
It is likely that Sonko, who, according to observers, feels the bitterness of Fay coming to power instead of him, and perhaps also the bitterness of his removal from the “Government Palace,” will not be flexible in dealing with Fay’s government, which means the country will enter a new governance crisis.
Faye’s bet now remains largely dependent on his ability to dismantle the Pastif Front and establish a new alliance capable of balancing the striking parliamentary power in the hands of his opponent. However, the cards he holds are limited, and his ability to maneuver has been further reduced after Sonko’s departure from the government.
The option of “dissolving Parliament” also remains one of the few cards that Fay can move on, but this option, despite its radicalness and difficulty, will not be constitutionally available to him before next November, which interrupts the arrival of a hot political autumn on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.
