Top-level crisis: The new points of disagreement between Ousmane Sonko and Bassirou Diomaye Faye

Ousmane Sonko, president of Senegal’s National Assembly and leader of Pastef, sharply criticized the government’s supplementary finance bill at a press conference on October 19. Submitted on September 18 following a preliminary agreement with the IMF for a 36-month program worth about $2.2 billion, the bill is due for review at a special session on October 23. Sonko objected to energy subsidies rising from 250 billion to 790.3 billion CFA francs and to a proposed increase in diesel prices from 680 to 755 CFA francs per litre. The bill also puts the budget deficit at 7.6% of GDP, up from an initially forecast 5.4%, prompting Pastef to question who will bear the financial burden.