During a weekend gathering in Dahra Djoloff, National Assembly President Ousmane Sonko launched a blistering attack on what he describes as the resurgence of entrenched political practices at the highest levels of government. Addressing a highly mobilised crowd of party supporters, he expressed his dismay that even longtime allies had allegedly abandoned the transformative vision they once shared with the Senegalese people.

« This isn’t about individuals—it’s about honouring the commitments we made to our citizens: transparency, accountable leadership, judicial integrity, fair resource management, and more, » Sonko declared, outlining the core principles that originally set his movement apart from the political status quo.

Central to his speech was a damning assessment of the current administration’s drift away from these ideals. « What pains me most is that the very system we fought to dismantle has reorganised itself within the Presidential Palace, reverting to the same destructive habits we promised to leave behind, » he asserted, pointing to a pattern of institutional erosion.

Sonko reserved particular criticism for the utilisation of state institutions, arguing that power had become detached from its democratic foundations. « President Diomaye Faye commands the machinery of government, yet his party lacks a true electoral mandate. In a democracy, sovereignty resides with the people—not with institutions, » he emphasised, suggesting that such a disconnect could lead to an overreliance on state apparatus to compensate for weak popular support.

The opposition leader also accused unnamed factions of attempting to exert undue influence over Senegal’s highest judicial bodies. According to Sonko, concerted efforts were underway to « bend the Supreme Court and Constitutional Council to their will »—a move he framed as further evidence of the system’s reconsolidation under the current leadership, six years after the promise of sweeping change.