Isolation politics
Bassirou Diomaye Faye came to power as Ousmane Sonko’s stand-in. Now, after sacking his former mentor, he faces a bitter fight with the party that put him in office.
By
The Africa Report
Among the many barbs Ousmane Sonko has aimed at the head of state, this was one of the first. On 10 July 2025, chairing a meeting of his party, the then prime minister took direct aim at the president, speaking of an “authority problem in Senegal”.
He added that he had gone to complain to him about failings in the justice system: “[Bassirou Diomaye Faye] has the power to stop this if he wants to. Why has he not yet made a decision? If I were in his place, things would not be happening like this.”
