Senegal’s political rift: president faye and prime minister sonko’s escalating power struggle

On Friday, May 22, Ousmane Sonko was relieved of his duties as Prime Minister, a decision that could trigger a significant political crisis in Senegal. For months, Sonko had described their dynamic as a “soft cohabitation”—a paradoxical term given the implications of cohabitation, especially since both he and President Bassirou Diomaye Faye emerged from the same political movement and displayed profound closeness as recently as 2024.

A bond once thought unbreakable

The political journey of these two men, once considered

By Martin Ngu — Politics and National Security