Ousmane Sonko, Birame Soulèye Diop, Maïmouna Dièye and Cheikh Tidiane Dièye have less than two weeks to choose between applying the presidential directive or securing the electoral base. They will resign from the town halls to keep their ministerial portfolios. They have just 2 weeks to comply with President Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye’s directive.

This is a presidential directive that will have to be respected. All government members with other mandates will have to make a choice. They must opt to keep their place in the government or give up their ministerial post in order to keep their mayoral or elective mandate. As the position of minister and the mandate of deputy cannot be combined, those in this situation will have to wait until the opening of the parliamentary session to declare their resignation. And the National Assembly will be busy replacing Birame Soulèye Diop and Aliou Sall, respectively appointed Minister of Oil and Minister of Communication. On the other hand, as the law does not prohibit the concurrent holding of the offices of mayor and minister, Ousmane Sonko, Birame Soulèye Diop and Maïmouna Dièye will have to make a choice between respecting the presidential directive or preserving their political bases.

Only Serigne Guèye Diop has complied 

The Minister of Industry and Commerce, Serigne Guèye Diop, has resigned from the Sandiara mayor’s office. He will now devote himself fully to the ministerial department entrusted to him. Sandiara Town Hall has one month to find a replacement for him. The Municipal Council will hold an election to choose the future mayor of Sandiara from among its councillors. “Resignations of mayors and deputy mayors are to be sent to the minister in charge of Local Government by registered letter with acknowledgement of receipt. Resignations are final upon acceptance by the Minister of Local Government or one (1) month after a further registered letter has been sent. Until the installation of their successors, resigning mayors and deputy mayors continue to exercise their functions, with the exception of those provided for in articles 99, 121, 135 and 136 of the present code”. This is what article 133 of the General Code of Local Government stipulates.

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This is what the mayor of Dakar, Barthélemy Dias, then elected in Sacré Cœur-Mermoz, did. He was not allowed to hold both mayoral offices. He chose the city rather than the commune.

On the contrary, for Ousmane Sonko, Maïmouna Dièye and Birame Soulèye Diop, it’s not the law that’s forcing them to choose. It’s the President of the Republic. Cheikh Tidiane Dièye also follows the same logic. As Vice-Chairman of the Ziguinchor Departmental Council, he could well combine the two functions if it weren’t for a presidential directive.

They now have less than two weeks to make their choice. The President of the Republic had given a one-month deadline, announced Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko on April 5 at the Palace of The Republic, following the publication of the list of members of the first government of the Bassirou Diomaye Diakhar Faye era.

By Malick GAYE / mgaye@lequotidien.sn

  • Translation by Ndey T. SOSSEH