Senegal President Faye launches new party after splitting from PASTEF

President of Senegal, Bassirou Faye, started a new party on Monday. This move marks his official break from former Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko and the PASTEF party.

Mr Faye introduced his party, Kiiraay, also called the Republican Patriots party, at an event in the capital, Dakar, last week. Kiiraay means "shield" in the local Wolof language. At the event on Saturday, the president said the party is “the majority party in this country.”

Mr Faye and Mr Sonko were once the leading figures in Senegal’s anti-establishment movement. Mr Sonko played a significant role in helping Mr Faye become president.

But their relationship soured after Mr Faye dismissed Mr Sonko as Prime Minister in May. He then appointed Ahmadu Lo, an economist and former banker at the Central Bank of West African States, as the new Prime Minister.

Reports say Mr Sonko took the PASTEF party out of the government after his dismissal. Following this, Mr Faye appointed new members to his cabinet. Just four days after losing his position, Mr Sonko became the speaker of the parliament. This happened hours after he was reinstated as a lawmaker and made the deputy speaker.

The tension between them is rooted in a visible power struggle for control of the government. There are also disagreements over economic policy and discussions with the IMF.

Last month, protests erupted in Dakar over lawmakers trying to push a constitutional amendment. This bill aims to stop a sitting president from leading a political party.

PASTEF, which holds a majority of seats, was in favor of the amendment. However, Mr Faye's coalition demanded that the bill be withdrawn. Critics of the proposed reforms have accused Mr Sonko of trying to strengthen his grip on power.