Riot police have shot tear gas to disperse crowds trying to assemble outside Senegal’s parliament on Monday to demonstrate against the president’s sudden postponement of elections during the weekend.
As the demonstrators yelled slogans, lawmakers inside the National Assembly building began debating a bill that would reschedule the February 25 vote to August 25 and prolong President Macky Sall’s mandate until his successor is sworn in.
President Sall’s unexpected announcement on Saturday plunged the West African nation into unexplored constitutional waters that threatens to further harm its reputation as a stronghold of democratic stability in a region filled with coups.
A Ratings agency, Moody, had on Monday warned that any extended delay to the election could inhibit the country’s planned fiscal consolidation by making it difficult to enact policies, including a promised phasing out of energy subsidies by 2025.
About 100 people assembled outside parliament on Monday, after confrontations on Sunday, shouting “Macky Sall is a dictator” but policemen fired tear gas, chased them into side streets and made arrests.
Officials temporarily restricted mobile internet access from Sunday night, alluding to hate messages on social media and threats to public order. Many schools were forced to send their pupils home early.
The African Union had on Monday joined a chorus of calls from regional bodies and Western governments for a new election date to be announced as soon as possible.
