The controversy surrounding political funds in Senegal has recently erupted as one of the most heated discussions in the country’s political arena. On television talk shows, social media platforms like Facebook, and across digital forums, politicians, former ministers, and lawmakers are locked in fierce debates over a practice that has now become a lightening rod for public scrutiny. At its core lies a critical question: who, before Ousmane Sonko, had access to these discretionary envelopes allocated to the Prime Minister’s office, and how were they used?
Political funds: a longstanding but controversial practice
This debate is unfolding against a tense backdrop. The National Assembly, convened in an extraordinary session since August 10 under the leadership of Ousmane Sonko himself, is currently reviewing a draft law aimed at regulating special credits and secret funds. This legislative initiative is part of a broader package including asset declarations, labor code reforms, and the creation of six parliamentary investigative commissions.
The spark that ignited the debate came from Aly Ngouille Ndiaye, former Minister of the Interior, during an appearance on SenTV. Known for his direct style, he made a bold claim: that Ousmane Sonko was the first Prime Minister in Senegal’s history to receive dedicated political funds tied to the Prime Minister’s office. He stated, “In reality, he was the first head of government to have access to these funds. I was never Prime Minister, but there are former Prime Ministers still alive who are listening to me. Only Boun Abdallah Dionne is no longer with us, and I know he did not have access to such funds. It started with Ousmane Sonko.”
Ngouille Ndiaye also challenged the figure of 1.7 billion CFA francs cited by Sonko, questioning whether the allocation was quarterly or annual. He noted, “Some say it was per quarter, others per year. If annual, Sonko would have received around 8 billion. But I know the first 1.7 billion CFA francs were exhausted. If it was annual and exhausted within a quarter, that’s very rapid.” He echoed earlier statements from Abdourahmane Diouf, Minister of Petroleum and Energy, asserting that the initial allocation was fully consumed before Sonko requested additional funds—an indication, according to Ngouille Ndiaye, that Sonko’s successor found nothing left for the Prime Minister’s office. He called for transparency, stating, “In the investigative commissions, he should have included his own case for the sake of transparency. And there are things I know I cannot say here.”
Former Prime Ministers come forward to counter the narrative
The former minister’s remarks immediately triggered a wave of backlash on social media, where archival videos resurfaced to contradict his claims. One of the most striking testimonies came from Souleymane Ndéné Ndiaye, the last Prime Minister under Abdoulaye Wade. In an April 2025 interview on a national show, he revealed, “Even when I was Director of the President’s Cabinet, I already had access to political funds. At the end of every month, I was given my political funds.” This statement places the existence of such funds well before Ndéné Ndiaye’s tenure as Prime Minister—back to when he served as a presidential cabinet director. Observers argue this directly undermines Ngouille Ndiaye’s claim that Sonko was the originator of the system.
Additional voices have emerged from former Prime Ministers Macky Sall and Idrissa Seck, both of whom served under President Wade in the early 2000s. Social media users have also pointed to a well-documented incident: President Wade reportedly used his own discretionary presidential funds to financially assist his Prime Minister during critical moments.
Pastef responds: “baseless allegations”
The ruling coalition, Pastef, swiftly dismissed the claims. Elimane Pouye, Director General of the Société de Gestion et d’Exploitation du Patrimoine bâti (SOGEPA SN), labeled them as “gratuitous accusations”. He urged a comparison of the Prime Minister’s office budgets from 2023, 2024, and 2025, asserting that the allocations remained “globally unchanged at constant law.” Any variations, he argued, were due to institutional shifts between governments. Pouye emphasized that the real question is not whether such funds existed before Sonko, but whether predecessors used them—and for what purpose. For him, the debate should focus on the public use of funds within a democratic framework, rather than on pointless disputes over amounts and distribution schedules.
Several voices within the Pastef movement have also highlighted that the party has been advocating for transparency and reform of political funds since 2014, with such reforms included in its 2019 election manifesto—long before Sonko became Prime Minister in 2024. This underscores the fact that the practice was long known and documented, and not a novelty introduced by the current administration.
A look back at the historical evolution of political funds
To understand the depth of this controversy, one must examine the historical context. According to parliamentary records and state audits, discretionary political funds have grown significantly across successive administrations: approximately 650 million CFA francs under President Abdou Diouf, rising to nearly 8 billion under Abdoulaye Wade. A 2008–2012 report by the General Inspectorate of State revealed that 108 billion CFA francs of political funds were spent during that period, with 48 billion lacking any accounting justification—a figure long buried in Senegal’s public accounts.
One particularly notable case is the National Local Development Program (PNDL), a 100 billion CFA franc fund managed by the Prime Minister’s office. It became the center of an investigation into former Prime Minister Idrissa Seck after his departure from Wade’s government in 2004. The probe focused on the program’s management and two real estate assets linked to Seck—one in Saly and another in Atlanta—raising allegations of illicit enrichment. This case remains a stark reminder that the issue of controlling discretionary Prime Minister funds is not new.
Calls for legal oversight and transparency
Legislative efforts to regulate political funds have gained momentum. Deputy Guy Marius Sagna revealed that in September 2025, he submitted a draft law to create a Commission for Verifying Political Fund Credits to Pastef’s parliamentary group and Ousmane Sonko, then party leader. Sonko reportedly asked him to delay the initiative, preferring that the reform be led by the government rather than parliament. Sagna shared on Facebook that Sonko later amended the proposal to strengthen oversight, though he expressed concern that the President seemed inclined to maintain the status quo.
Deputy Thierno Alassane Sall, a former Energy Minister known for his principled resignation in 2017 over transparency concerns, went further. He called the funds “theft”, emphasizing that no parliamentary vote ever authorized them. Speaking in the National Assembly on May 22, he stated, “It is not up to the Prime Minister to discuss political funds. He came here to speak about them, but that’s not his role.” However, he made a clear distinction between these controversial envelopes and legally approved presidential intelligence funds, which he said should not be conflated.
Not all voices are aligned. El Hadj Momar Samb, Secretary General of the RTA-S, criticized what he called the “opportunism” of the parliamentary majority. While supporting transparency, he argued that oversight should extend beyond political funds to include the management of the National Water and Sanitation Office (ONAS), the traceability of oil revenues, and the use of funds allocated to the Matam region and victims of political crises.
Government stance: regulate, not eliminate
When questioned in May, President Bassirou Diomaye Faye defended the continuation of these funds, citing their role in intelligence operations and social solidarity. He argued that eliminating them abruptly would create a dangerous void in responding to urgent social needs. Ousmane Sonko, speaking to the National Assembly on May 22, 2026, echoed this position. He did not advocate for abolition but for stricter regulation, citing the 1.77 billion CFA franc allocation to the Prime Minister’s office as evidence of the need for transparency and accountability.
This debate is far from over. The extraordinary legislative session that began on August 10, 2026, is now reviewing urgent proposals to regulate special credits and secret funds, alongside a constitutional amendment on asset declarations for the President. The tension persists between an entrenched institutional practice, documented across multiple regimes from Abdou Diouf to the present, and the growing demand for transparency and accountability brought forward by the current administration since 2024.
