Dakar, June 29 (APS) – The budgetary orientation debate which was planned to be held this Saturday at the National Assembly with the Minister of Finance and Budget Cheikh Diba, was canceled following the decision taken by the head of Ousmane Sonko government consisting of not making its general policy declaration (DPG) before the parliamentary institution, as long as the latter has not reinstated in its internal regulations the provisions mentioning the position of Prime Minister abolished in 2019 before be reinstated, APS learned from an official source.
This decision was taken during the meeting of the office of the National Assembly which closes its single 2023-2024 session.
The Office of the National Assembly “has sovereignly decided to postpone the budgetary orientation debate (DOB) today. This is why, you saw earlier, the Minister of Finance and his team withdrew,” declared the president of the parliamentary group of Benno Bokk Yakaar, Abdou Mbow, adding that the conference of presidents was informed of this decision.
According to him, the office of the National Assembly, which wants to be “consistent”, refused to receive the Minister of Finance since the head of government, in this case Ousmane Sonko, “refused to appear before the national representation to make his general policy statement”.
The chairman of the parliamentary group Bennoo Bokk Yakaar (BBY) particularly deplored the attitude of the Prime Minister who, according to him, “has (…) reduced the National Assembly to its simplest expression”.
The deputy of the Yewwi askan wi parliamentary group, Guy Marius Sagna had sent an open letter to the Prime Minister asking him not to come to the National Assembly.
In response to this correspondence, the head of government expressed his “impatience in holding this exercise of presenting the main axes of public policies and government action”.
However, he noted that “article 55 of the constitution obliges the Prime Minister to make his DPG before parliament without specifying the deadlines and the procedure which falls under the internal regulations of the National Assembly.
However, he argues, “the provisions of the internal regulations which fixed the deadlines and the procedure of the DPG as well as the references to the Prime Minister have been repealed from the organic law relating to the internal regulations of the National Assembly since 2019”, following the removal of the Prime Minister before his reinstatement
FD/SMD
 budgetary orientation debate – Senegalese press agency){kind=link}