Sénégal badara gadiaga slams political funds misuse under sonko’s tenure

On a recent television appearance, political commentator Badara Gadiaga delivered a scathing critique of how political funds were managed during Ousmane Sonko’s time as Prime Minister. Speaking on a popular current affairs program, he highlighted that 142 days had passed since Sonko was dismissed from office on May 22, 2026—a period during which he claims the former premier nearly depleted the allocated 1.77 billion CFA francs earmarked for political expenses.

According to Gadiaga’s assessment, Sonko left his successor, Al Aminou Lo, with a mere 70 million CFA francs remaining. Breaking down the figures, he calculated that Sonko’s administration was spending an average of 12 million CFA francs per day—an amount he described as staggering when juxtaposed with the financial struggles of students, such as the tragic case of Abdoulaye Ba, who died while awaiting his 40,000 CFA franc scholarship payment.

The commentator framed these revelations as evidence of systemic mismanagement, labeling the situation as “vampirism” in public fund allocation. He contrasted the 300,000 CFA francs Sonko reportedly allocated monthly for political funds with the dire economic conditions faced by ordinary citizens, particularly students. For Gadiaga, these disparities underscore a fundamental disconnect between Senegal’s Economic and Social Recovery Plan (PRES) and the realities of governance under Sonko’s leadership.