Sénégal National Assembly: Approves Organic Law for Special Credits Framework

• Sénégal's National Assembly has launched a new effort to regulate special credits by proposing an organic law.
• This follows the Constitutional Council's rejection of a previous bill, which ruled that such reforms must be enacted via organic law, not ordinary legislation.
• The new proposal specifically seeks to modify organic law n° 2020-07 of February 26, 2020, which governs finance laws.
• The initial bill, introduced by deputies, aimed to limit special credits to defense, security, and intelligence, but was deemed inadmissible by the Council.
• The President of the Republic will now be consulted for his opinion on the new legislative initiative, as per internal regulations.

This new legislative initiative directly addresses the Constitutional Council's prior ruling, which mandated that any reform concerning the legal framework or creation of public credit categories must be enacted through an organic law, specifically referencing organic law n° 2020-07 of February 26, 2020, pertaining to finance laws.

The Bureau of Sénégal's National Assembly has recently approved the admissibility of a new organic law proposal aimed at regulating special funds, signaling a renewed effort to address the contentious issue of `crédits spéciaux`. This development, occurring on September 2, comes shortly after the Constitutional Council invalidated a previous legislative attempt to define the legal framework for these funds. The Assembly's revised strategy now seeks to integrate the reform within the existing organic law governing finance laws, directly responding to the Council's prior objections.

The earlier proposal, designated n° 36/26, had been introduced by deputies Guy Marius Sagna, Mame Diarra Bèye, and Alphonse Mané Sambou. It sought to restrict the use of special credits exclusively to missions related to defense, internal and external security, and intelligence activities. Despite the government's submission of six amendments through the Minister of Justice, Me Moussa Sarr, acting on behalf of the Minister of Finance, these modifications were rejected by the parliamentary majority, particularly deputies from Pastef, who argued that the President had pledged to replace so-called "political" funds with properly framed special funds.

The previous legislative initiative faced a critical challenge when Prime Minister Ahmadou Al Aminou Mohamed Lô referred the matter to the Constitutional Council on August 18, just before its scheduled plenary examination. On August 25, the Council issued its decision n° 7/C/2026, declaring the proposed law inadmissible. This ruling underscored a fundamental legal principle regarding the scope of legislative authority.

The Constitutional Council, in its consideration 15, highlighted that organic law n° 2020-07 of February 26, 2020, which pertains to finance laws, already establishes comprehensive rules for budgetary credits, covering aspects such as their nature, presentation, opening, specialization, execution, and control. Furthermore, consideration 16 clarified that an ordinary legislator lacks the authority to either establish an independent category of public credits or define its legal regime. The Council concluded that such matters inherently fall within the purview of the organic law related to finance laws, meaning any reform aiming to legally establish or frame a specific category of public credits must necessarily be incorporated into organic law n° 2020-07 of February 26, 2020.

This new legislative initiative directly addresses the Constitutional Council's prior ruling, which mandated that any reform concerning the legal framework or creation of public credit categories must be enacted through an organic law, specifically referencing organic law n° 2020-07 of February 26, 2020, pertaining to finance laws. The National Assembly's Bureau has now declared admissible a proposal for an organic law that explicitly modifies this existing framework to incorporate the `encadrement des fonds spéciaux`.

Alongside this crucial proposal, the Bureau also approved a separate bill concerning health provisions within correctional facilities. As per Article 69 of the National Assembly's internal regulations, the next procedural step involves formally notifying the President of the Republic to solicit his opinion on the proposed organic law. This strategic shift by the National Assembly aims to ensure that the reform of special credits aligns with the constitutional requirements, thereby advancing the debate on these controversial funds within the appropriate legal framework.

Source: Original reporting via local media