Senegal’s Criminal Investigation Division (DIC) has been officially instructed by the financial prosecutor’s office to probe serious financial irregularities allegedly committed between 2019 and 2024 during former President Macky Sall’s administration.
This development comes as parliamentary proceedings begin over a proposed motion to prosecute Sall for high treason.
According to a communiqué dated 16 April, Financial Prosecutor El Hadji Alioune Ndiaye Sylla confirmed that the matter was referred to the DIC two days earlier. The referral followed a summary judgement submitted by the Attorney General of the Dakar Court of Appeal on 3 April, prompted by a request from the First President of the Court of Auditors.
An audit report flagged potentially criminal financial practices spanning several years of state management. Key findings from the report include unauthorised borrowing of 2,517 billion CFA francs, extra-budgetary expenditures totalling 1,343.58 billion CFA francs, irregular use of Treasury deposit accounts valued at 2,562.17 billion CFA francs, and undeclared customs debts estimated at 261.71 billion CFA francs.
Additionally, there was no traceability for 696.7 billion CFA francs related to public debt in 2023.The financial prosecutor’s office is examining whether offences such as embezzlement of public funds, falsification of official documents, money laundering, and complicity may have occurred.
These revelations were further validated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 25 March. IMF mission chief Eddy Gemayel stated that Senegal had made “a deliberate choice to underreport its debt stock” over the past five years. This underestimation – amounting to approximately $7 billion – equates to about 25% of the country’s GDP, pushing the actual debt ratio to nearly 100%, far above the 70% previously reported.
Meanwhile, political pressure is mounting. On 11 April, Member of Parliament Guy Marius Sagna of the PASTEF-Les Patriotes party submitted a resolution seeking to indict Macky Sall for high treason, invoking Article 101 of the Constitution.
The motion accuses the former president of concealing the true extent of the national deficit and bypassing legal channels to accumulate significant debt.
To proceed, the resolution requires approval from a three-fifths majority in the National Assembly. If passed, it would pave the way for Macky Sall to face trial before the High Court of Justice. In parallel, the DIC’s investigation could lead to separate legal actions for economic and financial crimes.
© WAVN
