Former minister Aly Ngouille Ndiaye sheds light on special funds allocation
In a recent television appearance, former Senegalese minister Aly Ngouille Ndiaye made a striking revelation about the allocation of special funds during Ousmane Sonko’s tenure as Prime Minister. According to Ndiaye, Sonko holds the distinction of being the first Prime Minister to receive these funds at the Prime Minister’s office.
“He was the first Prime Minister to benefit from these special funds. I was never Prime Minister, but several former Prime Ministers who are still alive and listening to me today can confirm that none of them—except the late Boun Abdallah Dione—had access to such funds,” Ndiaye stated. He added that former Prime Ministers like Amadou Ba did not receive these funds, as he was replaced by Sidiki Kaba, who did not serve long enough in the role to benefit from them.
Conflicting claims on fund distribution
Ndiaye went further to address speculation surrounding the disbursement of these funds. Some sources suggest they were allocated quarterly, while others claim they were given annually. If distributed annually, Sonko would have received around 8 billion FCFA. However, Ndiaye pointed out that the initial 1.7 billion FCFA allocated to Sonko were exhausted rapidly, raising questions about the frequency of disbursement.
“If these funds were meant to last a year but were exhausted within a single quarter, it suggests the disbursement was not annual. This raises another critical point: if the next Prime Minister found no funds remaining, it implies Sonko fully utilized the allocated resources,” he explained.
Calls for accountability in fund utilization
Ndiaye did not stop at financial details. He emphasized the need for transparency, particularly regarding parliamentary investigations into the use of these funds. “It is true that this issue can be raised, but if I were in his position, the first step would be to clarify how the 1.7 billion FCFA were spent. Parliamentary commissions should investigate the utilization of these funds so that we can determine whether he set a good example,” he remarked.
He criticized the discrepancy between public statements and actions, stating, “They often claim they won’t use institutions, but this situation proves that their words and actions are entirely disconnected.”