On Thursday, Senegalese lawmakers clashed and threw a chair in the chamber over what they believed to be an insult to a powerful religious figure who supports the opposition.
According to photographs on television and social media that were verified by AFP, an opposition MP hit lawmaker Amy Ndiaye over her remarks.
She retaliated by hurling a chair at him before falling to the ground and being assisted by other group members.
MPs then started fighting until the speaker adjourned the meeting.
The altercation broke out during a vote on the justice ministry’s 2023 budget.
Observations Ndiaye made regarding Serigne Moustapha Sy, a Muslim leader who backs the opposition but is not a legislator, served as the catalyst for it.
According to news reports, she charged him with breaking his pledge and disrespecting President Macky Sall on November 27.
According to MP Abba Mbaye, opposition legislators will resist the start of parliamentary business “unless this lady has apologised.”
The physical assault on Ndiaye occurred in conjunction with a campaign to raise awareness of violence against women and girls, and some members of the governing coalition as well as feminist activists denounced it.
West Africa, a region known for coups and dictatorships, looks to Senegal as a beacon of stability and democracy.
Following the virtual tie in the July legislative elections, Sall’s party was forced to form a coalition in order to maintain power.
Sall was chosen in 2012 for a seven-year term and again in 2019 for a five-year term. His plans for the upcoming 2024 presidential election remain a secret.
