Senegalese lawmakers brawl amid reform debate

Senegal's National Assembly descended into chaos on June 29 when opposition MP Abdou Mbow (Takku Wallu Sénégal, allied with Macky Sall’s APR) was forcibly removed by gendarmes.

He refused to leave the podium during a heated debate on the ruling PASTEF coalition’s constitutional reform bill.

Presiding Speaker Ousmane Sonko ordered the ejection after Mbow pushed a procedural motion to suspend proceedings.

Opposition lawmakers walked out in protest, yet the majority still passed the bill expanding parliamentary powers while reducing some presidential authority.

The dramatic scenes have intensified concerns over democratic tolerance and institutional reforms in Senegal.