Senegal political funds defended by ex‑president aide Pape Samba Mboup

Former chief of staff to ex‑president Abdoulaye Wade, Pape Samba Mboup, told Walf Quotidien that political funds are an essential, undisclosed resource for a Senegalese president. He argues that a president cannot govern effectively without such money, which is used to meet religious, social and medical obligations that are not recorded in the state budget.

Mboup says the funds also support the prime minister, football teams and other allies, and that they cannot be abolished or placed under public control because they enable the president to resolve situations that cannot be handled openly. He links the existence of these secret funds to a president’s ability to secure a second term.