SENEGAL’S President Macky Sall told a “national dialogue” forum that elections will be held before the rainy season begins in July, and confirmed his commitment to leave office before his mandate ends in April on Monday.

But the election’s 16 candidates refused to take part in the forum, insisting that an election date must be set as soon as possible in line with a court order earlier this month.

President Sall, who has said that he wouldn’t run again after his two terms in office, had postponed the election for 10 months while citing unresolved disputes over who could run. 

Senegal’s Constitutional Court on February 15 struck down the delay as illegal and ordered the government to set a new election date as soon as possible.

No date for the vote has yet been announced.

Mr Sall said: “Dialogue and consultation are precisely what is needed to heal these weaknesses and move forward in the quest for the ideal of democracy.”

The president also said that he would propose a general amnesty law for the hundreds of people arrested during protests over the election delay. 

It was unclear whether leading opposition figures like Ousmane Sonko would benefit. 

Mr Sonko is in jail and barred from running in the election. He is charged with calling for an insurrection and convicted of “corrupting youth.”