Libyan parliamentarians from all sides decided, following their last meeting in Tangier, Morocco, in the presence of 123 members, out of the 180, to resume their activities in Libya, to preserve the representativeness of their institution.
Tomorrow’s meeting in Ghadames therefore marks the first phase of the return to activities before meeting again in Toubrok, or even in Benghazi, as announced in Tangier in the final press release. The Ghadames meeting is supposed to bring together 150 members, or more than 80% of the members.
The various agreements concluded between the Libyan belligerents, in Sekhirat in 2015 or elsewhere, have established the Parliament as the representative body, resulting from the popular will, consecrated by the last elections in June 2014. And it is now the political dialogue of Tunis , started last October under the aegis of the UN, which has installed a new body of 75 personalities and granted them, in practice, certain powers of Parliament, such as the designation of the presidential council or that of the head of government.
The creation of this body prompted the Libyan deputies to meet, urgently, to preserve their representativeness and their powers.
“Whatever its representativeness, the National Dialogue and its members constitute an unelected body. Legitimacy therefore rests with Parliament, if it meets with the majority of its deputies, ”assures Libyan judge Jamel Bennour. And, suddenly, the Libyan parliamentarians were quick to reconcile, to preserve their status.
It has not been since 2015 that the Libyan Parliament has met with more than 100 MPs, which means that parliamentarians have feared for their legitimacy.
The words of the representative of the United Nations, Stéphanie Williams, that “Libyan institutions are obsolete”, have had their effect.
And if the Parliament did not meet for five years, nor to ratify the Sekhirat agreement and, even less, to give confidence to the Al Sarraj government, the same Parliament hastened to meet, to defend its representative status, creating a hazard for the ongoing transition process in Libya. “The Parliament can play the role envisaged for the body of the political dialogue, made up of 75 personalities”, estimates the judge Jamel Bennour. But, “it is important to know whether the UN and the foreign powers present on the Libyan scene accept such a substitution of bodies,” Bennour adds.
Transparency
The political compromise sought between the Libyan belligerents also requires, in its economic and financial aspect, more transparency in the operations carried out by the Libyan authorities, in particular in relation to the exploitation of oil money. The oil blockade was triggered on accusations against the Al Sarraj government of financing armed militias with oil-derived funds.
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And as since the fall of El Gueddafi, the Libyan Central Bank and the National Petroleum Establishment occupy a leading status on the economic and financial scale in Libya, a country whose energy is at the source of 97% budgetary revenue.
Mustapha Sanaallah, the big boss of Libyan oil and Seddik Kebir, the governor of the Libyan Central Bank, are the two key figures in Libya’s finances. The two personalities were, since 2014, in harmony with each other and with the government in Tripoli.
But, these two people have attacked each other, recently, via public statements, accusing each other of embezzlement in connection with oil money.
The Central Bank began hostilities, issuing a statement criticizing the oil establishment for transferring, in October and November, only $ 15 million to the Central Bank, depriving the latter of the funds necessary to supply the daily life of the Libyans
In response, the big boss of the oil establishment, Mustapha Sanaallah, issued a press release, wondering about “the outcome of the 186 billion dollars transferred to the BCL over the past four years, which would not have used only to fatten dinosaurs, with taxpayer money ”.
Sanaallah announces the blocking of oil money at the level of the Libyan External Bank and therefore sides with those who demand “more transparency and fairness in the management of oil money”. Sanaallah’s remarks are in line with the content of the “Haftar / Myitigue” agreement, signed on the eve of the lifting of the oil blockade. These words were supported by the American embassy in Tripoli, which recalled that “this institution carries out its mission in complete neutrality”.
The embassy condemned “attempts by armed groups to prevent transparent management of oil money.” The Libyan situation is far from resolved, both politically and economically.
