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| Africa North |
| Tunisia's Chahed Will Reportedly Replace Mechichi |
| 2021-04-29 |
| [ENGLISH.AAWSAT] Former Tunisian Prime Minister Youssef Chahed, head of the Long Live Tunisia movement, is a candidate to replace PM Hichem Mechichi, according to leaks made by some opposition parties. Chahed will likely be named prime minister after the Islamist Ennahda Movement pressured Mechichi to implement a cabinet reshuffle, which President Kais Saeid strongly opposes. Political sources agree that Chahed is supported by the President, and Ennahda does not mind naming him as PM, especially that it supported him in 2017 and 2018 following demands to oust him. Political parties are considering several possible scenarios to solve the current crisis between the president, prime minister, and speaker. Some are suggesting removing Mechichi from office, a demand supported by Saeid as a condition to launch political dialogue. Leading Ennahda member Rafik Abdel Salam accused the president on Tuesday of willingly fabricating the political and constitutional crisis. Abdel Salam warned that some people want to use the president as a tool to fight their battles by proxy and eliminate their opponents through coups and military trials. Chahed has urged political parties to commit to a truce, especially since the government is not politically supported, and the parliament is ravaged by crises, noting that it will lead to solving the constitutional and political crisis. In a related development, MP of the Democratic Bloc Hichem al-Ajbouni accused Ennahda of escalating the crisis with the President by supporting the prime minister, under the pretext of preserving government stability. During a radio interview, Ajbouni said the PM yielded to the blackmail of Ennahda and its allies through recent appointments in the Ministry of Interior. |
| Posted by:Fred |