United Nations: Libya has reached a “critical stage” regarding the elections

Hassan Al-Werfalli (Benghazi)

The UN envoy to Libya, Abdullah Batili, said that Libya had reached a “critical stage” on the road to elections, considering that the completion of the “6 + 6” committee formed by the House of Representatives and the Supreme Council of the State in preparing election bills is “an opportunity that should not be missed.” Batelli added, in a congratulatory message on the occasion of Eid al-Adha, that “the current situation in Libya is no longer tolerable,” stressing his commitment to exercising his role in facilitating dialogue between all parties.
The UN envoy called on the Libyan leaders to reach decisions that are acceptable to all regarding the election laws, saying: “I call on the Libyan leaders to show wisdom, a spirit of consensus and political insight, in order to reach decisions that are acceptable to all regarding the controversial aspects of these laws. Batili warned that “hasty and non-comprehensive decision-making could deepen the existing crisis and cause a new cycle of violence, calling for avoiding that.”
And he stressed that “conducting successful national elections is an indispensable step in order to continue the process of national reconciliation, and to rebuild a unified, stable and prosperous Libya for all its people.
The “6 + 6” committee, composed of representatives of the Supreme Council and Parliament, met in the city of “Bouznika” in Morocco, between May 22 and June 6, to draft laws for the presidential and parliamentary elections, which could not be held in December 2021 in the presence of two governments in the country.
Late last month, Libyan media reported that the committee had agreed to hold parliamentary elections next December and presidential elections in January 2024. The United Nations had earlier called on the Libyan parties to reach a “greater consensus” on the controversial points of the proposed electoral laws for the supposed elections. be done by the end of this year.
In another context, the Libyan government mandated by Parliament threatened yesterday to stop the production and export of oil in the event that a judicial guard, who is working to appoint him on the accounts of the National Oil Corporation in the Libyan Foreign Bank, is not able to carry out his duties.
The government said in a statement, “Prime Minister Osama Hammad met with NOC Chairman Farhat bin Qadara to agree on a precise mechanism that guarantees the fair distribution of oil and gas sales revenues,” noting that it had informed Farhat officially and directly of the possibility of appointing a judicial guard over the NOC’s accounts.