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By Sami Zaptia
Tripoli, 26 February 2014:
Speaking at yesterday’s press conference, Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said that he had only requested the . . .[restrict]approval of a six month budget from Congress.
Libya Herald asked the Prime Minister if he would divulge some more details about the proposed 2014 budget, such as its size. This, it was put to him, in view of the continued oil export embargo in the east and news that the GNC Budget Finance and Planning Committee had found conflicting statements on the budget between what the Central Bank of Libya and the government were saying.
Prime Minister Ali Zeidan only partially answered the question without giving any exact figures. He called upon the GNC to hasten the approval of his proposed budget and noted that Libya was at a stage of political debate where the mandate of the GNC was being contested and that he had asked for the minimum amount needed for the budget.
Furthermore, he added that he hoped that the GNC would approve his request quickly as he did not consider his government a political government, but in effect a caretaker government. We need to keep the state going, he stressed.
He explained that the country needed a budget irrespective of who was governing it, hinting at ongoing debate within the GNC to replace his government.
On Monday, the GNC Budget, Finance and Planning Committee had reviewed the government’s 2014 budget proposal and had decided to ask both the GNC and the government to provide further details and explanations regarding the conflicting statements between the Central Bank of Libya and the government about the 2014 budget. [/restrict]
