By Libya Herald reporter.
Malta, 11 February 2015:
The Minister of Interior Omar Al-Sinki, has it seems, not accepted his dismissal by Prime . . .[restrict]Minister Abdullah Thinni.
In a statement posted today on his Ministry of Interior’s Facebook page Sinki said that only the HoR had the authority to sack him and held Thinni responsible for the consequences of his sacking.
‘’I am surprised by the legally void procedure taken by Prime Minister Abdullah Thinni in commissioning another officer to run the Ministry’’, Sinki said. ‘’The fact is, the procedure is null and has no legal value. The suspension from work and dismissal (of a Minister) is the jurisdiction of the House of Representatives’’, he added.
‘’I would like to report that I am still carrying out my duties and that I have submitted a memorandum to the President of the HoR and the Prime Minister with regards to the dismissal’’, he assured, indicating that he had no intention of accepting his dismissal.
‘’I call on the Prime Minister to address the effects of his decision on an urgent basis and I hold him legally and historical responsible for the outcomes from this decision and its result on the Libyan people’’, Sinki concluded.
It will be recalled that Sinki was reportedly dismissed yesterday by Prime Minister Abdullah Al-Thinni, four days after Sinki had in an interview accused General Khalifa Hafter of being a dictator and called for UNSMIL’s dialogue to be held in Misrata, his home town.
Sinki gave a controversial interview last Wednesday to Le Monde when he was in Paris for talks with the French government.
It is not yet clear yet if Prime Minister Thinni had sought the tacit approval from the HoR for Sinki’s sacking prior to taking the decision, or whether the sacking was prompted by the HoR. Conversely, it is not clear on what grounds Sinki feels he can withstand his Prime Minister’s dismissal.
The episode will provide further evidence of the reported tensions that exist within the Dignity/HoR camp, and if Sinki is indeed reinstated by the HoR against the wishes of Thinni, it would further weaken Prime Minister Thinni.
Ironically, on this occasion Thinni was taking action against his Minister and in support of Hafter, who it was reported he was not an ally with.
‘‘Thinni has never been a fan of Hafter’’, HoR member Ali Tekbali had told Libya Herald at the beginning of this month. ‘’Any chance to split will be seized at’’, he had added cryptically without further clarification.’’
The HoR member, nevertheless, had not attempt to conceal tensions in the HoR. ‘‘The HoR has its problems’’, he had freely admitted. ‘’But good people are still in control’’, he had added adamantly to Libya Herald’s enquiry about HoR internal tensions.
There are reports that Sinki’s ouster followed a meeting yesterday in Beida between Thinni and HoR president Ageela Saleh which may also have been attended by Hafter. Following Sinki’s Paris interviews, HoR member Tarek Geroushi, who is the son of Air Force commander Saqr Adam Geroushi, predicted that the interior minister would be sacked.
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