HoR plans vote on government despite two ministers rejecting nomination

By Saber Ayyub.

Tripoli, 15 February 2016:

Prime minister-designate Faiez Serraj flew to Cairo  today after leaving Skhirat and is due in Tobruk tomorrow to present the Presidency Council’s new proposed government to the House of Representatives (HoR). He is, however, already faced with two of his would-be ministers rejecting their nominations: Fakhr Bufernah, chosen as finance minister and Muhanad Younis, given the Martyrs, Wounded and Missing portfolio.

Having concluded on Saturday not to hold today’s session when it appeared that there was no chance of a government being announced in time, the HoR today decided there should be one, but called on Serraj to turn up in person to present his new government tomorrow and spell out its agenda.

According to a source in Tobruk, HoR President Ageela Saleh also wants to give the opportunity to more members to join the vote on the government.

Interviewed on TV today, he said that the HoR had just received the names of the ministers and needed some time to consider them. But it was vitally important that a national unity government be formed at the soonest opportunity, he added.

It is impossible at present to predict how the HoR will respond to the new government offering. The two resignations within hours of it being announced is bound affect its credibility. There are also questions about the proposed ministers’ expertise in the posts they have been given. A leading local government official was damning in his assessment of the new local government minister, Bidad Gansu Massoud. “He does not understand local government,” he told the Libya Herald adding that “most [of the ministers] are not familiar with their departments”.

The rejection of the government by two Presidency Council members, Ali Gatrani, a close ally of General Khalifa Hafter, and laywer Omar Aswad is also bound to influence the views of members.

The latter has said that the reason he refused to sign the announcement was that the government would not work, that several ministers were not up to the job, that there was a lack of transparency in their selection and they had been hurriedly chosen. He also said that that one of the selected ministers stood accused on charges of corruption. [/restrict]