By Ibrahim Drissi.
Benghazi, 4 October 2016:
The health minister in the interim continuing government of Abdullah Al-Thinni in Beida has been suspended in an alleged row over not appearing in front of the HoR’s Health Committee for question time in Tobruk since August 2016.
Reida El-Oakley was temporary suspended yesterday following a request by the House of Representatives’ Health Committee pending further investigations and Oakley’s appearance before the committee.
According to the Thinni government official spokesman Hatem Oraibi, it will be up to the committee to decide if the minister remains in post.
Despite the Beida government’s constrained circumstances, Oakley has been seen as a successful and hardworking health minister. A fortnight ago in Bahrain, he was presented with an award for outstanding voluntary work by the Arab Federation of Volunteerism.
For the moment, the undersecretary at the health ministry, Nader Kuweiri, is acting as minister. Today, he ordered staff based at three Benghazi hospitals closed because of the fighting – Hawari, 7 October and Jumhiriya – to report for duty at temporary medical facilities run by Benghazi Medical Centre
