By Sami Zaptia.
London, 2 September 2020:
Speaking at a press conference held at the eastern Libyan Government’s Cabinet Office in Benghazi yesterday, the Spokesperson for the Central Committee for the Municipal Council Elections, Khaled Younis, announced 15 municipalities have formed their sub-committees to hold municipal elections.
No date for these elections was announced.
These are; Derna, Qubba, Hera Adjua, Abur, Al-Abraq, Maple, Gallo, Oglea, Ajra, Al-Baydan, Um al-Razam, Bir al-Ashhab, Al-Sharqi, Jardis al-Obaid, Al-Taroun.
Younis praised the awareness of the Libyan street, which he said makes the Committee rely heavily on citizens, especially in the Municipality of Derna, which he said ‘‘will witness a democratic transformation that will enable the people of Derna to choose their representatives’’.
He noted that the Committee had adopted an awareness plan consisting of community dialogue sessions, working meetings and debates, in cooperation with the Civil Society Commission.
Younis confirmed that there is continuing communication with the Commission’s partners in the electoral process, such as the Ministries of Education and Interior, the Civil Society Commission and the media.
In the coming days, the voter registration will be announced for the first group as a whole, or individual municipalities, Younis said.
It must be pointed out that this news is significant because at the height of his military power in the east, Libyan National Army (LNA) commander Khalifa Hafter substituted many Municipality mayors with undemocratically-elected / military appointees. If these elections go through, it would be a reversal of that undemocratic trend.
