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By Sami Zaptia.
London, 6 December 2020:
On Thursday and Friday 3-4 December, the consultation process during which members of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF) cast votes to select one of the presented proposals for a selection mechanism for the unified executive authority came to an end.
Yesterday, Acting UNSMIL head Stephanie Williams hosted a virtual meeting to inform the LPDF participants of the results of the voting process and to discuss the way forward.
UNSMIL stated that Williams praised the significant progress made by the LPDF participants in their determination to participate in the process and announced the following results:
- 71 LPDF members participated in the process; one member was unable to participate for health-related reasons and three members abstained.
- 39 LPDF members voted for proposal number 2
- 24 LPDF members voted for proposal number 3
- 8 LPDF members voted for proposal number 10
Williams reaffirmed UNSMIL’s commitment to and respect for the decision of the LPDF members taken during the recent in-person meeting in Tunisia, according to which decisions should be reached on a consensual basis. The meeting witnessed a high degree of constructive engagement by the LPDF members and a desire to press forward for the sake of the Libyan people. Williams announced that a virtual session will be held in the coming days to discuss the next steps based on the very productive suggestions presented by many of the LPDF members in today’s session.
Williams praised the LPDF members’ continuing commitment – as announced in the in-person LPDF meeting in Tunis – to the holding of national elections on 24 December 2021 and to hold accountable those institutions responsible for creating the necessary conditions.
She underlined the importance of the work that is being undertaken by the High National Elections Commission (HNEC) in preparing for these elections, welcomed the decision of the Government to allocate budget for the HNEC to start the preparations, and urged for the immediate disbursal of the promised funds.
She also emphasized the progress achieved in the economic track, in particular, the anticipated upcoming meeting of the Board of Directors of the Central Bank of Libya, which is expected to tackle the unification of the exchange rate.
Finally, the Williams welcomed ongoing efforts by the House of Representatives to meet and called on the members of the HoR and the High Council of State to work constructively with the LPDF to pave the way towards the reunification of institutions as stipulated by the LPDF Roadmap.
UNSMIL said it believes that all of these positive developments demonstrate that there is a bottom-up constituency for change that is propelling national and sovereign institutions to restore Libya’s sovereignty and meet the needs and aspirations of the Libyan people.
