The real obstacle to holding Libyan elections is not the security situation, but the absence of consensual and fair electoral laws, Tripoli based Libyan prime minister Abdel Hamid Aldabaiba said yesterday.
Aldabaiba was participating in the Second Forum for Officers of the (Police) Security Directorates Support Agency in the Regions, in the presence of about 600 officers, where he was received by the Deputy Head of the Security Directorates Support Service in the Regions, Colonel Ali Al-Jabri.
Aldabaiba went on to say that he holds the Speaker (Ageela Saleh) and Members of the House of Representatives (HoR) fully responsible for the “failure to hold elections” as it is the body authorised to issue these legislations, which failed to provide the necessary legal basis despite his direct supervision of the High National Electoral Commission (HNEC).
In his speech, Aldabaiba praised the high readiness of the police and the continuous development in its performance and discipline, noting that the success of the Interior Ministry in securing municipal elections in 58 municipalities is tangible evidence of the state’s readiness to hold any electoral entitlement, including parliamentary and presidential elections.
The Tripoli based prime minister praised the efforts of policemen in enhancing security and stability, stressing the government’s full support for the security institution and its keenness to develop its capabilities to ensure the efficient performance of its tasks.
He further stressed that Libya is moving steadily towards building professional security institutions capable of protecting the state and citizens.
Aldabaiba concluded his speech by stressing the government’s continued support and development of the police force, and rejecting any smear campaigns targeting it, explaining that the reality on the ground reflects the remarkable progress in the performance of the security services and their ability to maintain security and stability.
Comment
It must be noted that, in reality, security in Libya has indeed improved exponentially compared to the dark early revolution years. Nevertheless, the recent assassination attempt on Secretary of State for the PM and Cabinet Minister, Adel Juma, in Tripoli puts things into perspective.
The assassination attempt on Juma, using gunfire, occurred on 13 February in broad daylight while he was in a car on Tripoli’s main east-west motorway (the Second Ring Road).
Militias?
Whilst the Attorney General’s Office announced on 25 February that it has identified the perpetrator of the assassination attempt, who it said has subsequently fled to Tunisia, it is believed he is a militiaman.
Libya’s militias are Libya’s real obstacle to highly improved security. They are the enemy within who sleep side by side with the regular police and army forces.
They have propped up every post-Qaddafi era government, including Aldabaiba’s current Tripoli based Libyan government, and no Libyan government has been able to disband them. Indeed, government have attempted to incorporate them into the police and army by rebranding them.
Can militias be reformed?
However, often ”the militias within them” often come to the fore and engage in militia activity such as clashes with opposing militias or kidnappings. Indeed, the current Acting Tripoli based Interior Minister, Imad Trabelsi, is a former head of a leading Zintani militia.
Moreover, while government has indeed expanded and empowered the regular police force such as the above-mentioned regional Security Directorates, they are unwilling or unable to confront the main Tripoli based militias – a political and realistic decision by the government at the present time as the main militias are though to still be more powerful and battle experienced.
Elections and the election laws
With regards Aldabaiba’s statement that the real obstacle to holding Libyan elections is not the security situation, but the absence of consensual and fair electoral laws, Aldabaiba is referring to the election laws presented by the eastern based Libyan parliament – the House of Representatives (HoR).
The HoR in theory comprises of 200 members from across Libya. However, as part of Libya’s political east-west split, most members have boycotted it as they feel it is coerced by Khalifa Hafter and feel unsafe attending sessions in eastern Libya.
A rump of 20 to 40 regularly attend its (what most of west Libya regards as) non- quorum sessions, but most boycotting members and the Tripoli government regard its outputs as unconstitutional.
This unconstitutionality includes the HoR’s election laws which Tripoli regards as having been tailor-made to suite HoR Speaker Ageela Saleh and Khalifa Hafter. The election rules prescribe that if Hafter or Saleh lose their bid to be elected they have the right to return to their old jobs.
Part of the status quo conspiracy to prevent holding of elections?
Analysts believe that both Hafter and Saleh knew perfectly well that Tripoli would never allow elections to go ahead under such fixed rules and would reject the holding of elections. They created the election rules in such a way to ensure there would never be any elections.
Hafter and Saleh can accuse Tripoli of rejecting elections, while Tripoli accused them of not wanting elections. Either way, the general Libyan public see it as an institutional or status quo conspiracy to prevent the holding of elections and for all parties gaining from the status quo – including the powerful militias – to remain in post – at the people’s expense.
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