Italy’s Nova news agency reported that the postponement of the Libyan Presidential elections will be announced on Monday. It noted that the Libyan Parliament is planning to appoint a new “technocratic” government to lead the country until the new election date.
According to Nova, the Libyan Parliament will announce the postponement until the end of January or February.
Meanwhile, the mediating role between all parties will be assumed by Stephanie Williams, the Special Adviser to the United Nations Secretary-General (SASG) for Libya. Williams will arrive in eastern Libya on Friday for a two-day visit, after she conducted a series of meetings in Tripoli, Misrata, and Sirte.
Notably, the Chairman of the Internal Affairs Committee of the Libyan Parliament, MP Suleiman Al-Harari called on the authorities and the Parliament to assume their responsibilities and to speak clearly to the Libyan people about the impossibility of holding the elections on 24 December.
“It is the right of the Libyan people to be informed of all developments in the electoral process and not to be misled,” he noted.
Al-Hariri expressed his regret that no official position was issued in this regard, despite the presence of strong data indicating the necessity of postponing the elections. He called on the Head of the High National Elections Commission (HNEC), Emad Al-Din Al-Sayeh to publicly declare the technical inability to hold the elections as scheduled.
“The Prime Minister and the Minister of Interior are required to acknowledge their major shortcomings on securing the electoral process. The assault on the courts, as well as the closure of polling stations in the past days, is the best evidence of this,” he said in a statement.
“The Interior Minister should clarify that the ministry is currently unable to secure the upcoming elections and ensure their integrity,” he added.
A Presidential candidate, Abdel-Hakim Bayou warned against postponing Libya’s elections, saying that the failure to hold the elections might drag the country into chaos again.
Bayou said in statements to Al-Arabiya.net that there are efforts aimed at “aborting” the country’s Presidential election.
A week before the elections are scheduled to take place, uncertainty remains over the ability to hold them as scheduled. “Now, the Libyans have two options: postponement or cancellation, both of which may lead to the return of fighting and violence again in the country. The two options are considered a setback and a threat to the peace process taking place,” Bayou said.