On Monday, the Head of Libyan High National Elections Commission (HNEC), Emad al-Sayeh stated that one of the Presidential candidates submitted false documents, adding, “we have evidence of his fraud.”
During a briefing before the Libyan Parliament, he claimed that “we referred several appeals to the Attorney General to prove to the Libyan people that the commission is committed to the principle of holding fair and transparent elections.”
Al-Sayeh’s statements came in response to accusations that HNEC was a failed institution, and was not able to fulfil its duty.
During his speech, Al-Sayeh announced that the commission is “technically ready to hold the country’s Presidential elections.”
He said that they received more than 5,400 candidacy bids for the Parliamentary elections, noting that some of them include falsified documents.
The Head also confirmed that the commission was communicating with the Interior Ministry, which had drawn up a well-prepared plan to secure the elections. This failed to materialise due to the deteriorating political and security situation on the ground.
Al-Sayeh claimed that one of the Presidential candidates had, “criticized the commission on a televised interview aired on a foreign channel, but we have evidence that he had forged his recommendation signatures.”
Libya failed to hold its much-awaited Presidential elections as scheduled on 24 December. This came after parliamentary election committee proposed they be delayed, and with HNEC proposing 24 January as the new date.
The elections are part of a roadmap adopted by the UN-sponsored Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF), in order to restore stability in Libya following years of political division and insecurity. The ballot was delayed to an unspecified date, after bitter arguments over divisive candidates and a disputed legal framework.