On Friday, the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General, António Guterres, urged all Libyan parties to continue to preserve stability in Libya as an absolute priority. This call comes after the Libyan Parliament appointed Fathi Bashagha as the new Prime Minister replacing Abdelhamid Al-Dbaiba.
Guterres reminded all institutions of the primary goal of holding national elections as soon as possible to ensure that the political will of the 2.8 million Libyan citizens, registered on the electoral rolls, are respected.
Meanwhile, the United States (US) Embassy in Libya expressed its support for the message of the UN Secretary-General regarding consensus, stability and elections in Libya.
“The Secretary-General is following closely the situation in Libya. He takes note of the vote taken on the 10th of February, by the House of Representatives (HoR) in consultation with the High State Council (HSC) to adopt the constitutional amendment, which charts a path for the revision of the 2017 Constitutional Draft and for the electoral process,” said Stéphane Dujarric, a Spokesperson for the Secretary-General.
“He also takes note of the vote of the HoR to designate a new Prime Minister,” Dujarric added.
“The Secretary-General calls on all parties and institutions to continue to ensure that such critical decisions are taken in a transparent and consensual manner,” the statement noted.
On Thursday, the Speaker of the Libyan Parliament, Ageela Saleh announced that they have unanimously appointed Fathi Bashagha as the new Prime Minister. He is set to replace the current Prime Minister of the Government of National Unity (GNU), Abdelhamid Al-Dbaiba.
However, Al-Dbaiba said in a speech that he would not hand over power until after elections. “Only elections will end the transitional stages,” he claimed.
Observers fear that Libya will return to having two opposing governments, given Al-Dbaiba’s refusal to cede power to a rival government.