Libya’s High National Elections Commission (HNEC) has rejected accusations that it failed to carry out a referendum on the draft constitution, saying the claims are inaccurate and aimed at undermining public trust in the institution.
In a statement issued on Saturday, HNEC said the legal framework for the constitutional referendum had been in place since the House of Representatives adopted the Tenth Constitutional Amendment in November 2018. That amendment paved the way for Law No. 6 of 2018 regulating the referendum on the permanent constitution.
HNEC said the law was referred to the commission shortly after its adoption, and that it began a technical review of the legal texts in preparation for drafting the necessary regulations. The commission stressed that a request by the High Council of State in December 2018 to suspend implementation of the law was never acted upon.
According to the statement, HNEC formally asked the House of Representatives in January 2019 to amend specific provisions in the law. This led to the issuance of amended Law No. 1 of 2019, after which the commission issued the required regulations and procedures to move forward with the process.
On funding, HNEC said it submitted an official request for 40 million Libyan dinars to cover referendum costs to the then Government of National Accord. The request was rejected during a formal meeting attended by the commission’s chairman and the UN special envoy, with HNEC describing the justifications for refusing funding as unconvincing.
The commission said further delays were caused by positions taken by the High Council of State and the former unity government, as well as the failure of a committee formed under the Twelfth Constitutional Amendment in 2022 to agree on revisions to the draft constitution.
HNEC concluded that it was never responsible for obstructing the referendum, stressing that implementation depends on political consensus and a clear legal framework.
