The Spokeswoman for the Libyan Presidential Council, Najwa Wahiba said that there is an opportunity to hold elections before the end of this year.
Wahiba noted in a press statement that this opportunity “will be achieved with the agreement of the political bodies on the constitutional path.”
She affirmed that the “international position is unified towards the elections, along with an internal desire to hold them. These international positions come in support of what was announced by the Head of the Presidential Council, Mohamed Al-Mnifi.”
Last week, Al-Mnifi arrived in Benghazi, where he met with the General Commander of the Libyan National Army (LNA), Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, and a number of senior officials in the city.
Haftar held talks with a number of local and international officials last week. Earlier this month, he received the Libyan Parliament-designated Prime Minister, Fathi Bashaga.
According to press reports, the two sides discussed the ongoing political process, and the Libyan government’s efforts to resolve the political crisis in the country. This was the first meeting between the two since the Parliament appointed Bashagha on 10 February 2022.
However, Bashagha has ruled out holding elections without a unified government, blaming his rival “illegitimate” PM Abdel-Hamid Dbaiba fo failing to hold elections in December 2021.
In a televised interview, Bashagha said that “the elections must be held after the legislative parties agree on a constitutional basis.” He noted that there are “indications towards a political action plan from the Parliament and the High Council of State (HCS), under the auspices of the United Nations. This is to reach an agreement that helps Libya move forward in the democratic process.”
Bashagha stressed that the “security establishment must also be unified to hold elections, and that steps to unify the military establishment should begin. The Libyan people are aware of the dangers and that Libya must be one strong country,” he said, claiming that the “financial revenues in Libya are not transparent, and remain unclear.” He added that his government submitted a request to the Attorney General to obtain the oil revenues, “because the Libyan funds are being disposed of illegally.”
Dbaiba has warned that the appointment of a new interim government could lead to war and chaos in the country. He renewed his pledge to only hand power over to an elected government.