The Libyan parliament has set aside allegations of corruption to endorse a new, unified government in which a woman has been appointed foreign minister for the first time.
Libya has not been able to form a stable united government since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, with divisions between the east and west of the country leading to a struggle and institutionalized divisions.
Countries that supported different sides in the civil war welcomed the new government, and the two previous rival governments agreed to dissolve.
Abdelhamid Dbeibah, a 61-year-old businessman from Misrata, who is the surprising new interim prime minister, applauded his success, saying: “the time has come to pass on the wars and divisions and turn to reconciliation and construction. it is time to settle the country’s differences in parliament and not on the battlefield. “
He appointed a lawyer and human rights activist, Najla El Mangoush, as foreign minister, after he withdrew the promises that 30% of the ministerial posts would go to women and then appear against a setback. Five women have been appointed under 31 government posts, including the Minister of Justice.
One of the biggest challenges facing Mangoush, a Benghazi lawyer who is a specialist in restorative justice, is trying to search in the range of external actors, including Turkey, Russia and the United Arab Emirates. , many of whom are looking for lucrative oil and reconstruction contracts. She left the country in 2013, two years after the Libyan revolution, to study in the USA.
The approval of Dbeibah’s government comes after Libyan parliament, the House of Representatives, met for three days in the coastal town of Sirte, giving an overwhelming vote of confidence in his new government.
On Tuesday, he was subjected to a three-hour question-and-answer session in parliament in which he said he was the victim of a social smear campaign. He acknowledged that the large size of his government was in part an attempt to ensure that posts were shared geographically. He said he had not met many of the ministers he had appointed.
Allegations have swirled over a UN report indicating that the prime minister was elected with corrupt votes, but the UN’s official report will not be published until March 15, and it is unclear how conclusive the evidence will be. The UN, which is desperate to see its high-risk pursuit of political reunification succeed, has largely ignored the allegations.
In theory, the new interim government, elected by a 75-year-old Libyan Dialogue forum elected by the UN mission, should only remain in power until December 24, the date on which the national presidential and legislative election is set. Many are skeptical that this will happen and some predict that the current speaker of parliament, Aqila Saleh, will try to prevent the election from remaining in power.
Dbeibah was more careful about removing the 20,000 foreign mercenaries hired by Turkey, Russia and the UAE. He said the troops were a dagger in the country’s back, but that he should act cautiously.
Many diplomats have said that the new government can only use goodwill as long as it provides public services and does not become entangled in factional fighting or rivalry between external actors.
He still needs the support and votes of parliament to approve the full budget for 2021, the constitutional referendum law and the local law. His powers regarding the army are unclear.
In the wake of its future problems, more than 35 MPs, mainly from the capital, Tripoli, boycotted the Sirte meeting. There was also no military unification consistent with political unification, and further work is needed to reunite the central bank and other bodies.
The decision means that the government of national accord led by Fayez al-Serraj will be dissolved. Serraj has agreed to step down and there are speculations that he may become the ambassador to the UK, which he visits regularly to see family.