Libya.. Canceling the session of the "Higher State" to vote on the constitutional amendment. Al-Dabaiba praises international efforts to hold elections

The Supreme Council of State in Libya canceled a session that was scheduled for Sunday to vote on a constitutional amendment in preparation for organizing elections in the country, and while the head of the Libyan National Unity Government, Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba, said that his government is seeking to hold elections, the head of the Supreme Council of State, Khaled al-Mashri, accused him of trying to thwart the constitutional path.

While no statement was issued by the Council regarding the fate of the session until now, a member of the Council - who asked not to be named - told Anadolu Agency that the quorum was not achieved in today's session in which the vote on the constitutional amendment was to take place.

The source did not have accurate information about the number of those who attended the session, but the quorum required to hold it is half of the total number plus one, i.e. 101 deputies.

The source added that the session was canceled and no other date was set for holding it in light of the division within the parliament between supporters and opponents of the parliament's move to amend the constitutional declaration without coordination with the Supreme Council.

The Constitutional Declaration is an interim constitution drawn up after the overthrow of the regime of Muammar Gaddafi (1969-2011).

In a joint statement today, Sunday, 54 members (out of 200) of the Supreme Council announced their rejection of the constitutional amendment that the House of Representatives made and published in the Official Gazette, in a "unilateral, preemptive step that violates the current understandings and far from the requirements of the consensual stage," according to the statement.

The signatories to the statement affirmed that the constitutional amendment will not gain any constitutional legitimacy because it was not approved by the Supreme Council of State.

They explained that they have objections to the amendment, including not including the conditions for the nomination of the president, granting the president broad powers, and not obligating the elected National Assembly (in the future) to accomplish the constitutional entitlement (drafting a new constitution) within a specified period of time.

For his part, Head of the Supreme Council of State Khaled Al-Mashri said that the constitutional rule approved by Parliament and referred to the State Council for approval provides minimum guarantees for all political parties.

Al-Mashri accused the head of the national unity government, Abdel Hamid al-Dabaiba, of trying to thwart the constitutional path between Parliament and the High Council of State, he said.

He continued, "It was the State Council that called for going to a constitutional amendment that would deal with the elections file, and the Council had previously voted on this amendment, and it does not affect the entire constitutional basis and is considered a protection for the upcoming elections from any constitutional challenge."

In an earlier period, disagreements prevailed between the two councils regarding the eligibility of the military and dual nationals to run for the presidential elections.

On February 7, the House of Representatives approved the 13th amendment to the Constitutional Declaration to become a "constitutional rule" according to which parliamentary and presidential elections will be held.

And last Thursday, the Council published the amendment in the Official Gazette, which means that it will enter into force without waiting for the decision of the Supreme Council of State, as the latter postponed until Sunday a session that was scheduled for last Thursday, due to a protest by opponents of the constitutional amendment.

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On the other hand, the head of the Libyan National Unity Government, Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba, said that the international community's efforts to push for elections that solve the country's crisis are "consistent" with his government's demands, announcing the continuation of providing services to all the Libyan people, maintaining peace and completing the elections.

"I salute all the efforts made by the friends of Libya and the UN mission to push for fair and just national elections," Dabaiba added, in a statement posted on the government's Facebook page.

This statement comes after the head of the UN mission to Libya, Abdullah Batili, announced last Thursday his agreement with the international community to push for 2023 to be the year of the Libyan elections.

Batelli's announcement came after he met in the United States with high-ranking officials from Egypt, France, Germany, Italy, Qatar, Turkey, the UAE and Britain.

Before leaving the United States, Batelli held, on February 20, a series of consultations with the President of the Libyan Presidential Council, Muhammad al-Manfi, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aguila Saleh, the President of the Supreme Council of State, Khaled al-Mashri, the Commander of the Eastern Forces, Khalifa Haftar, and a delegation from the unity government.

Libya is experiencing a political crisis represented in a conflict between a government appointed by the House of Representatives headed by Fathi Bashagha and the UN-recognised government of Dbeiba, which refuses to hand over power except to a government assigned by a new elected parliament.

To resolve the crisis, the United Nations launched an initiative to form a committee from the House of Representatives and the state to agree on a constitutional basis leading to elections, but its work ended without achieving that.