Tunisian parliament speaker Rached Ghannouchi on Friday urged lawmakers to resume work as he declared the assembly in session, reported Reuters. The call defies President Kais Saied’s order of suspension of the assembly.
The declaration is feared to lead to a dispute over the legitimacy of Saied’s seizure of control of most legislative and executive powers in July, a move that opponents and critics described as a coup.
The president claimed that the step was necessary to save the country from economic and social crises. He said the move followed years of political deadlock exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic.
As per Saied’s orders, the parliament’s activities would continue to remain ceased with the immunity of all its members still suspended.
“The office of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People is in permanent session,” Ghannouchi, head of the moderate Islamist Ennahda party, said in a tweet.
The security forces surrounded the Tunisian parliament headquarters on Friday in anticipation of the arrival of lawmakers.
In July, President Saied sacked Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi, suspended the country’s parliament, and assumed executive authority. He has continuously been under tremendous domestic and international pressure to appoint a government after his intervention.
Earlier this week, the Tunisian president named Najla Bouden Romdhane, a geologist with little government experience, as the country’s first woman prime minister. He instructed the new prime minister to name a new Cabinet as soon as possible.
Last week, he suspended most of the constitution and declared that he could rule by decree during an “exceptional” period with no set end. The move bestowed vast executive powers in the hands of the president.
Hundreds of protesters have rallied in Tunisia’s capital on Sunday to protest against President Saied’s move to seize governing powers. They gathered in the center of Tunis to demand his resignation.
“The people want the fall of the coup,” the Tunisian protesters chanted.
