The Head of the Presidential Council Mohammed Menfi sent a letter to the Chairman of the High National Elections Commission, Emad Al-Sayeh, in which he gave him a 30-day deadline to take practical steps to implement the referendum on the constitution, submit the House of Representatives’ decision to extend its own mandate to a referendum, and take legal measures to fill the vacant seats in the House of Representatives.
Menfi stressed in the letter, which was widely circulated on media, the necessity for the Commission to fulfill its legal duties, speaking of “the Libyan people’s right to exercise their sovereignty through the ballot box.”
The letter from Menfi included references to three constitutional obligations which he considered definitive and not subject to suspension except under legal necessity. These obligations are: the failure to implement the constitutional requirement of holding a referendum on the draft constitution prepared by the elected constituent body.
He referred to "the failure to implement the previously postponed constitutional requirement, for security reasons, related to submitting the House of Representatives’ decision to extend its own term to a public referendum in accordance with the ninth amendment to the Constitutional Declaration, despite the removal of the security reasons and the exposure of their justifications.
He mentioned the Commission’s failure to take the necessary legal measures to fill the vacant seats in the House of Representatives despite more than thirty days having passed since the vacancies occurred, in violation of the explicit provisions of the Constitutional Declaration.
Menfi said he respects the principle of the independence of the Elections Commission as a sovereign national institution, but he emphasized the necessity of its commitment to “the provisions of the Constitutional Declaration as a supreme constitutional reference, and distancing it from political exploitation or conflicts of interest that some institutions may practice.”
He also addressed “the importance of respecting the popular will and enshrining citizens’ right to determine their destiny through democratic means, and in order to avoid the manifestations of political deadlock that threaten stability, national unity, and national security, as well as to push toward a sound constitutional path leading to general elections based on agreed legitimate rules.”
On Tuesday, Menfi issued a decree establishing the National Commission for Referendum and Public Consultation. He also suspended the constitutional court law issued by the House of Representatives and defined the mechanisms and conditions for electing the General Conference for National Reconciliation.
