The Head of the Presidential Council, Mohammed Menfi, praised the formation of an advisory committee for the United Nations Support Mission, stressing the need for it to be balanced and for its members to be independent of any pressure.
Menfi added in a series of posts on “X” platform that the Presidential Council continued to coordinate closely with the United Nations and its institutions, reiterating its vision of the need to resort to the people through a free and fair referendum on the remaining points of contention in the draft election laws completed by the “6+6” Committee.
Menfi called on the Libyan institutions emerging from the political agreement to “take heed” and evaluate the recommendations of the advisors of the United Nations Mission to overcome obstacles towards holding general elections.
On January 12, UNSMIL revealed a new political initiative aimed at reaching the elections, consisting of six main elements working in parallel to address immediate and long-term issues. It explained in a meeting with Libyan youth on Facebook that these elements include: forming an advisory committee, unifying the government, launching a comprehensive dialogue, economic reforms, unifying security institutions, and national reconciliation.
UNSMIL indicated that the advisory committee will include no more than 30 members, with women’s participation not less than 30%, and its mission will be limited to dealing with the points of contention in the 6+6 laws and developing a roadmap for the elections, within a specific and short time frame, and it will consist of competent and experienced individuals.
UNSMIL stressed that the advisory committee - none of whose members have been selected yet - is not an alternative to the House of Representatives and the High Council of State, stressing that the current electoral laws are not politically enforceable, which requires addressing the flaws in them and developing a clear roadmap for the elections.