Politics

Tunisia: Despite experts’ warnings, President Saied wants central bank powers reviewed

Published

1 year ago

September 9, 2023

Tunisian President, Kais Saied is championing a constitutional review that will allow the central bank to finance the budget directly by buying state bonds.

A distinction must be established between the bank’s function in battling inflation and its position in supporting the budget, President Saied said during Friday’s visit to the bank’s offices.

He also emphasised that the central bank was a public organisation and was not autonomous from the government.

Saied said that “the budget financing law which says that the bank cannot grant loan facilities or acquire bonds issued by the state should be developed”.

Former central bank governor, Marouan Abassi had warned against the move and insisted that allowing the bank to buy treasury bonds had real risks to the economy, including increased liquidity strain, rising inflation, and a decline in the value of the Tunisian dinar.

The detractors of President Saied’s position claim that an attempt to change the 2016 financial law would threaten the bank’s independence and raise the possibility of increased state involvement in monetary policy, particularly in light of the expanding fiscal deficit, the lack of financial resources, and the challenges associated with borrowing from abroad.

Although Tunisia and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) struck a preliminary deal in October and Saied declared this year he would not accept “diktats” and that subsidy cuts might trigger protests, talks on a $1.9 billion loan have stagnated.

According credit ratings agencies, Tunisia could default, like other African countries like Ghana, Zambia and Ethiopia, on its foreign debt despite the bulk of its debt being internal.

Politics

Mali’s junta names spokesman Abdoulaye Maiga new Prime Minister

Published

2 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

A day after dismissing Choguel Maiga for criticising the government, Mali’s governing junta named its spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga, as Prime Minister on Thursday, according to state broadcaster, ORTM.

A source close to Choguel Maiga told Reuters that the ruling generals were incensed by Maiga’s remarks over the weekend denouncing the junta’s inability to hold elections within the 24-month timeframe given for the return to democracy.

After promising to hold elections in February, the military authorities, who took control in two separate coups in 2020 and 2021, have put off the poll indefinitely, citing technological difficulties.

Choguel Maiga’s firing coincides with indications of growing discontent and disarray among Mali politicians, even those who first supported the coup and collaborated with the junta.

As the wait for elections continues, Choguel Maiga, a civilian prime minister who was installed by the military junta in 2021, is the most recent to lose support.

He was cited on Saturday as claiming he learnt of the junta’s decision via the media and that there had been no discussion regarding the delay of the elections inside the cabinet.

“It’s all happening in total secrecy, without the prime minister’s knowledge,” Choguel Maiga told reporters.

Before then, he had frequently stood up for Mali’s junta against criticism from foreign friends and neighbours in West Africa who denounced its repeated election delays and military collaboration with Russian mercenaries.

As government spokesperson, Abdoulaye Maiga, the new prime minister, has also made strong public remarks against France, the previous colonial master. One such speech was demanding French President Emmanuel Macron to stop his “neocolonial” and “condescending” behaviour.

Abdoulaye Maiga and Assimi Goita, the leaders of the junta, announced they had kept all of the important cabinet ministers in their portfolios in the new administration in a statement that was broadcast on state television ORTM.

The announcement said that Abdoulaye Maiga will remain minister of territory administration.

Politics

Congo opposition mobilizes protests against constitution review

Published

23 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

In response to President Felix Tshisekedi’s intentions to amend the constitution, opposition lawmakers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have called for national protests on Wednesday.

Tshisekedi, who was sworn in for his second and last term in January, said that a panel would be formed in October to recommend possible constitutional amendments.

According to critics, it may be a ploy to lift term restrictions and give him another chance to run.

Tshisekedi said the current constitution, ratified by a referendum in 2005, needed to change because it did not align with the country’s current realities.

Opposition politicians, including former president Joseph Kabila and past presidential candidates Martin Fayulu and Moise Katumbi, issued a unified statement on Wednesday urging rallies to “block” Tshisekedi.

A request for a response from the Congo’s presidency was not answered.

Patrick Muyaya, the minister of communications, stated on Monday that discussions surrounding the constitutional revision should be de-politicized and that no one should doubt the president’s intentions.

“We’re at the beginning of our mandate… The President of the Republic still has four years to go, and we must avoid attributing intentions to him,” Muyaya told reporters.