Bachagha pulls off media coup against Dabaiba in Paris

摘要

The Libyan prime minister has fallen into a media ambush in Paris orchestrated by the former interior minister, who is already on the presidential campaign trail. The staff of Abdelhamid Dabaiba opted for a low-profile media approach during the Libyan prime minister's visit to Paris on 1 and 2 June, where he had an audience with Emmanuel Macron before attending a meeting with French business leaders (AI, 28/05/21). The government of national unity's spokesperson Mohamed Hammouda and his chief of staff Walid Ellafi turned down all television interview requests in the hope of keeping a tight rein over the media coverage of their boss. But the strategy backfired, as it left the media field clear for his political rival, Fathi Bachagha. The ex-interior minister, who embarked on the presidential campaign trail back in December, had paid a visit to the French capital a few days beforehand (AI, 02/06/21) during which he granted an interview to L'Opinion. Published on 31 May after he had already left Paris, the article carried his claims that the process for appointing the prime minister had been "manipulated" - a transparent allusion to allegations at the time that Dabaiba had bought votes to secure his position. Bachagha also claimed that the entente between the prime minister and the head of the Presidential Council Mohamed al-Manfi was a mere "façade" and that they were not genuinely committed to extricating the country from its crisis.