On July 25, thousands of Tunisians took to the streets to show their fed up and cry out their anger against a political class that has dragged the country into the abyss. They specifically targeted the Ennahdha movement and the parliament, held responsible for all this disaster. To avoid excesses, the dismissed head of government who was also in charge of the interior ministry, had deployed security forces in Avenue Habib Bourguiba and around the ARP headquarters to block all the accesses. The protests have spread to reach parts of the interior where Ennahdha’s premises have been attacked.
In the meantime, the President of the Republic had gathered at the palace of Carthage, the high military and security commands to prepare with them the exceptional measures he had announced on the evening of July 25, in accordance with article 80 of the Constitution. This announcement took everyone short, including the most discerning observers. he had, in fact, decided the suspension of the activities of the ARP, for thirty renewable days, the lifting of the parliamentary immunity of all deputies and the dismissal of the head of government Hichem Mechichi.
Since that date, the head of state has gathered all the powers in his hands and paved the way for a new stage marked, until then, by his seal.
On July 26, 2021, Kais Saied issued a decree imposing the ban on the movement of people and vehicles throughout the country from 7 to 6 a.m. from Monday, July 26 to Friday, August 27, 2021, with the exception of urgent cases and people who work at night.
It also published a decree imposing the suspension of work in central administrations, external services, local authorities and public administrative establishments for a period of two days from July 27, 2021.
On July 30, 2021, the President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed, received a team of journalists from the New York Times.
On Monday, August 9, 2021, the Public Ministry at the Tunis Court of First Instance issued a decision prohibiting the travel of 12 suspects in cases related to financial and administrative corruption, in the extraction and transfer of phosphates.
On the same day, the deputy Saïd Jaziri, owner of radio “Al-Quran al-karim”, which broadcasts without license, was taken into custody, for having unsealed, last March, the station of broadcasting of the radio. based in Zaghouan, said the spokesperson for the Zaghouan Court of First Instance, Nidhal Tlili.
On August 10, 2021, a security patrol under the customs investigation unit of Monastir arrested, on the highway connecting the town of El Jem to Sfax, a Tunisian registered vehicle driven by a judge. After checking, officers found a bag in the back seat of the car, containing some money in foreign currency and another in Tunisian dinars.
The Judicial Council decided on Wednesday August 11, 2021 to lift the immunity and suspend the judge who was intercepted in possession of currency.
On Sunday August 15, 2021, a second day of intensive vaccination operations against the Corona pandemic was organized.
Four people, including three former directors general of the Compagnie des Phosphates de Gafsa, were released on Monday afternoon, August 16, 2021, after their hearing, in the case relating to the transport of phosphate.
They are Abdellatif Hmam, Ali Khmili and Nejib Hamadi, as well as the project manager of the Meknassi phosphate mine, Salah Righi.
During his unannounced visit to Tunis Carthage airport, the same day, on which he inquired, in particular about the progress of travel procedures, the President of the Republic Kaïs Saïed affirmed that “freedom of movement is always guaranteed. “. However, “people prosecuted or who are the subject of suspicion of corruption are called upon to regularize their situation”, because he added, “the law does not make an exception to anyone and applies equally to everyone”
Qalb Touness’s resigning MP Zouhair Makhlouf announced on Monday August 16 that he was under house arrest.
On August 18, 2021, three former advisers to heads of government Youssef Chahed and Hichem Mechichi were placed under house arrest. They are Lotfi Ben Sassi, former economic advisor to the Chahed government, Mofdi Mseddi communications advisor and Belhassen Ben Amor legal advisor and in charge of relations with constitutional bodies and civil society.
On August 19, 2021, in a statement made public, Ridha Gharsallaoui, Minister responsible for the management of the Ministry of the Interior made new appointments at the head of the general directorates under national security.
On August 20, 2021, the security forces evacuated the premises of the National Authority for the Fight against Corruption (INLUCC), on the order of Ridha Gharsallaoui, the head of the Ministry of the Interior.
The President of the Republic, Kaïs Saïed, relieved, on Friday August 20, 2021, the governor of Ben Arous of his functions. This dismissal comes after the visit that the Head of State paid, in the afternoon, a visit to the region where he visited a company selling Construction materials in Fouchana. He found that a large amount of construction iron was stored in a shed. So we are talking about a shortage of this material.
On August 20, the former chairman of the National Anti-Corruption Authority (INLUCC), Chawki Tabib, was placed under house arrest.
PDL MP Ahmed Sghaier was released on August 20 after being arrested on August 19, 2021 amid a complaint filed against him by a citizen of Zaghouan.
On August 21, a warrant was issued against frozen Al Karama MP Seïfeddine Makhlouf, involved in the airport affair.
In a press release published late on the evening of August 23, 2021, on its Facebook page, the Presidency of the Republic announces that the Head of State Kais Saied has issued a decree to extend the exceptional measures taken on July 25 and which concern the freezing of the activities of the Parliament and the lifting of the parliamentary immunity of the deputies until further notice.
Kais Saïed is expected to speak to Tunisians shortly to announce his roadmap, the next step and the composition of the new government.
Rifi-JDD
