Head of Ennahda Rashid al-Ghannouchi confirmed that he would not run for the presidential elections in November, indicating that the movement will have another candidate for the race.
"The party has not yet decided whether it will name a candidate from within Ennahda or recommend another consensual candidate from outside" the movement, Ghannouchi said at a seminar organized by a center for studies chaired by Ennahda official Rafik Abdel Salam.
During the 2014 elections, Ennahda did not offer a candidate, instead supporting the candidacy of former president Moncef Marzouki, who lost to his rival President Beji Caid Essebsi.
Top Ennahda official, Yamina al-Zoghlami, has recently confirmed that Ghannouchi was the movement’s candidate as stipulated by its by-laws.
Zoghlami explained if Ghannouchi rejected his candidacy, he would propose names to the Shura Council, which would in its turn vote to elect its candidate.
However, another high-ranking Ennahda official, Samir Dilou, was quick to make contradictory statements, saying Ghannouchi's candidacy for the presidential elections has neither been proposed nor discussed.
This suggests that Zoghlamis’ statements were aimed at assessing whether Tunisians accepted the idea of Ghannouchi's candidacy.
Opposition parties have pointed that Essebsi and Ghannouchi had struck a “secret agreement” during a 2013 meeting in Paris to alternate the presidency between them.
During the seminar, Ghannouchi denied allegations made by the Popular Front that his movement had a “secret unit” linked to the assassination of the late leader Chikri Belaid and member of parliament Mohammad Brahmi in 2013. Such a charge could diminish the chances of the movement's leaders to achieve positive results in the upcoming elections.
In a statement, the Popular Front called on Tunisians to increase their protests against the ruling coalition and warned of the consequences of restoring the ruling system that emerged from the 2014 elections.
The Front was referring to Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes party, which both dominate the political scene in the country.
Tunisia’s General Labor Union announced the organization of a huge meeting in the center of Tunis to commemorate the eighth anniversary of the Tunisian revolution on January 14. This comes after recent statements in which the Union suggested that the security and social situation would go out of control in the event of a general strike on Thursday.
The strike’s call came amid a government failure to respond to the Union's demands to increase the wages of public servants.
Assistant Secretary-General of the Union Mohamed Ali Boughdiri criticized “the country's dependence on the International Monetary Fund,” saying that workers' demands are reasonable and realistic.
However, he expected to reach “satisfactory solutions” between the two parties before Thursday's general strike.
