The opposition Democratic Forum for Labor and Liberties (FDTL) has announced its boycott of the upcoming Tunisian presidential elections.
FDTL official Elyes Fakhfakh affirmed, in a meeting on Sunday in the northern suburb of Tunis, that the party has no candidate for the elections that are set to be held in November.
He added that FDTL will support the candidate of centrist parties.
Meanwhile, the Tunisian General Labor Union (UGTT) launched an unprecedented attack on head of Ennahda Movement Rached Ghannouchi, accusing him of exploiting the success in ending the secondary education crisis for “political purposes.”
On Saturday, the UGTT expressed dismay at a surprising statement made by Ghannouchi on ending the crisis. Tunisia's biggest union stressed that it had conducted negotiations solely with the Tunisian government.
The union, in its statement published on Facebook, said that any other claims on the breakthrough are mere desperate attempts to make up baseless initiatives.
UGTT’s Administrative Committee for Secondary Education has announced the approval of new government proposals ending the crisis of secondary education that has lasted for months.
Mounir Kheireddine, secretary-general of the general union of the secondary education sector in Tunis, said the Administrative Committee approved the government's proposals only after introducing some amendments.
It was agreed to rectify four issues, including the one on retirement at the age of 57 and to broaden the social security base.
The second point dealt with the approval of a new bonus for principals and directors of secondary schools, while the third relates to the integration of a specific bonus into the fixed salary starting 2021.
The fourth amendment concerns the approval of a 20 percent increase in the budget of middle and high schools.
