Political leaders from Tunisia’s ruling coalition and some opposition parties are demanding that President Kais Saied expose the “unspecified” parties he accused earlier this week of plotting to assassinate him.
Speaking at a meeting with Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi and several other former Premiers as part of the build-up to a national dialogue aimed at finding solutions to the country’s current woes, Saied said he has evidence of his allegations.
“The dialogue cannot be approached in the same way as the old dialogues. True patriots do not organize meetings abroad in order to find a way to remove the president of the republic even by assassinating him,” he told his guests.
Tunisian politicians said that the president’s allegations about unnamed parties planning to take him out with a “poisoned postal parcel” a few weeks ago are serious, especially since the results of investigations have not been announced so far.
Saied’s statement about plans to assassinate him by Tunisian parties coordinating with foreign parties spurred political controversy over who might have been involved in the “alleged” plot.
Political leaders questioned Saied’s claims, which they said were “ambiguous” given that the president could have taken to Public Prosecution all the evidence he is allegedly holding for confirmation.
“Whoever is a patriot who believes in the will of his people does not go abroad secretly in search of a way to remove the President of the Republic in any way, even by assassination,” the president had said.
In response to these accusations, Fathi Ayadi, a senior member of the Ennahda movement, said that Said “is required to be frank with Tunisians, especially with all the evidence available to him about the planned assassination plot.”
Ayadi said that the president needs to clear up all the vagueness engulfing his claims but explained that Tunisians have become used to ambiguity from their country’s leadership.
