Tunisia’s Ennahda urges polls ‘as soon as possible’

By Yousri Wannas

TUNIS (AA) - Tunisia’s Ennahda movement has called for holding municipal polls, which have been repeatedly delayed for the last several months, “as soon as possible”.

In a statement released late Wednesday, the movement said that holding the polls at the earliest possible date was “in Tunisia’s national interest”.

“Municipal elections must be conducted at the earliest possible time,” the statement quoted Ennahda leader Rachid Ghannouchi as saying.

It went on to note that members of Tunisia’s official electoral commission had recently met with leading opposition figures to discuss the reasons behind the ongoing delay.

Munji al-Hirdawi, a spokesman for the Nidaa Tounes party (which, along with Ennahda, leads Tunisia’s ruling coalition government), recently said that March 25, 2018 had been tabled as a possible date for the poll.

According to Tunisia’s electoral law, the president must officially set a date for elections at least three months before they are held.