Libya's deputy prime minister resigns saying he 'failed'

One of Libya's three deputy prime ministers has resigned his post, saying he failed in his job as a premier and that the country remains riddled with violence and corruption.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab

02 January, 2017

Libya has been fraught with violence, extremism and corruption [AFP]

One of the deputy prime ministers from Libya's internationally-backed government resigned on Monday, saying he had failed in his mission.

Moussa al-Kouni from the Government of National Accord (GNA) told media in the capital Tripoli that he failed in what he had set out to do and for this reason he felt he could no longer remain in his post.

"I'm resigning because I have failed," said a visibly moved Kouni, who is originally from southern Libya and represents the Tuareg minority in the GNA.

"We (in the GNA) are responsible because we accepted this mission. We take responsibility for everything that has happened in the past year: dramas, violence, murder, rape, invasion, the squandering of public funds... Regardless of the extent of the crimes, we are responsible," he said.

Libya has been mired by in-fighting since the 2011 revolution that overthrew dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

The country was split between two competing governments, while myriad rival militias also looked at carving up influence in the country.

In coastal city of Sirte, the Islamic State group set up a stronghold and threatened other cities in the area.

Then in March, the internationally backed Government of National Accord was formed intended to replace the two rival administrations - one in Tripoli, the other in Tobruk.

— موسى الكوني Al Kouni (@Moussa_kouni) January 2, 2017 " style="color:#fff;" class="twitter-post-link" target="_blank">Twitter Post

العجز عن الاستجابة لانتظارات الناس تدفعني للإستقالة. ما فتئت المِحنة تعصف بالشعب. وكنت قد عاهدت الناس أن أرفع عنهم هذا الوجع...لكني لم افلح.
— موسى الكوني Al Kouni (@Moussa_kouni) January 2, 2017

It is also the centrepiece of Western hopes to stem an upsurge of jihadi groups in Libya and halt people trafficking across the Mediterranean that has led to thousands of drownings.

One early success for the GNA was the defeat of IS in Sirte, but since then it has failed to assert its authority fully over the whole country.

Prime Minister-designate Fayez al-Sarraj has not yet been able to secure a vote of confidence in the Libyan parliament based in Tobruk in the east.

There the military leader of the parallel authorities - controversial and wayward Khalifa Haftar - is also based who appears to be one of the biggest threats to the GNA project for the country.

"The inability to meet people's expectations leads me to resign... I pledged to alleviate their suffering but I did not succeed," Kouni also wrote on his Twitter account.

Agencies contributed to this story.