Marzouki refuses calls to resign if he is to run for Tunisia's presidency

Tunisia’s interim President Moncef Marzouki rejected calls demanding he resign his post if he plans to run in elections saying he believes it’s premature to discuss his future plans; state television reported on Sunday.

Marzouki said he will wait until Tunisia’s amended electoral law is issued then conduct the necessary consultations before deciding whether or not to run.

“Who will run the country? Who will run the army and represent Tunisia during the remaining three or four months? Those who demand my resignation are wasting their and my time,” Marzouki was quoted as saying. Marzouki stressed that he will perform his presidential duties until the last moment, calling on the need to organise presidential and legislative elections before September.

A number of political parties demanded Marzouki resign his post if he decides to run in the presidential elections, following a similar decision the President of the Constituent Assembly Mustapha Ben Jafar who announced that he would resign if the Democratic Forum for Labour and Liberties Party nominates him for the upcoming presidential elections.

Meanwhile, Marzouki accused terrorists of waging war against his country. He said previous Tunisian governments failed to estimate the real risks of terrorism in Tunisia.

To combat terrorism, Marzouki said the state should not only focus on security issues but also needs to combat poverty, ignorance, marginalisation and intellectual and ideological underdevelopment, the factors that encourage terrorism.

Source: Al-Sharq