Ennahda is denying tension between Essebsi and Ghannouchi

Over the past week, there has been an intensification of statements made by prominent Ennahda officials firmly denying tension between their leader, Rashid Al-Ghannouchi, and Tunisian President Beji Caid Essebsi. They believe that there is a systematic campaign targeting Ghannouchi and his party, first and foremost, as well as political stability in the country. “There is an attempt to target the relationship between the movement’s leader and the president,” said Ennahda Secretary-General Ali Al-Arid. “There is also an attempt to highlight the conflicts and tensions within the movement, although there is no such thing. We have a richness of opinions and they are expressed in a free and democratic atmosphere within the party.”

On his part, Ghannouchi intervened in a press conference held in Sfax and stressed that this relationship is considered to be the main foundation on which the state of consensus was built in Tunisia. He also stressed that the opponents of consensus and those calling for polarisation are trying to deal a blow to this relationship in order to weaken it; but it will remain strong because it was and continues to be built on the basis of serving Tunisia’s interests and future.

“The movement is studying the document presented by the prime minister to the parities that signed the Carthage agreement,” he added, “in order to determine the format of the relationship between the government and the parties, as well as how the government can benefit from the suggestions made by these parties and their experts to support the government’s work.” Ennahda’s leader downplayed the recent appointment crisis that caused controversy in Tunisia and within his party. He stated that the appointments were diverse and that, like the other parties, his movement presented candidates, and there are still other appointments on the horizon, and across various levels and departments. He also said it was too early to talk about losing balance, which may be lacking this time, but it can be achieved in future appointments on the basis of what was stated in the Carthage agreement.

Ghannouchi’s remarks in this respect reduce the severity of the positions that accompanied the process of forming the unity government after Ennahda, as well as everyone else, was surprised first by Essebsi’s proposal of national unity, then by the figures who joined the government and then by the issue of appointing conservatives. The head of Ennahda’s political bureau, Noureddine Aerbawi, said in an interview with Alaraby Aljadeed, “There is a media campaign and recent successive headlines talking about the coldness between the two men, and even conflict between them.” However, he stressed that “their relationship is truly being targeted, and Ghannouchi is mainly being targeted.”

Aerbawi noted that the true purpose behind the targeting of this relatively successful experience and the attempt to deal a blow to the most important guarantees ensuring the success and continuation of the experience is the relationship based on mutual trust between the two men. “Those who I will refer to as individuals bothered by the success of the experience and democratic path, as well as by the presence of Islamists in one way or another in the management of the state, are the people behind this campaign.” According to Ghannouchi’s political advisor, Lotfi Zitoun, “Those who are sabotaging the relationship between the two men are people who are bothered by Ennahda’s closeness to the state institutions and the use of its capabilities and people to serve their country, which is governed by a constitution that the party and the rest of the country’s components contributed to its formation.”

People following Tunisian affairs explained a series of meetings convened recently by Essebsi with a number of partisan leaders as looking into finding new initiatives and formulations to support the unity government and expand its political support base. This is especially because he met with figures from parties outside of the government who are not very enthusiastic about allying with Ennahda. The observers also believe that the aim of these meetings is to reach an agreement regarding a republican front or a reformative front that supports national unity which includes parliamentary blocs supporting the government and all parties which signed the Carthage agreement, and possibly other parties and independent figures.

“However,” Aerbawi stressed, “the first person to call for supporting government work was the prime minister himself, who called on the parties that make up the government to consider a formulation to support it.” He likened the idea to “partisan coordination that was present in the past between the parties of the former coalition, but there is now a keenness to find a formulation that overcomes the former coordination mistakes within Habib Essid’s government, and perhaps even change the label for it.” He denied that there is an attempt to exclude Ennahda and look for a new democratic front, as some have claimed, and there is no evidence proving the existence of such a thing. Instead, he said, the goal is to look for a larger base to support the government within the parties which participated in the government, and perhaps even within those which did not.

Some leaks have indicated that Ghannouchi’s intention to run in the next presidential elections may be behind this crisis between the two men, but Aerbawi denied this. He said that this matter was not raised at all within the movement’s institutions and denied that Ghannouchi intends to do this. He believes the goal of spreading this false information is to ruin the relationship between him and the current president.

Since Ennahda officials and leader are trying to defend this relationship, which has been protecting the Tunisian political balance since 2013, despite the fact that Essebsi himself stressed that his relationship with Ghannouchi has remained the same, this puts Ennahda in a constant state of defence.

During an interview with a local newspaper between Essebsi and Ghannouchi, along with other Ennahda officials, the president addressed his guests and reminded them that he does not owe Ennahda anything. “The issue is not personal and the purpose in the policy is the result, and the result is that we are living in a state of stability based on an interim policy that takes into account the interests of the country.”

In response to the Ennahda leader’s statement regarding the size of the movement’s representation in the government, which should match its size in parliament, Essebsi said, “People don’t always get what they want, and I do not believe in the partisan quota policies. We will only do what is in the best interest of Tunisia and what was agreed upon, and every political party is free to say what it wants.”

It is accepted that Essebsi’s recent statements will provoke more claims regarding the nature of this relationship, but they are also, at the same time, exposing how weak the relationship is, despite being behind the Tunisian consensus path and successful so far. In addition to this, Essebsi borrowed a famous Bourguiba phrase: “An interim policy that takes into account the interests of the country.” This means that the relationship between Essebsi and Ghannouchi was imposed by the Tunisian voters and that the president may have wanted another situation.

Ennahda also realises that this alliance is temporary and will inevitably change, and that the time for this may come sooner than expected. However, the party is trying, with all its might, to maintain internal stability to protect the country from serious disruptions that may threaten everyone, including Ennahda, in the regional milieu that can blow-up at any moment.

Translated from Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, 6 October 2016

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