President of Ennahda Shura Council: We will pursue consensus and partnership option with Nidaa Toune

Abdel Karim Al-Harouni President of Ennahda Movement Shura Council has said, “the choice of consensus and partnership between Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes is in the supreme interest of the country, and we will pursue it.”

“The relationship between Nidaa and Ennahda is stronger than a seat in parliament, a ministry or a government. They are two major parties that chose consensus after the 2014 elections,” asserted Al-Harouni in a statement to Anadolu during a symposium organized by Ennahda Movement on Thursday.

Last Sunday, the Electoral Commission in Tunisia announced the victory of the independent candidate Yassin Ayari, who won a seat in the parliament as representative of the Germany constituency after receiving 284 votes, while Nidaa Tounes candidate Faisal Hajj Tayib received 253 votes.

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This partial election aimed to fill the vacancy in the Germany constituency in the parliament after the former deputy of Nidaa Tounes Hatem Al-Farjani was appointed on September as State secretary in charge of economic diplomacy.

After this defeat in the elections, Nidaa Tounes issued a statement announcing its intention to review its alliances with government partners. This decision urged other parties to consider it an attempt to break the partnership with Ennahda Movement because their constituencies did not vote for the candidate of Nidaa Tounes in those elections, according to their claims.

“The Germany elections should not be overthought. These are partial elections abroad, and Ennahda did not take part in them. Besides, it has witnessed a weak participation rate of 2.5 per cent,” said Al-Harouni.

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Al-Harouni ruled out that this issue would affect their consensus and partnership with Nidaa Tounes.

He pointed out that “some parties, which he did not specify, are working against the consensus experience of Ennahda and Nidaa Tounes in order to bring it down and create a new climate and balances based on exclusion and confrontation. There are the parties that oppose the success of the revolution and democracy in Tunisia.”

In a similar context, Al-Harouni said that his country’s government is inclusive and expressed his desire to expand the consensus and include other parties in the government.

Al-Harouni pointed out to the decision of Afek Tounes to drop out of the government and claimed: “I think that it is in the favour of the smaller parties to stay in the government, to have experience in governance and learn how to accept the dissenting party.”