Kais Saied: Parliament now means nothing to Tunisians

Tunisian President Kais Saied said the lower voter turnout in the latest round of legislative elections is because “parliament now means nothing” to Tunisians.

“Almost 90% did not participate in the vote, because parliament now means nothing to them,” Saied said.

During his meeting with Prime Minister Najla Bouden at the government palace in the Kasbah, Saied added: “Tunisians refused to participate in the elections despite the change in the method of voting because the past ten years have made parliament an institution that tampered with the state, so this caused this reaction that happened in the first and second rounds of the elections.”

He affirmed that “the turnout rate confirms that Tunisians no longer trust institutions.”

On Monday evening the head of the Independent High Authority for Elections (ISIE), Farouk Bouaskar, announced that the turnout in the second round of the legislative elections amounted to 11.4 per cent, according to the official preliminary results.

READ: Tunisia President blames hatred of Parliament for low turnout in elections