Tunisia-Finance committee chief calls on Saied to activate Article 80

The chairman of the finance committee of the House of People’s Representatives, Haikel Mekki, called on the President of the Republic Kais Saied to intervene in the front of this unusual position in which the country finds itself.

“Tunisia faces imminent danger,” Mekki told Shems FM, emphasising that the state is declining further on a daily basis.

It is in this context .he called on the President of the Republic, Kais Saied, to consider activating Article 80. The latter specifies that in the event of an imminent danger endangering the institutions of the nation and the security and the independence of the country and hindering the regular functioning of public powers, the Head of State can take the measures required by this exceptional situation.

“The Mechichi government is under the control of political forces and people,” he added, “arguing that an automatically designated government is incapable of managing public affairs.

What does article 80 of the constitution say?

According to Article 80 “In the event of imminent danger threatening the nation’s institutions or the security or independence of the country, and hampering the normal functioning of the state, the President of the Republic may take any measures necessitated by the exceptional circumstances, after consultation with the Head of Government and the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People and informing the President of the Constitutional Court. The President shall announce the measures in a statement to the people.

The measures shall guarantee, as soon as possible, a return to the normal functioning of state institutions and services. The Assembly of the Representatives of the People shall be deemed to be in a state of continuous session throughout such a period. In this situation, the President of the Republic cannot dissolve the Assembly of the Representatives of the People and a motion of censure against the government cannot be presented.

Thirty days after the entry into force of these measures, and at any time thereafter, the Speaker of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People or thirty of the members thereof shall be entitled to apply to the Constitutional Court with a view to verifying whether or not the circumstances remain exceptional. The Court shall rule upon and publicly issue its decision within a period not exceeding fifteen days. These measures cease to be in force as soon as the circumstances justifying their implementation no longer apply. The President of the Republic shall address a message to the people to this effect.”