The Libyan parliament voted by majority, during a closed parliamentary session held in the city of Benghazi, today (Tuesday), to no confidence in Prime Minister Fathi Bashagha and refer him to investigation. The House of Representatives assigned the Minister of Finance, Osama Hammad, to run the duties of the prime minister, in addition to his assumption of the Ministry of Finance. Representative Ali Abu Zariba confirmed that the House of Representatives suspended the Prime Minister from work and referred him to investigation.
Informed sources had reported earlier that Bashagha sent a letter to the deputies informing them of delegating his deputy, Ali al-Qatrani, with all the powers granted to the prime minister, after it was reported that parliament had held a session to question the government he appointed last year and support it, following the accumulation of errors and criticisms against it.
It is noteworthy that the House of Representatives had previously held an accountability session for Bashagha, and asked his ministers about a number of financial files last March.
About a year after its commissioning, the government was subjected to many criticisms following the failure of its attempts to enter the capital, Tripoli, to take over power from the national unity government headed by Abdul Hamid al-Dabaiba, in addition to its inability to finance its projects amid calls for amendments to it.
Last June, parliament agreed to grant the Bashagha government a budget estimated at 89 billion dinars ($18 billion), but it faced a dilemma in financing it due to the refusal of the Central Bank in Tripoli to liquidate this amount.
Libya is experiencing a crisis of strong political conflict between the Bashagha and Dabaiba governments over legitimacy and power, and competition over public revenues, especially oil money.
