A statement attributed to 53 members of the High Council of State denounced the provisional suspension of Oil Minister Mohamed Aoun by the Administrative Control Authority without mentioning the reasons.
In a joint statement on Friday, the members expressed their astonishment at the speed of appointing someone to run the Ministry of Oil as a replacement for Aoun, noting their fear that the matter had been prepared and arranged in advance by Prime Minister Abdulhamid Dbeibah.
Members of the High Council of State believed that Aoun’s removal was deliberate because of his opposition to controversial, suspicious deals and agreements, according to what was indicated in the statement.
The Council members considered that what they described as “the unprecedented complicity of oversight institutions with the government” is a dangerous matter that deprives these institutions of their assigned oversight role in countering administrative and financial corruption.
The members demanded that the minister be restored to his duties immediately, that the suspension decision by the Administrative Control Authority be withdrawn, and that appropriate legal measures be taken to restore the situation as it was before the suspension.
Last Monday, the head of the Administrative Control Authority, Abdullah Qadirbuh, issued a decree to suspend the Minister of Oil for “reasons related to an investigation into legal violations,” afterwhich on Tuesday, Dbeibah assigned the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Oil and Gas, Khalifa Abdel-Sadiq, to manage the ministry.
