22 Oct 2021; MEMO: Tunisian President Kais Saied yesterday sacked the Governor of Gafsa, Sami El-Ghabi, according to an official statement.
"The President of the Republic, Kais Saied, issued on Thursday, a presidential order to end Sami El-Ghabi's tasks as the governor of Gafsa," the presidency said in a statement.
This decision comes as a continuation of a series of dismissals taken by Saied against a number of governors in the country since 25 July, including the Governor of Monastir Akram Al-Sebri, the Governor of Medenine Habib Chouat, the Governor of Zaghouan Saleh Matrawi, the Governor of Gabes Mongi Thamer, and governor of Bizerte Mohamed Koueider.
Saied has held nearly total power since 25 July when he sacked the prime minister, suspended parliament and assumed executive authority citing a national emergency.
He appointed a prime minister on 29 September and a government has since been formed.
The majority of the country's political parties slammed the move as a "coup against the constitution" and the achievements of the 2011 revolution. Critics say Saied's decisions have strengthened the powers of the presidency at the expense of parliament and the government, and that he aims to transform the country's government into a presidential system.
On more than one occasion, Saied, who began a five-year presidential term in 2019, said that his exceptional decisions are not a coup, but rather measures within the framework of the constitution to protect the state from "imminent danger".
