Sousse – Eight of the 15 members of the regional council threaten to resign

SOUSSE: Eight members of the Sousse Regional Council have threatened to suspend the work of the council and resign over what they consider to be "flagrant violations that occurred during the election campaign for members of the National Council of Regions and Districts in the governorate of Sousse". According to a statement published by the Council of Sousse on Sunday and signed by the President of the Council, Noureddine Ben Abdesalam, and eight of the 15 members of the Council, the alleged violations were committed by a number of voters and candidates, "to which the IRIE in Sousse has remained silent." The signatories also deplore "the interference of politically and financially influential external sides, which directly affected the electoral process and the results it produced", the statement said. In response to this statement, Meriem Ben Njima, regional director of the Independent Regional Authority for Elections (IRIE) in Sousse, told TAP "the IRIE has carried out its role within the framework of th e law and with the utmost transparency." It added that the IRIE had been notified Sunday, by means of a report of a challenge concerning the results of the elections to the National Council of Regions and Districts. "The Administrative Court is the only body authorised to examine and rule on this challenge,' she stressed. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse