(Author: Libyan Gazette Editorial Staff)
Martin Kobler, Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG), met with the Government of National Accord’s (GNA) State Council (SC) in Tripoli on Thursday for the first time.
In a press conference following his meeting with SC members, Kobler stressed the importance of fully implementing the Libyan Political Agreement (LPA) and reiterated that the international community unanimously supported the LPA.
“I think it is very important that one fully implement the LPA…the Libyan political agreement needs three strong institutions, the Presidency Council, the House of Representatives (HoR) and the State Council.”
Kobler stressed that it was important for these three institutions to come together to serve the Libyan people who are lacking basic necessities such as a stable economy, electricity and adequate healthcare.
He noted that the major challenge facing Libya today is the military situation, which can only be tackled through a united Libya; “I think the enemy Number One of Libya is the national division and the fragmentation.”
During the meeting, Kobler and SC members discussed how to enter into a real structure with the HoR. In addition, Kobler highlighted the importance of politicians coming together from both the SC and HoR with Prime Minister Fayez al-Sarraj to tackle the very urgent problems in Libya.
Kobler expressed his hopes of the establishment of united Libyan army, one that includes forces from the East, West and South of Libya.
Kobler pled with the HoR to to pass the Constitutional Amendment in order to give full strength to the SC, explaining that “the State Council convened now and this was the guideline of the Libyan Political Dialogue on the 10th of March, that the State Council should be formed.”
During the press conference, Kobler also expressed his condolences to the 32 soldiers who lost their lives in the fight against ISIS last week, stating that this tragedy demonstrated how urgent the situation was in Libya to “come to an agreement on how to implement the Libyan Political Agreement and to go the way of peace and prosperity in this country.”
