Salih Jaaoda, an independent member of the recently elected General National Congress (GNC), won his seat scoring the highest votes among other non-party candidates. He earned the trust of more than forty thousand voters in his third constituency of Benghazi.

Salih Jaaoda, an independent member of the recently elected General National Congress (GNC), won his seat scoring the highest votes among other non-party candidates. He earned the trust of more than forty thousand voters in his third constituency of Benghazi.

He began his political life in 1970, and during his career, he was one of the most prominent opponents of the Gaddafi regime. He fought fierce battles with that regime, starting with his dismissal from Benghazi University, and participation in the 1976 student demonstrations, where he was banned from leaving the country and put in jail. He was released and left Libya to join the Libyan opposition abroad and continued his struggle, which culminated with his active contribution to the February revolution.

Salih Jaaoda, what do you think of the GNC results and have they met your expectations?

I can’t claim that they have met my expectations, the victory of the National Alliance Forces (headed by Dr. Mahmoud Jibril), for example, came as a surprise. However, it occurred as a result of the election law issued by the National Transitional Council (NTC) and the legal loopholes it contained, especially in relation to the electoral process. I do hope the next election law associated with the constitution will be free of such impurities, so that citizens can vote on a sound and more transparent basis.

Do you think the elected GNC will stick to its jurisdictions in creating a Constitutional Committee or it may succumb to the wishes of the NTC and carry out the process through direct election?

There is no doubt that the GNC will stick to this inherent jurisdiction. What I have noticed through discussion with the rest of the elected colleagues, both individuals and parties, and even with the NTC members, is that they all agree that the NTC decision to select the 60-member Constitutional Committee by direct voting has a clear legal loophole, given in particular that this decision was issued the same night Libyans abroad started voting. I personally believe that this process is legally void in form and substance. However, I am only one of two hundred others and we shall see what we can agree upon.

Don’t you think that through this decision, the NTC tried to satisfy one party at the expense of another?

This is no secret. In one of the media platforms that reflect the opinion of our brother federals, namely the interview with Ziad Doughaim, a leading figure in the Federal Party, he clearly stated that there was an agreement between his political bloc and the NTC to issue that decision. In my opinion, the NTC tried to export this problem along with a host of others to the GNC deliberations, while priority must be given to more important and intricate files.

How would you evaluate the performance of the transitional government and NTC, and the way they are dealing with federalists?

Requesting that the government should be changed into a federal system is a legal issue. In other words, dealing with brother federalists falls within the NTC jurisdictions not the government’s. The NTC approach to address this problem is, in my opinion, not the right one.

I think the government’s performance as a whole was poor. I tried to hold the stick from the middle in a bid to satisfy everyone and this is not an approach to be adopted by an authority entrusted with national concerns in transition stages to pave the way to a post-revolution state. National decisions should have priority, even if they don’t satisfy certain parties.

What are the most important files on the GNC agenda? How, in your opinion, can tangible achievements be realized on the ground?

As far as I am concerned, dealing with the Provisional Constitutional Declaration, including amendments, additions or even abolitions, must be the GNC’s right and jurisdiction. In this way, our silence or postponement of this issue would not be taken as a tacit approval of the issued laws, regulations and constitutional declaration that were not raised for referendum, and about which experts, associations, civil society organizations and others were not consulted.

Then, an acceptance committee comprised of GNC members must be set up, from which sub-committees covering the respective NTC jurisdictions will be created. The acceptance committee will receive missions and documents from the NTC within a period determined by the GNC.

The third and most important issue is to assign a national figure to form the government. This figure must be able to move the country forward and meet the aspirations of the Libyan people during the constitutive period.

All these represent the GNC priorities. Meanwhile, there are no less important files including the reinstatement of national security, both the defense and interior, and addressing the issue of unregulated arming, in addition to examining the corruption file and other vital issues.

Who do you believe is able to lead the Libyan government in the years ahead, and what are the general features of this government?

I honestly have no particular person in mind, but there will be consultations with the other Libyan parties and leaderships to choose a veteran politician capable of responding to the requirements of this stage. We must choose a person who can satisfy the envisaged perceptions set for the position.

The head of government must be a patriot who does not belong to the entourage of the defunct colonel, or has assumed senior positions in such bodies as the General People’s Committee or the so-called General People’s Congress. He must not have any connection to the revolutionary committees or security brigades, and must be free of suspected manipulation of Libyan money and corruption issues. A figure like this will give the impression to the Libyan public and international community in general that the country is moving on the right track.

The name of Mustafa Abu-Shakur, the current Deputy Prime Minister is already under discussion. He is an old friend of mine in the Libyan opposition to which I had the honor of belonging. However, I am not yet sure he is the person I shall recommend because the matter should be thoroughly discussed and coordinated. The choice of government will ultimately be the responsibility of the person agreed upon by the GNC members.

Arm proliferation constitutes the biggest obstacle hindering state reconstruction; how can these weapons be collected and controlled?

Disarming in my opinion starts by closing the file of the wanted persons abroad (the loyalists of the colonel’s and his sons and their close associates), either through taking them in or restraining them in their whereabouts. They must be brought before a fair trial and sentenced in their presence or in absentia. Upon closing this file, the fugitives and displaced persons not on the wanted list will return, and the national reconciliation process will start.

In this way, the armed revolution leaders will trust that Libya no longer faces any threats from abroad, and will ultimately disarm. Thereafter, two ministers for defense and interior should be chosen. They must be patriots with no affiliation to the Gaddafi’s security brigades. Through joint cooperation and coordination with the GNC’s Defense and Local Government Committee, they will start collecting and controlling weapons.

Do you think there is foreign interference currently in Libya, especially by parties with external allegiance? And how do you evaluate the Libyan partisan experience as a whole?

Whoever doesn’t admit that foreign interference in the Libyan affairs does not exist is akin to someone trying to hide the sun through a sieve. There is foreign interference in the political affairs, which has been associated with the foreign military interference imposed on us by the colonel. This is something Libya has historically got used to. But the difference here is how to deal with this interference, and whether a caretaker government is able to achieve full sovereignty for Libya.

With regard to the party experience, it would be unfair to say that there is a partisan experience in Libya, because the oldest political party on Libyan territory is no more than four or five months old. Consequently, it is still too early to judge the Libyan experience in this regard. But, like any society on earth, we should be optimistic about the future of this experience, and the educational entities in general.  Civil society organizations in particular must exert more efforts towards consolidating party culture, because it is one of the pillars of democracy.

Is it possible to see Salih Jaaoda one day wearing the party mantle, or you prefer to stay independent?

It is not likely that you will see me wearing a partisan mantle. This is due to personal as well as objective reasons I admit before you. As for the personal reasons, these are concerned with the fact that I have been working in politics for the past thirty years, in which I have had several experiences with the political entities in the ranks of the opposition. Through those experiences, my political personality, with little party affiliation, was formed. For that reason I find it difficult to identify myself with any party.

As far as the objective reasons are concerned, they are reflected in my practical experience as an independent national person, who played a concordant role among the different national parties in the face of any problems. In this context, I admit that I was a follower of the late national leader Rashid Mansur Kikhia, whom we called the master of all independent opposition figures.

Would you accept the position of the GNC chairman if you were selected, considering in particular that many voices in the Libyan street are demanding that?

I am asked this question almost every day, but I always answer that I initially reject that, for purely objective reasons, with my thanks to all. If we were to succeed in finding an independent person, away from any political disputes or wrangling, such a person would act as a bridge for national reconciliation, away from any possible hassles.

But we all remain under the national service. Should the majority of GNC members believe that I could do something for my country or prevent larger differences among the political spectrum, I would always be at Libya’s disposal.

I do hope the GNC speaker will be selected by consensus, like the decisions to be taken in elected entity. In my opinion, we need more consensus in the coming period, so that our decisions are more effective and meaningful, because we are the bridge Libya will use to cross towards the future, and it is our responsibility to draw up the features of transition from revolution to the state.