Reactions varied among Algerian parties following the call of the newly elected Algerian President for a second term, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, for a “comprehensive national dialogue to consolidate democratic gains,” with some welcoming and confirming participation, while others set conditions for that.
The first secretary of the opposition Socialist Forces Front party, Youssef Ouchich, welcomed Tebboune’s invitation, but he made it clear, in a press conference dedicated to commenting on the results of the presidential elections in which he came in third, that his party’s participation in any dialogue with the authorities would not take place before taking what he called “appeasement measures”, through “releasing political prisoners and prisoners of conscience, and lifting restrictions on party, union and human rights activities.”
He said that opening a dialogue at this stage, “in which the country is exposed to a set of regional and international security risks and challenges, is a positive thing, but it requires enabling activists and parties to express themselves freely in public spaces and in the media.”
Despite his criticism of what he called “violations that affected the electoral process” and his demand for “opening an investigation into the inflated turnout and fraud that occurred in some voting centers, as well as dissolving the National Independent Election Authority,” the first secretary of the FAFAS party, which represents the modernist progressive national movement, called for the organization of early general elections to elect local and state councils, in addition to renewing parliament, by the end of the first half of next year, at the latest, and conducting a review of the party law and the municipal and state laws, which are the conditions that the party sets for engaging in any dialogue effort led by the authorities.
“Left Workers” talks about “the essence of true democracy”
In turn, the Workers’ Party, which withdrew from the presidential race, welcomed the national dialogue, but made it clear in statement He posted on his official Facebook page, “We believe that this dialogue should include all the Algerian people without exclusion or alienation in a free and democratic national debate so that at the end of the debate it can determine the form and content of the institutions and tools it needs to exercise its full sovereignty. This is the essence of true democracy.”
In a joint statement, Tebboune denounces the “contradiction” and “ambiguity” of the announcement of the presidential election results
The three candidates for the Algerian presidential elections denounced in a joint statement on Sunday evening what they called the ambiguity that accompanied the announcement of the results by the head of the National Independent Election Authority, Mohamed Charfi.
The party linked the success of such a discussion to “lifting all restrictions on the exercise of freedom of political expression and freedom of the press, and thus actual political and media openness and ending all criminalization of the exercise of democratic freedoms.”
“Government Belt” Parties Renew Support for President’s Project
In contrast, a number of parties forming the government belt welcomed President Tebboune’s call for an “open dialogue in which everyone participates.”
Al-Hajj Belghouthi, a leader in the Future Front party, which supported Tebboune in his campaign during the last presidential elections, said that “the regional and international circumstances, especially on the country’s southern and eastern borders and in the Sahel and Sahara region, require the active forces to strengthen the internal front and rally around the president-elect’s program, to complete the path of political, social and economic reforms.”
He added in a statement to Alhurra, “The Algerian citizen is waiting for the president to fulfill his electoral promises, especially in the economic aspect, which will have a positive impact on the social situation.”
“An opportunity to strengthen democracy”
Political analyst Mustafa Bourzama sees Tebboune’s re-election as a “real opportunity to continue the reform workshops.”
He added in an interview with Alhurra that “any call for dialogue between the various components of the political and societal arena is a real opportunity to consolidate the values of democratic action.”
Bourzama did not rule out the possibility of including a larger number of parties in the next government, expecting that the government would be offered to the Movement for a Peaceful Society and the Socialist Forces Front, which presented candidates for the last presidential elections, within the framework of participatory democracy.
Postponement of government resignation
Immediately after Tebboune took the constitutional oath, Algerian Prime Minister Noureddine Bedoui submitted the resignation of his government to the elected president, but the latter “Order to postpone decision…and continuing work to ensure school, university, vocational and social entry, and preparing the draft finance law for the year 2025, before submitting it to Parliament,” as the President stressed “that these urgent files require current ministers to be aware of the situation.”
After taking the constitutional oath on Tuesday, Tebboune called for a “comprehensive national dialogue in which all the active forces in society participate, including political parties, civil society organizations, and youth, to embody true democracy, far from slogans.”
Algerian President-elect during his swearing-in
In a speech to Algerians, Tebboune reiterated his commitment to fulfilling the promises he made during the presidential election campaign, where he pledged to achieve self-sufficiency in durum wheat, barley and corn by the end of 2026, adding, “We have achieved leaps in agricultural production, especially in strategic crops, through an agricultural map studied according to scientific standards and by continuing to build international partnerships in the agricultural sector with friendly and sister countries that are pioneers in strategic sectors such as milk and grains,” with the aim of “reducing imports to their lowest levels,” also referring to the expansion of irrigated areas by about one million hectares.
The president-elect also pledged to create 450,000 new jobs over the next five years, targeting 20,000 start-ups, compared to only around 8,000 currently.
On the same occasion, Tebboune referred to the recovery of the Algerian economy during his first term, citing reports from international financial and monetary institutions that described the country’s growth rates as positive.
He stressed that Algeria aims to maintain a growth rate of between 3.8 and 3.9 percent during the next phase, with the goal of reaching a gross national income of $400 billion, and enhancing the presence of exports outside of hydrocarbons, by setting a ceiling of $15 billion for exports of various services and products outside the oil sector.
In addition, Commit The Algerian president promised to build two million new housing units before the end of his second term, noting that the country has reached 100 percent integration of locally-made building materials into construction.
