By Sami Zaptia.
Tripoli, 12 March 2014:
Asked by the media at today's inaugural press conference for caretaker Prime Minister Abdullah Thinni why was it that his predecessor had run away to Europe in view of a travel ban issued against him, Thinni said that in his view he had not run away.
Thinni said that it was perfectly legitimate and within former Prime Minister Ali Zeidan's right to travel, as guaranteed by Libya's Transitional Constitutional Declaration.
The caretaker Prime Minister said that if former Premier Ali Zeidan had left the country and if there was an arrest warrant against him, he could always return to Libya.
Former Prime Minister Ali Zeidan had been reported as having left Libya last night after the GNC had voted him out of office.
His departure was interpreted by some as hasty and seen as having flouted a travel ban imposed by the Attorney General Abdel Qadar Radwan. The travel ban, directed to the head of the Passports Agency, was issued last night. It said Zeidan was to be prevented from leaving the country until ongoing investigations into financial irregularities had been completed.
The investigations cited by the Attorney General as prompting the travel ban appear to relate to allegations that money was offered to armed groups controlling three oil export terminals in the east of the country to end their blockades.
Ibrahim Jadhran, the self-styled leader of the federalists occupying the ports, accused GNC Energy Committee head Naji Mukhtar and the government of trying to bribe him with LD 30 million to end the blockade in September last year.
Zeidan denied any involvement but Mukhtar admitted giving a number of cheques to one of Jadhran’s brothers Salem. He said that these could not be considered bribery because the accounts held insufficient funds for them to be honoured. One cheque for LD2.5 million was, however, reportedly cashed.