Tunisian President Kais Saied dismissed his prime minister, Ahmed Hachani, on Wednesday without providing a reason. According to a statement from the president’s office, he appointed social affairs minister Kamel Madouri to take his place.
Hachani, who assumed the position on August 1, 2023, replaced Najla Bouden, who was also dismissed without an official explanation from the president. The new appointee, Madouri, had only been appointed as the minister of social affairs in May.
In a social media post from the president’s office, Saied is seen shaking hands with Madouri. The post was accompanied by a brief announcement stating that the president had “decided to appoint him as the head of the government, succeeding Mr. Ahmed Hachani.”
President Saied was elected democratically in 2019 but executed a comprehensive seizure of power in 2021 and is currently vying for another term in the upcoming elections on October 6. The 66-year-old president declared his candidacy for the election on Monday.
AFP reports that some of his potential opponents are being prevented from running through legal action and imprisonment.
Saied informed journalists that his candidacy is part of “a struggle for freedom and self-determination” aiming to ” establish a new republic”.
As part of Saied’s consolidation of authority, Tunisia’s constitution was revised in 2022 to establish a presidential system in which the parliament holds minimal powers.