By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Tunisian President Kais Saied on Thursday turned down what he termed “foreign diktats” from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) currently in aborted talks for bailout package with the heavily indebted country.
“Regarding the IMF, foreign diktats that will lead to more poverty are unacceptable,” Saied told reporters in the coastal city of Monastir.
The government had reached an agreement mid-October for a nearly $2 billion package from the IMF, but the deal has not been approved by the bank’s board.
The IMF has pushed Tunisia to remove state subsidies on basic goods, particularly fuel.
“It’s true that some people who don’t need subsidies are benefitting from them, but we can find other ways to make sure they get to those who deserve them,” Saied said.
Asked what the alternatives are to a deal, Saied said Tunisians should “work on our own”.
“Social peace is not a game,” he added.
Tunisians have endured years of mounting economic pain, made worse by the coronavirus pandemic and the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The IMF was expected to approve a bailout deal on December 19, but that was delayed pending a Tunisian budget, which has since passed, and a law to stop banks charging excessive interest.
World Bank suspended new lending to Tunisia last month after Saied sparked accusations of racism with incendiary comments against migrants from sub-Saharan Africa.
A World Bank official said that meant the IMF talks, partly dependent on funding from the Bank, could now be pushed further down the line and that the IMF would face pressure not to approve a bailout.
The IMF has also called for legislation to restructure more than 100 state-owned firms.
Saied has seized far-reaching powers since sacking the government in July 2021, later dissolving parliament and pushing through a constitution replacing the one approved in 2014 following the country’s Arab Spring revolution.
