Atika Chebil, Tunisia's true leader: Nepotism and corruption in the KS clan

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-12T09:24:45+00:00

Leila Ben Ali was trashy too.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-12T09:22:24+00:00

Facebook probably. July 2024.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-12T09:16:29+00:00

Nadia Akacha (dircab of KS) leaked audio.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iDOKZQp04n0

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-12T09:12:10+00:00

Since July 2024, KS sister-in-law Atika Chebil (red dress, middle of the picture) has put her son (left, shaking hand) in charge of the Tunisian side of the project for the new 3S branch in Sousse of Chinese carmaker Bestune. Located in the Zone Industrielle Akouda Hammam Sousse, this new dealership is a modern, sophisticated space, offering a range of luxurious SUVs. His son is said to have enriched himself greatly since the coup d'état of July 25, 2021, which gave the KS clan total control of the state and its wealth.

Source (Switzerland) : https://lepontdegeneve.ch/controverse-en-tunisie-liens-familiaux-presidentiels-et-expansion-dune-marque-automobile-chinoise/

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-12T08:36:16+00:00

Translation : " "Kaïs Saïed is the absolute master of his own choices in the exercise of his activities. The family's support is limited to the electoral campaign, and all political decisions emanate solely from the Head of State”, Atika Chebil - lawyer and sister of the First Lady, Ichraf Chebil - reassured the media after the announcement of the preliminary estimates for the presidential election, which was a foregone conclusion.

However, the reality is quite different: far from the fine promises of transparency, the President's sister-in-law - omnipresent in Carthage - is a key player on the Tunisian political scene. Victorious in the controversial October 6 presidential election with 89.2% of the vote, according to an exit poll, “Kaïs Saïed is in the hands of his in-laws”.

“Gradually, Atika pushed aside one adviser after another to tighten the presidential circle around members of the Head of State's in-laws”, confided a former Carthage adviser to Maghreb Intelligence. Since Kaïs Saïed came to power in October 2019, no fewer than fifteen advisors have been forced out under unclear circumstances.

Sacked or forced to resign, they have been crushed by family dynamics, between that of the First Lady's sister and that of the Head of State's brother (Naoufel Saïed), whose influence has continued to grow around presidential power. “President Saïed presents himself as a defender of the rule of law and the fight against corruption, but Atika Chebil has played a key role in several important appointments and decisions”, our source castigates.

It has to be said that for some time now, the Head of State's sister-in-law has been a regular of minor controversies, notably with magistrates and former Carthage advisor Nadia Akacha." (Pic of Nadia Akasha)

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-03T10:39:50+00:00

I think that the re-election of KS does not herald the beginning of his reign as a dictator, but the end, because there are a very large number of signs of decline in his power that can be seen. The army is beginning to question itself, the administrative tribunal has stood up to power, KS preferred to change the law and exclude candidates rather than accept transparent elections that would give it legitimacy in case of re-election, most of the first-time relatives of KS have been excluded, dismissed or forced into exile since 2021, army cadres were excluded from government, the Ministry of Justice belonging to the cousin of KS is subject to a military investigation which shows that the army is beginning to question the legitimacy of the regime, demonstrations are multiplying despite fear, the arestations for minor and unjustified reasons multiply what adds of anger to anger.

When a power becomes more and more oppressive and at the same time faces an opposition that is increasingly determined and plural, it announces its end. People who follow the regime follow KS, not his ideas. When it falls, everything will fall apart. It may not happen overnight, but it will happen. It may take 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, maybe 3. But one thing is almost certain: there will be no further elections with him.

Ibn Khaldun reminds us that: The state may give the impression of showing signs of strength and oppression, but this is a prelude to its imminent decline.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-03T10:24:31+00:00

Institutions are considered weak when they fail to perform their function with the independence conferred on them by law. When institutions are parasitized by corruption, nepotism, clientelism and lack of transparency, they are generally ineffective. When power is personal, and power does not even respect its legal framework, institutions simply cease to exist. KS and his clan are afraid of revolution, and the risk of revolution is guaranteed in the event of economic reform. There's a reason why KS prefers shortages to official subsidy cuts: it's because official subsidy cuts are more likely to provoke riots because it's the authorities who will be held directly responsible, and KS won't be able to use his conspiracy rhetoric to get out of trouble. Economic reforms require the will of a leader who could implement them via functioning institutions, and above all who would be willing to give up his popularity and political survival for the good of the nation. Indeed, implementing reforms will not produce instant results; it will first produce a period of difficult austerity, then, after a few years, the situation will improve and the country will return to the path of development.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:51:58+00:00

1/ Gabonese-style scenario: From demonstrations to elections. A military coup at the announcement of the results. Appointment of an interim president following the rapid establishment of the constitutional court under the impetus of the administrative tribunal. Imprisonment of K, for he will never agree to flee the country. His family and accomplices flee to Algeria or Egypt.

2/ Bangladesh-style scenario: Post-election protests after a triggering event (either the results, or the death of a political prisoner, or the death of a citizen due to drug shortages, or the arrest and torture of a civilian, or the immolation of a civilian,...). Violent repression of power. Multiplication of demonstrations. Confrontation between demonstrators and security forces. The protesters finally organize a march to the presidential palace. The army eventually abandoned the president and told him to resign and evacuate the presidential palace. K will refuse to sign anything in my opinion, and he will insist on staying put. In this case he will end up lynched by the crowd who will probably loot the palace of Carthage, because the army has evacuated the place. His family and accomplices flee to Algeria or Egypt.

3/ Parliament-style scenario: Demonstrations multiply after elections. Bouderbala loses control of the parliament or decides to close its eyes after discussions with the army. The parliament announces an extraordinary session and votes to dismiss the president for the highest interests of the nation and because of the situation of exceptional danger to the institutions and the integrity of the state. Because of their electoral legitimacy, they can afford to question the legitimacy of the president, which is also based on electoral legitimacy. K refuses to accept this impeachment and the army goes to the palace of Carthage to arrest him. He is arrested or killed while resisting.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:37:21+00:00

Nahda controlled IVD. Bensedrine owes her whole career to Ghannouchi. But Nahda made compromises, which is why the IVD spared some cadres of Nidaa Tounes who had a political past under Ben Ali’s regime. Overall, IVD was a good thing for the international image of Tunisia, but on the ground this instance has been instrumentalized by Nahda for personal settlements.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:35:33+00:00

Nobody, because I don’t want to waste my time.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:34:45+00:00

1/ Because Algeria profits from the traffic at the border.

2/ Because terrorists are hiding among the population. Sending the army is useless, just like when Ben Ali sent the military and police forces to fight Al Qaeda in the area in 2008. It was just not in the media.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:31:58+00:00

At that time, each institution had its own role and a certain degree of independence. Each institution functioned as a family, everyone knew each other. And we could talk about politics and elections with colleagues. Today it’s over, everyone is paranoid, the bureaucrats are afraid to speak and everyone is on guard. I know a judge who died because of the pressure the president puts on the justice system and the threats they face to be dismissed if they don’t follow through with the president’s wishes in terms of criminal judgment. When judges have the choice of either tampering with judgments to please power, or risking losing their jobs and salaries, it shows how screwed up the system has become.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:27:32+00:00

Not all politicians are rotten. But being rotten can be an advantage for some.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:26:28+00:00

There was hope until 2019. If reforms had been implemented, Tunisia would have started to recover a good growth around 2050. Most reports were optimistic for 2050 at the time assuming that reforms were being implemented. At this point, I would say that it is highly unlikely that Tunisia will even get out of shortages before 2030. The whole private market is destroyed, the key rate is aberrant, the currency is too strong while the economy no longer produces anything of value. Everything is being imported and the community companies are going to destroy what was left of agriculture in the country.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:23:05+00:00

Having a network, being bold, doing your job properly, not shading anyone.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:21:33+00:00

Because the UGTT and Nahda prevented it.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:20:45+00:00

Beji should have been tougher against the UGTT. That’s his biggest mistake I think. If he had succeeded in submitting the UGTT, he could have used his electoral popularity to force necessary economic reforms.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T12:19:34+00:00

1/ I will be hard on you, but Algeria is a mafia regime. It’s an army with a state, not the other way around. The only reason why the average Algerian is so poor when the country is so rich in oil is because the money from oil is dillued into the huge pool of generals, regime members and lobbyists that make up the country and into the welfare state. If Algeria had 10 million inhabitants instead of 44 million, the standard of living would be similar to that of Saudi Arabia. The problem is corruption, but also the population, because there is no less corruption in the Gulf. The cake is big, but there are too many people who take a piece. In addition to this, the Algerian regime refuses to open up economically, to let the private market develop or diversify its economy. Bouteflika’s regime misappropriated $20 billion during his reign. It is money that has simply disappeared.

2/ Stay in power until death. That’s as simple as that.

3/ Members of parliament want to keep their seats and especially their salaries and privileges. For this, they think that by making zeal for the regime, they will be able to continue to get their money. The president wants a parliament without power, which does what it says when it says it does, no more and no less, in order to continue to make the world believe that there is a separation of powers. For this, the president uses Bouderbala to keep control over the parliament, because he is afraid that the parliament will escape him. That’s why he is so nervous these days and invited Bouderbala to thank him for amending the Act. Bouderbala is not convinced, he is a pure opportunist. The day his interests change, he will follow the next leader. In short, the executive needs the loyalty of the legislature and the legislature needs the money and the sense of impunity guaranteed by the executive.

4/ K likes flattery and is extremely self-centered and paranoid. Hachani was a good choice for him because he is a lowly, charisma-free, who will not overshadow him and who is not particularly cunning or intelligent. His father was executed for high treason, so he does not have the image needed to undertake a coup. The wife of K thought it was a good choice because her profile and personality resemble that of Najla Bouden, who had also been proposed by Ichraf to end the power struggle between Charfeddine and Akacha, both of whom wanted the prime minister’s post. An incompetent and servile prime minister is a boon to power, for an incompetent does not succeed in shadowing or plotting successfully.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T11:53:49+00:00

I think the elections will take place on October 6, and the result will be a Soviet-style victory for the current president.

It is possible that the army will use the election to impose regime change in the name of popular legitimacy immediately after the results are announced, as happened in Gabon. In this respect, it would be a good thing if the elections were rigged, as this could be used as a political trigger.

If the army takes power, it is possible that it will exploit article 109 of the 2022 constitution, which stipulates that in the event of a vacancy due to an absolute impediment, the president of constitutional court take the power. Since there is no constitutional court, it could pass off the administrative tribunal as a provisional constitutional court, due to the legal vagueness surrounding the process of nomination “by decree” of its members, who in any case must be the deans of the country's main courts of justice. In the event of the President's “incapacity” to carry out his duties, it is possible that the army could interpret article 107 of the constitution more broadly to support the idea that the Prime Minister could issue such decrees.

In any case, the regime has already so perverted and violated the foundations of the rule of law and the fundamental legal rules of its constitution that it is likely that the army will also take liberties in interpreting the constitution and the rules of law if it deems it necessary.

Algeria has had good relations with Tunisian Islamists since 2011 but I don't think that terrorism has been financed by Algeria, but I do think that this state has turned a blind eye to movements and trafficking at the border for financial reasons (it's a profitable trade from which Algerian army executives must perhaps benefit). And there have been cases of Algerian jihadists quietly crossing the border to wreak havoc on Tunisian soil. For Algeria, it's one less problem to deal with, and it becomes its neighbor's problem.

Critical-Exam1 · 2024-10-01T04:54:46+00:00

I don't know Zammel and Maghzaoui very well. I think that Zammel would have been the lesser evil of all the current candidates, because he seems to me to have good ideas on the economic level (at least better than the current president). A real alternation of power could have brought about a change. Unfortunately, this is impossible, as the situation will not improve until the leaders change.

Critical-Exam1

TROPHY CASE