Tunisias parliament passed an amendment to its electoral law on Tuesday that would bar businessman Nabil Karoui, owner of a private TV station critical of the government, from running for president in a vote expected later this year.
The amendment says that Tunisias elections commission must reject candidates who benefit from “charitable associations” or foreign funding during the year before an election.
In April, police stormed the offices of Karouis Nesma television station and took it off the air over accusations it had breached broadcasting rules, which Nesma called a move to silence its voice criticizing the government.
Karoui, who polls show to be in the lead in the presidential campaign, ahead of the prime minister and incumbent president, described parliaments action on Tuesday as “a strong setback to nascent democracy”.
“It is a law dedicated to my exclusion from the race after polls revealed that millions of Tunisians intend to vote for me,” Karoui told Reuters.
Karoui founded the Khalil Tounes Foundation in 2017 to provide aid to the needy in the economically troubled North African country and the charity garnered widespread publicity thanks to coverage by Nesma.
The police raid in April followed the revocation of the Nesma channels license last year by broadcasting regulator HAICA. It fined Nesma for broadcasts the body described as exploiting poor people and promoting Karouis political agenda.
Nesma rejected the fines and said it did not recognize the rulings by HAICA, which it said were motivated by the broadcasters criticism of the government.
The government, a coalition of the secular Tahya Tounes party and the Ennahda party, has denied any responsibility for rulings by the HAICA. Nesma has since resumed broadcasting without a license and police to dRead More – Source
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