Prime Minister Abdu Hamid Dbeibah says there are around one million copies of the draft constitution that have been printed since July 29, 2017, as he called on Libyans to read the document to formalize themselves with the charter.
Speaking to a group of activists campaigning for the electoral path under the slogan "All Libyans are concerned," the PM reaffirmed his readiness to hand over authority to a government formed by a newly elected parliament.
He said there are 'specific countries' who do not want the polls to go ahead, especially the parliamentary elections, and that some countries, which he did not mention, have warned them not to dissolve the Presidential Council that emerged from the House of Representatives and the High Council of State.
As the PM put it, there is no need for developing a constitutional basis for elections because the constitution provides the groundwork in this regard.
The PM reiterated his rejection of amending the draft constitution before a referendum, in which voters will approve or reject the document.
"The draft Libyan constitution has been in the drawers for years," said Dbeibah, as he threw into question why it was not presented to the Libyans for a direct public referendum, despite the fact that the House of Representatives had issued the electoral code long ago.
He accused 'some parties' of obstructing the referendum process because they 'dislike this version of the constitution, as he put it.
Dbeibah urged the Libyan people to make themselves heard and say yes or no to the constitution.
"As for the committee sitting abroad and detailing the constitution article by article without referring to the people, this is nonsense... We will not accept this... Before we proceed with amending the constitution, the Libyan people must have their say first."
Dbeibah's remarks come in response to the UN-led meetings held recently in Cairo between the two committees of the House of Representatives and the High Council of State to reach a consensus on the constitutional base and electoral laws.
A closing statement by the HoR and HSC joint committee said that they reached a preliminary agreement on 70% of the articles of the draft constitution.
