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January 11th, 2016 
Awake Goy 
nsnbc : Tunisia’s Islamist Ennahda Party has become the biggest single party in Tunisia’s Congress after more lawmakers from the Nidaa Tounes party of President Beji Caid Essebsi handed in their resignation on Monday.
The resignation of additional members of President Essebsi‘s faction and Cabinet comes after allegations that Essebsi is positioning his son so as to implement the return to a hereditary system of power in the country.
The resignation of the lawmakers does not pose an immediate threat to the coalition government that includes the Ennahada (En-Nahda) party.
The resignation of the Nidaa Tounes lawmakers comes as Tunisia is struggling to contain Islamist militants and terrorists.
Another, regional backdrop, is that Tunisia has been playing a crucial role in brokering an accord between the two rivaling Libyan governments, leading to the formation of a national unity government.
Although Tunisia has had its share of problems after eruption of the so-called “Arab Spring” in 2011 and the ouster of Zine Abidine Ben Ali, it has been successful with the relatively peaceful implementation of a new constitution and free elections.
The Nidaa Tounes party was established as secular party after the overthrow of the regime of Zine Abidine Ben Ali in 2011. Division and rivalries between a segment of the party led by the president’s son, Hafedh Caid Essebsi, and another segment led by one of its founders, Mohsen Marzouk, began to escalate in 2015.
The internal rivalry resulted in the resignation of several Nidaa Tounes lawmakers last week. On Monday two more lawmakers handed in their resignation. After a total of 19 resignations the Ennahada party became the one with most seats. The situation leaves the party with 67 lawmakers in the 217-member congress, while Ennahda has 69.
The 19 who resigned, including Marzouk, stated that they plan to form a new party. Marzouk and others who resigned accuse Hafedh Caid Essebsi of attempting to seize control over the party. Those who resigned felt their suspicions substantiated on Sunday when he was appointed to its central committee as legal representative and general secretary. The allegations were rejected by others who did not resign and continue to back Essebsi.
Nidaa Tounes came to power in 2013 when it led protests against the at that time Ennahada-led government. In 2014 it defeated Ennahada in elections and formed a coalition government with Ennahada. It is at this point uncertain whether the new situation will lead to changes in the Cabinet that give more power to Ennahada.
F/AK – nsnbc 11.01.2016
Source Article from http://nsnbc.me/2016/01/11/islamist-ennahada-wins-majority-in-tunisia-after-19-nidaa-tounes-lawmakers-resigned/
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