In a move widely condemned as un-democratic, Tunisian President Kais Saied announced on Wednesday that he would dissolve municipal councils that were set up after the 2011 revolution.

Instead, they will be replaced by "special delegations" that would be appointed by the president himself. 

The announcement comes just months ahead of municipal elections, a system implemented to "de-centralize power and enhance democracy."

"We will discuss a decree to dissolve municipalities and replace them by special councils," he said in a video of a cabinet meeting that was posted online.

Dans cette vidéo publiée après minuit, la @TnPresidency annonce le texte relatif à la convocation du parlement, le texte relatif à l'élection de la 2nd chambre législ. et la dissolution de tous les conseils municipaux tunisiens élus+leur remplacement par des délégations nommées. pic.twitter.com/MQnzZzGyJB

— 10Millions2Po (@10Millions2Po) March 9, 2023

Saied said existing municipalities acted like "states within a state" and were "not neutral."

He said the new councils would be elected, but under new rules that he plans to write himself. 

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In the last municipal elections held in 2018, about 30% of councils were won by Ennahda, an Islamist party and staunch critic of President Saied. 

Political party members have a well-known past of engaging in criminal activities. While they were in power in the first year that followed the uprisings of 2011, they pushed for a law that would downgrade women's political status compared to men.

Elected municipal councils were introduced in the 2014 constitution in an effort to de-centralize power. 

Last year, Saied replaced the 2014 constitution with one he wrote himself and passed in a referendum with a 30.5% turnout of those with the right to vote.

Useful map detailing the results of the #municipal #elections in #Tunisia. #Ennahda dominating in #southern provinces. #Tunisie #municipales #TnMunicipales2018 #TnElec2018 pic.twitter.com/f2H4whxp84

— Anne Wolf (@AnneMWolf) May 8, 2018

Since 2021, he has implemented a string of controversial political reforms, in a bid to strengthen the presidency, including the move to rule by decree and suspending the Parliament.

In Tunisia's former constitution, the previous legislature had broad powers under the mixed presidential-parliamentary system, allowing individuals to run as candidates of political parties. 

But the new constitution prevents individuals from doing so and undermining the visibility of political parties - including the opposition.

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The President justified his decision that the Tunisian country was still in the grip of a self-serving political elite, aiming to further weaken the country despite it already being in a financial crisis. 

The uprisings failed to deliver the promise of genuine and authentic democracy to the Tunisian people because the West had considerable influence in the post-revolutionary transition phase of the country.

In February, authorities detained several opposition figures of Saied's government, including Ennahda members whom the President labeled as criminals, traitors, and terrorists due to their ties with terrorist groups.

Around 6,000 Tunisians have joined groups in Syria and Iraq, after which a parliamentary panel was created in 2017 to investigate the organizations accountable for recruiting the members. Leftist groups pointed fingers at the Ennahda party and Larayedh for committing the crime. 

However, Ennahda rejected all claims and labeled the ruling as an effort to conceal “the catastrophic loss of the election” and as a political attack on Kais Saied’s opponent.

Another crucial factor, which has led to the demise of municipal councils, is that the lack of funds made it nearly impossible to effect any concrete political impact. 

Most political parties announced a nationwide boycott of parliamentary elections in December and January to protest President Saied's electoral reform. 

For this reason, the local councils were the least effective branch of government where they retained a presence.

Read more: Hundreds of Tunisians protest Saied's measures for 2nd day