Tunis woke bleary eyed on Monday morning to a new week and a new president. Prompted by exit polls suggesting the landslide victory of retired law professor Kais Saied, Tunis residents took to the streets in their thousands to celebrate the unlikely outsider’s victory, signalling what many see as a clear break from past stagnation and a genuine signal of hope in the future.
Whether Mr Saied will be able to fulfil those hopes remains unclear. An independent candidate who cast an isolated figure against the professional teams of advisers that surrounded many of his rivals, the task facing Mr Saied is significant.
Ahead of him lies a faltering economy, endemic unemployment and an international political sphere unsure what to make of the modest law professor from the small coastal town of Béni Khiar, around an hour’s drive from Tunis.
The professor scooped up 72.71% of the votes, the country's electoral commission said in a televised statement on Monday. He garnered 2.7 million votes to one million received by his rival, TV boss Nabil Karoui, who was released from prison on Wednesday where he had been held awaiting trial on charges of tax evasion and money laundering.
“Kais Saied is a man of the law, “ 18-year-old Skanda Mahmoudi said, echoing the thoughts of many. “I like the way he thinks.”
Approximately 90 per cent of Tunisia’s 18 to 25-year-olds voted for Mr Saied, according to Sigma Conseil, compared with 49.2 per cent of those over 60. Tunisia’s youth have been a common theme in Mr Saied’s campaign. The electoral commission said turnout was 55 per cent.
Speaking after the exit polls were released last night, Mr Saied was at pains to thank them specifically "for turning a new page," and promised to try to build "a new Tunisia".
Mr Saied’s mixture of social conservatism and his vision for a significantly more engaged democracy appears to have struck a chord among Tunisia’s young, where unemployment runs as high as 34.83 per cent.
Neither left nor right wing, Mr Saied’s platform defies traditional categorisation. On the one hand, he has argued for the return of the death penalty (currently on moratorium) and argued against former President Essebsi’s proposals for reforming Tunisia’s inheritance laws.
On the other hand, his small team of close advisers is known to include veteran left-winger Rida Mekki, whose political views have earned him the nickname, “Rida Lenin”. Mr Saied has also shown himself to be stridently opposed to the normalisation of relations with Israel, branding any suggestion “high treason” during a recent television debate.
A central plank of Mr Saied’s platform has been the radical overhaul of Tunisia’s democracy, replacing traditional party structures with a “democracy of individuals”. Rather than the current system of directly elected deputies, Mr Saied has championed a three-tiered democratic model. Under his proposals, members of the country’s legislative would be appointed by regional councils, themselves nominated by the country’s small municipal councils whose members would be elected upon the basis of their character, rather than any party or ideological affiliation.
Few doubt Mr Saied’s sincerity in this regard. An interview with this writer some years ago rapidly morphed into a brief lecture on the nature of Tunisia’s democracy, including whiteboard illustrations. However, to achieve the constitutional changes he needs to enact his system, Mr Saied requires a two-thirds majority in Tunisia’s recently elected parliament, where no party was able to secure a definite majority and a government has yet to be formed.
"Given his mandate relative to the incredibly fractured parliament, this is about as good a chance as he's going to get to push through systemic change," Sharan Grewal a visiting fellow at Brookings told The National.
“That said, Saied will be constrained by a constitution that, in spirit, makes the president weaker than the head of the government, (prime minister) and parliament. However, as a constitutional law professor, Saied also knows that the constitution is relatively vague in detailing the duties of each executive, and his popular mandate may allow him to assert his authority.”
However, while Mr Saied’s second round run for the presidency was supported by moderate Islamists, Ennahda, who hold a plurality in parliament, his radical overhaul of the party system is unlikely to be as well received.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?
Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.
They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.
“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.
He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
Company%C2%A0profile
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Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
Stree
Producer: Maddock Films, Jio Movies
Director: Amar Kaushik
Cast: Rajkummar Rao, Shraddha Kapoor, Pankaj Tripathi, Aparshakti Khurana, Abhishek Banerjee
Rating: 3.5
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
AI traffic lights to ease congestion at seven points to Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Street
The seven points are:
Shakhbout bin Sultan Street
Dhafeer Street
Hadbat Al Ghubainah Street (outbound)
Salama bint Butti Street
Al Dhafra Street
Rabdan Street
Umm Yifina Street exit (inbound)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The biog
Favourite book: Men are from Mars Women are from Venus
Favourite travel destination: Ooty, a hill station in South India
Hobbies: Cooking. Biryani, pepper crab are her signature dishes
Favourite place in UAE: Marjan Island
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
Other acts on the Jazz Garden bill
Sharrie Williams
The American singer is hugely respected in blues circles due to her passionate vocals and songwriting. Born and raised in Michigan, Williams began recording and touring as a teenage gospel singer. Her career took off with the blues band The Wiseguys. Such was the acclaim of their live shows that they toured throughout Europe and in Africa. As a solo artist, Williams has also collaborated with the likes of the late Dizzy Gillespie, Van Morrison and Mavis Staples.
Lin Rountree
An accomplished smooth jazz artist who blends his chilled approach with R‘n’B. Trained at the Duke Ellington School of the Arts in Washington, DC, Rountree formed his own band in 2004. He has also recorded with the likes of Kem, Dwele and Conya Doss. He comes to Dubai on the back of his new single Pass The Groove, from his forthcoming 2018 album Stronger Still, which may follow his five previous solo albums in cracking the top 10 of the US jazz charts.
Anita Williams
Dubai-based singer Anita Williams will open the night with a set of covers and swing, jazz and blues standards that made her an in-demand singer across the emirate. The Irish singer has been performing in Dubai since 2008 at venues such as MusicHall and Voda Bar. Her Jazz Garden appearance is career highlight as she will use the event to perform the original song Big Blue Eyes, the single from her debut solo album, due for release soon.
War
Director: Siddharth Anand
Cast: Hrithik Roshan, Tiger Shroff, Ashutosh Rana, Vaani Kapoor
Rating: Two out of five stars
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
UAE v Zimbabwe A, 50 over series
Fixtures
Thursday, Nov 9 - 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
Saturday, Nov 11 – 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
Monday, Nov 13 – 2pm, Dubai International Stadium
Thursday, Nov 16 – 2pm, ICC Academy, Dubai
Saturday, Nov 18 – 9.30am, ICC Academy, Dubai
FIGHT INFO
Men’s 60kg Round 1:
Ahmad Shuja Jamal (AFG) beat Krisada Takhiankliang (THA) - points
Hyan Aljmyah (SYR) beat Akram Alyminee (YEM) - retired Round 1
Ibrahim Bilal (UAE) beat Bhanu Pratap Pandit (IND) - TKO Round 1
Men’s 71kg Round 1:
Seyed Kaveh Soleyman (IRI) beat Abedel Rahman (JOR) - RSC round 3.
Amine Al Moatassime (UAE) walk over Ritiz Puri (NEP)
Company profile: buybackbazaar.com
Name: buybackbazaar.com
Started: January 2018
Founder(s): Pishu Ganglani and Ricky Husaini
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech, micro finance
Initial investment: $1 million
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 268hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: CVT auto
Fuel consumption: 9.5L/100km
On sale: now
Price: from Dh195,000
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
The specs: 2018 Nissan 370Z Nismo
Price, base / as tested: Dh182,178
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
Power: 350hp @ 7,400rpm
Torque: 374Nm @ 5,200rpm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 10.5L / 100km
Honeymoonish
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