ALGIERS, Dec. 13-- The newly elected President of Algeria Abdelmadjid Tebboune on Friday said he committed to open dialogue with the protest movement claiming change, saying there will be "no revenge, nor exclusion and marginalization during his term." Tebboune, who was announced to be the eighth president of Algeria earlier on Friday, told a press conference that he has "a number of priorities to tackle at the beginning of his term as president, namely opening dialogue with the different components of the protest movement" rocking the country since Feb. 22. In this regard, Tebboune noted that his program "will make radical change, as it sets rupture with the old system of governance a main goal." He revealed that "one of his priorities is to craft a new constitution and setting it for popular referendum," adding that a wide scale dialogue with all components of the society, including academics, economists, politicians, civil society and intellectuals, will be in a bid to draw a draft constitution for the new state of Algeria. Tebboune added that a new election law will be crafted, which likely be followed by parliamentary and local elections. The new president further said that he is "committed to boost lagging economy by slowing down the erosion of reserves, principally by tracking down inflated invoices with the aim of curbing the import bill." Tebboune also vowed to "continue combating corruption and corrupted people," saying "I'm committed also to retrieve the huge public funds that were looted by former government officials and businessmen" during the era of ousted President Bouteflika. |