Libya’s Central Bank Coup Turns to Farce With Plea for Passwords

The plot to wrest control of Libya’s central bank from its embattled governor had everything from an executive order to policemen surrounding the building. What it lacked was one crucial element: the passwords needed to actually take over operations.

As the new leadership backed by one of the OPEC nation’s two rival governments settles into the bank’s waterfront headquarters in the capital، Tripoli، any sense of victory is fleeting. Not only has the competing administration in Libya’s east shut down oil production in response، but the regulator’s new staff are struggling to get payments flowing again.

Give the people the passwords

“I will tell you one thing: give the people the passwords،” Abdel-Fattah Ghaffar، the new interim deputy governor، said Tuesday in a televised briefing meant to reassure the public the bank was in safe hands. The appeal to his ousted predecessor، Sadiq Al-Kabir — whereabouts currently unknown — appeared to fall on deaf ears.

The snafu is the latest twist in a potentially dangerous showdown between Libya’s dueling eastern and western governments over an institution whose control of billions of dollars of oil revenue make it a prize asset.

A long-running feud between Al-Kabir and the western government’s prime minister، Abdul Hamid Dbeibah، erupted into public in mid-August، with the governor ordered out. Al-Kabir — who has support from eastern Libya and was facing criticism for his management of funds — refused to go، prompting a weeklong standoff.

Resolving a liquidity crisis

Finally on Monday، administrators loyal to Dbeibah entered the central bank only to find it abandoned. Now they’re grappling with how to resolve a liquidity crisis and process payments and transactions crucial for the livelihoods of the North African nation’s 6.8 million people.

“How can a simple argument lead you to shut down systems and block people’s salaries?” Ghaffar said. “We want the codes so we can give people their salaries and protect our assets and our investments abroad.”

“Do anything، but don’t prevent people from accessing their money،” the acting deputy governor implored. He pledged to restore bank operations within days.