I find the current situation in Tunisia both fascinating and concerning. Fascinating, as the populace seem to have suddenly risen in unison to get rid of their longstanding president. Concerning, as a power and leadership vacuum may emerge which if not quickly filled could destabilise the country.
Equally fascinating is who will emerge as the next leader of Tunisia and its 10 million citizens? It would be somewhat of a surprise if the new leader came from amongst those previously in power, as it is likely that anyone associated with the previous regime will be comprehensively rejected. The last independent to stand in the most recent presidential elections, Ahmed Ibrahim, was reported to have got less than 2% of the vote. Mind you, during his campaign he was not allowed to put up election posters up or hold any kind of meeting. Any positive press coverage of his campaign normally resulted in problems for the journalists concerned.
Any new leader will certainly have their work cut out as they are unlikely to have direct experience of governing Tunisia. The aspirations and expectations of the populace will need to be identified and where realistic satisfied. The previous regime may have been corrupt but that does mean that they were necessarily bad at running everything. It is important that things that worked well under the old regime are not disbanded without putting something better in place. The new leader will need to build a new team that can work effectively together in running the country and managing it through change.
The new leader is likely to have to learn and develop on the job. I just hope that they can learn fast enough to keep the country moving forward to democracy. Time will tell.
By Jon Davies | Righttrackâs Interim International Business Development and Marketing Manager