Tunis/Tunisia — President Kais Saied said Tuesday during a visit to the ElFouladh steel factory in Menzel Bourguiba, Bizerte governorate, that "the Tunisian state will not sell the steel factory and a legal text will be drafted to allow the company to benefit from the hundreds of thousands of tonnes of scrap scattered everywhere and return to production".
During a meeting with a number of officials at the steelworks, President Saied highlighted "the existence of a person and a network around him, linked to foreign circles, who want to drive this institution into bankruptcy and then sell it off, through the acquisition of scrap and iron tenders, and seek to replace the state in this sector".
The head of state criticised the intention to sell the steel factory in 2017 to a foreign party on the grounds of strategic partnership and the formation of committees to repair the factory, but the real purpose of which is to bankrupt the factory and sabotage it to sell it," he pointed out.
Saied pointed out that the factory's large oven has not been working since 2003, which he believes is aimed at reducing the factory's production until it goes bankrupt. He said that he has files and documents about the misuse and mismanagement of the factory and people's efforts to sell it.
He pointed out the reasons for the dismissal of more than a thousand workers from the factory in 2003 and the failure to settle the status of the real estate belonging to this public institution.
The President of the Republic explained the history of the steelworks, which exported iron to Europe and the United States of America, to the factory managers he met. The factory had also exported industrial oxygen and had made great profits for Tunisia during the construction of the national state, he added.
He stressed that the scrap should be returned to ElFouladh and not be left in the hands of the frivolous, as this factory produced railways, electricity poles and parts of trains.
"We want to build the country with our brains and our wealth, with our hands and our axes, but we will not sell our country to anyone, as those who governed Tunisia in the 1980s and those who governed it after 2011 tried to do," said the Head of State.
The President of the Republic focused on the situation of this national company, particularly in relation to its financial difficulties. President Kaïs Saïed also discussed ways of reinvesting in the company, which is one of the most important national institutions with a long history and has contributed to the development of the national economy.
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During the tour, the Head of State inspected various work and production units of the company, such as the rolling mill sector and the production of steel veins and construction iron.
President Kais Saied met with the factory's staff and listened to their concerns and the difficulties the company is facing.
Founded in 1962, the Tunisian Iron and Steel Company "ElFouladh" started production in 1965.
It is considered to be one of the most important factories in Tunisia in terms of metallurgy, especially steel, as most of Tunisia's railways were made in this factory, which also produces many spare parts used in various sectors.
Over the last two decades, the plant has experienced a significant decline due to many problems.
During the visit, the Head of State was accompanied by the Governor of Bizerte, Samir Abdellaoui, and the company's CEO, Sami Gabtni.
