The General People's Committee (, ''al-lajna ash-sha'biyya al-'āmma''), often abbreviated as the GPCO, was the executive branch of the government of

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

, during the existence of

Muammar Gaddafi Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi (20 October 2011) was a Libyan military officer, revolutionary, politician and political theorist who ruled Libya from 1969 until Killing of Muammar Gaddafi, his assassination by Libyan Anti-Gaddafi ...

's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. It served as the intermediary between the masses and government leadership and was composed of the

Secretary-General Secretary is a title often used in organizations to indicate a person having a certain amount of authority, Power (social and political), power, or importance in the organization. Secretaries announce important events and communicate to the org ...

and twenty secretaries of some 600 local Basic People's Congresses (BPC), GPCO members were elected by the country's

parliament In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, the General People's Congress (GPC), and had no fixed terms. The GPCO was the rough equivalent of the cabinet in many

republic A republic, based on the Latin phrase ''res publica'' ('public affair' or 'people's affair'), is a State (polity), state in which Power (social and political), political power rests with the public (people), typically through their Representat ...

s, constitutional democracies, and constitutional monarchies, as well as the Executive Board of the Libya's own subsequent

National Transitional Council The National Transitional Council (NTC) was a transitional government established in the 2011 Libyan civil war. After rebel forces overthrew the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya of Muammar Gaddafi in August 2011, the NTC governed Libya for a further ...

, which ultimately replaced the ''jamahiriya'' as Libya's dominant force in 2011, as a result of the

First Libyan Civil War The Libyan civil war, also known as the First Libyan Civil War and Libyan Revolution, was an armed conflict in 2011 in the North African country of Libya that was fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and rebel groups that were ...

. The GPCO was scattered by the fall of Tripoli, with some of its members fleeing into exile, some becoming

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

, and some remaining in Libya.

History

In March 1977, the General People's Congress (GPC) adopted the " Declaration on the Establishment of the Authority of the People" and proclaimed the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya. The people exercise authority through the people's committees, people's congresses, professional associations, and the GPC. Elections were direct, and all voting consisted of a show of hands or a division into yea-or-nay camps. Suffrage and committee or congress membership were open to all Libyan citizens eighteen years of age or older in good legal and political standing. In theory, the residents of each zone elected their own people's committee. Similarly, the residents of each branch

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

elected their own Basic People's Congress (BPC). The BPC members then elected a chairman and a five-member branch or municipal people's committee. The General People's Congress was made up of the chairmen of the BPC, the branch and municipal people's committees, and representatives of the people's committees for unions, professional associations and student unions. The GPCO replaced the former Council of Ministers, its members being referred to as secretaries rather than ministers.

Legislative A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of the people therein. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers ...

and executive authority was vested in the GPC. This body, however, delegated most important authority to its general secretary and General Secretariat and to the GPCO.

, as general secretary of the GPC, remained primary policy maker. As a part of a decentralisation program undertaken during September 1988, all GPCO secretariats, except those responsible for

foreign policy Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...

and information, were relocated away from Tripoli. In early 1993 it was announced that the Secretariat for Foreign Liaison and International Cooperation was to be moved to Ra's Lanuf.

Competences of GPCO

# Implement laws and resolutions issued by the GPC ( مؤتمر الشعب العام ) formulated by the BPC ( المؤتمرات شعبية اساسية ). # Prepare project proposals and budgets for the General Planning Council. # Present plans for public projects to the General Planning Council. # Propose bills, as well as other topics presented to the BPCs. # Implement and manage strategic projects. # Monitor BPC committees, institutions and public companies ensuring accordance to BPC decisions. # Supervise the Great Manmade River project and other investments. # Issue decisions on organizational structures for the government. # Encourage foreign investment in Libya and monitor investments abroad. # Adopt curriculum. # Issue regulations governing contract work financed from the budget. # Issue and regulate laws as stipulated by the

jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to enact justice. In federations like the United States, the concept of jurisdiction applies at multiple level ...

. # Establish, consolidate and organize institutions, companies and

public works Public works are a broad category of infrastructure projects, financed and procured by a government body for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community. They include public buildings ( municipal buildings, ...

. # Operational cost of the GPC or BPC.

Responsibilities

# Implement laws and resolutions issued by the BPCs drafted in the GPC. # Invitation to GPCO meetings and monitor implementation. # Propose bills and other topics presented to the GPCO for approval. # Conclude

treaties A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between sovereign states and/or international organizations that is governed by international law. A treaty may also be known as an international agreement, protocol, covenant, convention ...

, conventions and the international loans (ratified by the BPC). # Adopt minutes for joint committee meetings, and address questions of international cooperation. # Name Trustees and BPC members and agencies; public corporations and general assembly members of public companies as determined by executive regulations. # Authorize international institutions and public companies contracting with foreign companies. # Investigate the popular committees, and punish them in accordance with existing legislation. # Work assigned by the GPC, secretariat of the GPCO, or the GPCO for the traditional.

GPCO Ministries

By the end of the Gaddafi era, the General People's Committee consisted of the following sub-agencies, led by a cabinet secretary:Rashid Khashana, Swiss Info: 1 February 2007

Notes

References

{{Libya topics Government of Libya Political history of Libya