ALGIERS, June 6 (Xinhua) -- Algerian interim President Abdelkader Bensalah on Thursday urged political parties and civil society representatives to launch a dialogue to get out of the political crisis that has been gripping the North African nation since February.
"I'm compelled (by the constitution) to remain in my post until the election of a new president to the country," Bensalah said in a message to the state-run ENTV channel, days after Constitutional Council cancelled the presidential election scheduled for July 4.
"I convene all political parties, civil society representatives, and all those who love Algeria to head toward dialogue before drawing up a road map based on consensual process which paves the way for organizing free and fair presidential elections," he added.
This is the second time Bensalah has called on political parties for dialogue, two months after his first failed after being snubbed by prominent figures and opposition parties.
On June 2, the Constitutional Council decided to cancel the presidential polls after it concluded that the two candidates who filed their bids did not meet the requirements.
Algeria has been plagued by wide-spread protests since Feb. 22, which forced former President Abdelaziz Bouteflika to resign on April 2 and led to cancellation of the presidential election first scheduled for April 18, before demonstrators started to express their objection to holding election on July 4.
Now the demonstrators are demanding the departure of interim President Bensalah and Prime Minister Noureddine Bedoui, saying they belong to the regime of former President Bouteflika.
They want solid guarantees for free and fair elections after a short transitional period, such as six months, led by honest and clean authorities.
Former Foreign Minister Ahmed Taleb Ibrahimi urged the army to initiate a national dialogue with all components of society to draw up a solution that meets the public aspirations.
Algerian Army Chief of Staff Ahmed Gaid Salah also called for a "serious and constructive dialogue" to find quick solution for the crisis within the framework of mutual concessions.
