After four years as head of the Rahat Municipality, the Mayor of Rahat, Faiz Abu Sahiban, announced his resignation this morning.
Abu Sahiban previously served as the mayor of Rahat between 2008-2013 and now, with his resignation, he will also cease to be a member of the city council, after in the last municipal elections in 2018 he ran only for mayor and not for the city council.
The background to Abu Sahiban’s resignation from the position of mayor, less than a year before the upcoming municipal elections, is rooted in a rotation agreement signed after the 2018 elections between him and his competitor, Ata Abu Medigm, who was appointed deputy mayor following the failure of negotiations to establish a coalition that would support Abu Sahiban’s tenure. Which was supposed to lead at some point to the establishment of a committee called the Great Bedouin City.
“When I was elected mayor,” said Faiz Abu Sahiban to Meint Beer Sheva this morning, “I did not have a coalition. As a result, it was agreed that I would serve for four years and one more month, while Ata Abu Medigm would serve 11 months until the end of the current term as mayor. I sent this morning To the Minister of the Interior my letter of resignation.
“It was not an easy step. I am actually transferring the trust the public gave me to whoever will serve from now until the upcoming elections for the mayor of the city. This is a step I had to take to prevent the appointment of a called committee to manage the city.”
As for his future plans, Abu Sahiban stated that “First of all, I will rest a bit. I am thinking about moving to the business sector. I have not yet decided in which field.”
The resignation of Faiz Abu Sahiban will take effect within 48 hours and this coming Wednesday the city council is expected to convene and approve the election of Ata Abu Medigm as mayor of Rahat.