TUNIS (TAP) - Progressive Democratic Party (PDP) Secretary-General Maya Jeribi announced the merger of her party with the Afeq Tounes and Republican Party.

This union will acquire final confirmation during PDP's congress, on March 17-19, 2012, which will be a "unifying congress and open to all the democratic centrist forces that are willing to join this initiative."

During a meeting with the press on Wednesday in Tunis, Mrs. Jeribi announced the formation of a joint committee for the political and logistic preparation of this congress which will be given a new name, will adopt its statutes and its internal rules and elect its leading structures on "democratic and consensual bases."

This initiative, she went on saying, meets the requirements of the present stage and aims "to create political balance" within society as a needed "platform for building democracy in Tunisia and a sine qua condition for the achievement of the principle of power alternation."

In turn, Afeq Tounes Executive Director Yassine Brahim underlined that the political landscape following the National Constituent Assembly (NCA) election encouraged the concerned parties to speed up the creation of a new party which is "open to the largest number of centrist political forces," in preparation of the future electoral events.

Republican Party Representative Youssef Chahed pointed out that the results of the elections, which "were not favourable to the parties of the centre, showed the dispersal of the centrists and their weak influence within society."

Mr. Ahmed Néjib Chebbi, one of PDP founders, asserted that this initiative is a "message of hope" to the centre forces which "participated in the elections scattered manner and divided politically." This project, he said, which is a continuation of the reform process in Tunisia, is part of a design politically opposed to the government, and it aims to establish the principle of alternation to the power.

Regarding the likelihood of Ettajdid Movement's joining this initiative, Mrs. Jeribi specified that the debate is under way at present.