‘Getting a Taste of His Own Medicine’: Why Kais Saied Arrested a Pro-Regime Lawmaker

Caught Between Calls for His Release and Accusations of getting a taste of his own medicine, a Tunisian Lawmaker Found Himself in the Prisons of President Kais Saied Following Posts Critical of the Regime.

The lawmaker in question is MP Ahmed al-Saidani, who was arrested by police on February 4, 2026, after emerging as a fierce critic of President Saied.

Fellow MP Bilal al-Mashri announced that al-Saidani had been detained by security authorities without providing any explanation, while the authorities themselves have yet to comment on the arrest.

An Outright Violation

A day before his arrest, al-Saidani posted on his Facebook account, criticizing President Saied and calling him “the Supreme Commander of Sewage and Rainwater Drainage.”

The post came in response to the president’s visits to several cities following floods that claimed five lives and caused extensive damage.

“President Saied has apparently decided to officially expand his remit to roads and pipelines; it seems his new title will be Supreme Commander of Sewage and Rainwater Drainage,” al-Saidani wrote.

“Of course, this is not a mockery of His Excellency, nor sarcasm at a national figure who simultaneously acts as mayor, municipal chief, and employee of the sanitation department; we watch these great achievements in astonishment.”

“With this monumental step, His Excellency will surpass reducing his accomplishments to pools, fountains, and gardens, becoming the Supreme Commander of Sanitation and Stormwater Drainage, sparing the green flies from counting every pipe and conduit,” he commented.

Al-Saidani is a member of the parliamentary bloc of the National Sovereign Line, which comprises 15 deputies out of a total of 161, and he regularly posts videos and updates on his Facebook account criticizing government policies and President Saied’s statements.

The first reaction to al-Saidani’s arrest came with the cancellation of the Finance Committee meeting at the Assembly of the Representatives of the People, which had been scheduled for February 5, 2026.

The protest move was announced by Deputy Bilel ElMechri, citing what he described as the “unlawful detention” of his colleague al-Saidani.

In contrast, the National Sovereign Line bloc expressed its outright rejection of the detention of Deputy al-Saidani in a statement on February 5, describing it as a “complete violation of all procedures for detention, investigation and related measures.”

The bloc condemned the authorities responsible for his arrest, calling it a breach of the constitution, which guarantees immunity to a member of the people in their positions, statements, and actions.

The statement held the security and judicial authorities fully responsible for all violations accompanying the detention and for any harassment he might face, calling for “the immediate release of the deputy and the use of legal procedures in any follow-up actions.”

It also placed full responsibility on the House of Representatives to defend Deputy al-Saidani and to halt all forms of assault previously suffered by other deputies in similar incidents.

The Immunity Problem

Amid the legal controversy sparked by the arrest, lawyer Houssam Eddine Atiya said that “Al-Saidani’s detention was based on Article 86 of the Telecommunications Code, which criminalizes harming others or disturbing their comfort via public communications networks.”

Atiya told the official Tunisian News Agency on February 5, 2026, that “the article stipulates a prison sentence ranging from one to two years, and a fine between 100 and 1,000 dinars ($35–$350).”

He confirmed that he accompanied his client throughout the questioning on the evening of February 4, 2026, at the Central Cybercrime Unit of the National Guard in the el Aouina area, noting that “the procedures were conducted under normal conditions.”

The lawyer argued that his client’s detention was unlawful, citing his parliamentary immunity, and suggested that he could be held for 48 hours, renewable once, before being presented to the public prosecutor at the Primary Court of Tunis for an appropriate decision, whether dismissal or referral to the competent court.

Journalist Fahem Boukadous said, “This raises a fundamental question: was this the detention of a deputy or the detention of politics itself?”

He added to Ultra Tunisia on February 5, 2026, “The case goes beyond al-Saidani personally to the principle of freedom in political work.”

Boukadous argued that political disputes, no matter how intense, cannot justify curtailing freedom or normalizing detention and punishment.

He warned against turning political rivalry into a pretext for prosecution, which would empty politics of its substance and transform it into a tool of intimidation and exclusion.

Regarding the debate on parliamentary immunity in al-Saidani’s case, law professor Ayman Zaghdoudi noted that this immunity exists primarily to protect deputies’ freedom of speech and critique without fear of legal repercussions.

In a Facebook post on February 5, Zaghdoudi argued that any infringement on this freedom under any pretext amounts to undermining the legislative authority and weakening its role.

Reacting to the incident, former Foreign Minister Rafik Abdessalem said that Saied will achieve nothing except trials and the opening of prisons and detention centers.

Abdessalem added on Facebook that al-Saidani, a member of the parliament of the Path, was swallowed by the great pit of the coup.

“We have said it and repeat it: dictatorship is like the fire of hell, devouring itself, and neither opponents nor supporters escape it because it is mad, reckless, and without reason or heart,” he continued.

The former minister stressed, “With his dictatorial whims and vengeful tendencies, Saied will leave no stone unturned until the roof collapses on his head and the people expel him in a disgraceful manner, much like his predecessor Zine el Abidine Ben Ali, without any regret.”

The Dark Side

In contrast, former parliamentarian and human rights activist Ziad al-Hashemi said what al-Saidani is facing today is no more than “a slap on the wrist” from the current authority toward one of its own instruments.

Al-Hashemi told Al-Estiklal that “this is also a blow aimed at humiliating the deputy, who has long outshone others in his loyalty to the coup apparatus.”

He stressed that this deputy previously openly incited Saied to execute political opponents and throw them into the depths of prisons, only to now find himself in the same position, tossed into interrogation chambers without anyone defending him or preserving his dignity.

Al-Hashemi clarified his moral and political stance on the incident, rejecting both gloating and sympathy, asserting that al-Saidani may deserve imprisonment as a just punishment, yet it is a jail devoid of the “honor of struggle” or the nobility of resisting tyranny.

He emphasized that the ongoing conflict between al-Saidani and Kais Saied is not a struggle over principles, rights or violated freedoms, nor an uprising against economic failure and systemic corruption, but merely an internal clash over the priorities of the coup agenda and how to implement them.

“This makes both sides two faces of the same coin of political absurdity,” he added, stressing that “those who empower the oppressor are often the first victims.”

Al-Hashemi noted that this surreal episode reflects “the darker side of Kais Saied’s authoritarian regime, which tolerates no partner in power and guarantees no safety even for its own sycophants.”

“By nature, an authoritarian does not stop at suppressing his opponents; he devours even the very allies who helped him consolidate power as soon as they outlive their usefulness or dare to stray from his narrow orbit,” he continued.

Al-Hashemi highlighted that these developments confirm that Tunisia is under a harsh authority that has annulled the law and replaced institutions with shifting loyalties.

“This path will only lead to further fragmentation of the state and deepen the regime’s isolation, awaiting the moment when the chains of this oppression crushing the nation’s chest finally break,” he concluded.