His name hit the headlines during the Constituent Assembly elections in October 2011 when he poured hefty sums of money into his electoral campaign. The level of electoral campaigning and marketing was unprecedented for Tunisia where the one and only candidate hardly even bothered to campaign. Riahi brought a lively and vibrant tone into the electoral scene but his Free Patriotic Union (UPL) failed to get a single seat (which shows that financial clout could hardly buy Tunisians' votes despite the ubiquitous claims that Ennahda "bought" votes using petrodollars).
But Riahi did not retreat from the public view. He used his fortune to acquire the immensely popular Club Africain, all the while continuing a political route. Last Saturday, however, Riahi received a note demanding that he quit his post as the CA head due to some legal provision that forbids politicians from occupying both political and sport positions.
Business News TN says that Riahi is not the only politician at the helm of a sport club. They cite Democratic Alliance member Mehdi ben Gharbia who owns Club Athletique Bizertin, deputy Mahmoud Baroudi who is also the spokesman of Grombalia Sport and Club Sportif de Hammam-Lif. chief Adel Daadaa, who is Rached Ghannouchi's counsellor.
This article suggests that the move could be aimed at neutralizing Riahi politically ahead of the elections and particularly target him after he unleashed criticism against President Marzouki following the political crisis after Belaid's assassination. Back then, Riahi sarcastically suggested that the incumbent president occupy himself with writing memoirs than politics.
However, the ban on occupying both sport and political posts was suspended, following the controversy, which underscores again that this government is responsive to criticism after all.
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