450 Dinars for a Soldier and 1,400 for a Colonel: Facilities Guard Demands Parity With the Army
LIBYA – Omar Al-Qamati, a member of the Petroleum Facilities Guard, said personnel are demanding higher salaries in line with their counterparts in the army, arguing they form one of its categories. He pointed to deteriorating social conditions and living standards below the poverty line, and described the increase as a legitimate right, matching other state sectors.
From the Founding Decision to the Cancellation of Affiliation
Speaking on the “Hiwar al-Layla” programme on Libya Al-Ahrar TV, which broadcasts from Turkey and was monitored by Al-Marsad, Al-Qamati said the force was established in 2007 under Decision No. 186 issued by the former General People’s Committee, and that its administrative and financial affiliation was with the National Oil Corporation before the corporation unilaterally cancelled the decision in 2013.
Salaries From 450 to 1,400 Dinars
He said that from 2013 to 2024 salaries remained fixed at 450 dinars for a soldier, 700 dinars for a non-commissioned officer and 1,400 dinars for the highest rank, colonel, while counterparts in Libyan army units received several times those amounts.
He added that after repeated appeals to successive governments, Decision No. 78 of 2024 was issued, with its first article setting Petroleum Facilities Guard salaries in line with army pay. That arrangement continued until Decision No. 428 of 2026 from the Presidency of the Council of Ministers raised army units’ salaries and benefits, but the Finance Ministry excluded the force’s personnel and demanded a separate decision for them — as if they were a third or fourth category in the army, he said.
Paperwork on Dbeibah’s Desk
Al-Qamati criticised what he called manipulation and injustice by sovereign institutions such as the Finance Ministry, and its claim not to know the force’s administrative affiliation, insisting that reflected an administrative failure at the ministry rather than in the prime minister’s decision.
He said the force’s paperwork is currently on the desk of Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, expressing hope it would be examined seriously and the injustice against personnel lifted.
No Field Closures or Production Stops
Al-Qamati stressed that the national interest comes first for personnel, and that their aim is not to shut oil fields or halt oil production, but to have the decision applied to them as it was to all army personnel.
He held the government fully responsible for any escalation that may occur and for the need to avert it, and also held some journalists and elites responsible for the tension and controversy over the force’s affiliation.
Legal Remedies — and the Ball in the Government’s Court
Al-Qamati said he was speaking in a personal capacity and on behalf of personnel across Libya, reiterating their concern for the state’s interest, resorting to protests only to make their voices heard, and their consistent preference for legal and peaceful remedies, dialogue and avoiding escalation. The ball, he said, is now in the government’s court.
