Shaaban Bilal (Beirut, Cairo)
Yesterday, Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri called on MPs to consult under the roof of parliament in order to elect a new president for the republic. Berri said in a televised speech, “Let us consult under the roof of parliament to reach a national, inclusive president that Lebanon and the Lebanese deserve at this critical moment in its history, under the roof of the constitution and in consultation between everyone without dictating or placing a veto on anyone.”
He added that the presidential entitlement is an “internal constitutional entitlement that has nothing to do with the escalating events in the region.” Berri continued, “On the contrary, we were the first to call before the heads of the committees for all political and parliamentary parties to seize the current moment that the region is going through to complete the presidential entitlement as quickly as possible.”
It is noteworthy that Lebanon has been witnessing a vacancy in the position of the presidency of the republic since the end of October 2022, despite the repeated attempts of the House of Representatives to elect a new president, as these efforts did not succeed due to the failure of the Lebanese political parties to agree on a single candidate.
The Lebanese political analyst and academic, Dr. Bashir Ismat, considered that the presidential entitlement is of special importance, in the current circumstances of Lebanon, and it is no exaggeration to say that the completion of the entitlement will bring about major and positive changes in putting an end to the economic and social collapse, and will allow the establishment of an original government as an alternative to the caretaker government.
Ismat told Al-Ittihad that electing a president for the republic and then a new government with full powers is a vital matter that contributes to restoring order to the paralyzed institutions and confronting the economic and social collapse.
In the same context, former Lebanese parliamentarian Mustafa Alloush believes that talk about the presidency of the republic in Lebanon has become like a scratched record that repeats the same words at the same pace without interruption, stressing that there is no state without a head, and that electing a president for the republic may be a good indicator.
Alloush explained to Al-Ittihad that the catastrophe of the situation in Lebanon goes beyond the issue of electing a president without radical solutions to the issues that are the cause of the collapse of institutions and economic and administrative problems.
essential factor
For his part, Lebanese political researcher Mahmoud Faqih stated that the achievement of the main entitlement does not only affect the economic aspect, but is reflected in the facilities and sectors, especially since it is a basic factor in the regularity of political work and state institutions and part of its management.
In a statement to Al-Ittihad, Faqih attacked the Lebanese parliament, considering that it has not yet fulfilled its duty after the end of the term of former President Michel Aoun, pointing out that there is a constitutional violation in that the Speaker of Parliament has not called for successive sessions until a president of the republic is elected so that the institutions can operate normally, including the parliament itself, so that it has the ability to legislate.
#Lebanese #MPs #call #consultations #roof #parliament #elect #president #country