ANSD : Lebanon: Ibrahim washes hands of Cabinet issue

TUE 16 - 4 - 2024

Date: Jan 18, 2019
Source: The Daily Star

Lebanon: Ibrahim washes hands of Cabinet issue

_{Timour Azhari| The Daily Star}
BEIRUT: The main mediator of the last serious initiative to solve the government impasse admitted defeat Thursday, placing Cabinet formation on the back burner as Lebanon prepares to host the Arab Economic and Social Development Summit.

General Security chief Abbas Ibrahim put the final nail in the coffin of an initiative he had spearheaded last month to solve the issue of a demand for representation by six Hezbollah-backed Sunni MPs in the next government. “I am no longer concerned with this issue,” Ibrahim said of the Cabinet formation.

His comments came despite a meeting Thursday between Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri and Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Joumblatt at Hariri’s Downtown residence. The two discussed the government formation and political developments, according to a statement from the premier’s office.

Ibrahim’s mediation brought hope last month to forming a government ahead of the holidays by granting the six MPs, who have named themselves the “Consultative Gathering,” representation from President Michel Aoun’s share of five ministers.

But Free Patriotic Movement leader Gebran Bassil reportedly wanted the minister to represent his party rather than the MPs, who wanted the minister to only represent their group. The initiative collapsed thereafter.

Marada Movement leader Sleiman Frangieh Thursday said that Christian leaders refused to grant veto power in the next government to someone “who wants [to use] it against other Christians,” in a clear reference to Bassil.

Bassil and Aoun have sought to obtain 11 ministers in the next government, which equates to veto power with a third plus one in a 30-member government.

“Hezbollah is adamant on the representation of the Consultative Gathering in the government, and we did not say it [Hezbollah] is against the president having the [vetoing] third,” Frangieh said, calling on Hariri to cede “a minister from his share to the Consultative Gathering” to end the deadlock.

Frangieh’s prodding of Bassil came a day after the two shook hands following a meeting of Christian political leaders in Bkirki, the seat of the Maronite Church.

During the meeting, Frangieh butted heads with FPM MP Ziad Aswad. “We did not come here to support a veto power for the president,” Frangieh told Aswad. Frangieh added that “government formation would work if the FPM lets go of one [minister]” from its share.

Hezbollah MP Walid Sukkarieh, one of the six Sunni MPs, told The Daily Star no new initiatives had been proposed to break the government deadlock, which is nearing its eighth full month, and officials were not speaking to the MPs.

“Everyone’s busy with the summit, and I don’t know if something will change afterward, though something must happen because of the country’s situation.”

Sukkarieh said the persistent problems were Hariri’s refusal for Sunnis outside of his Future Movement to be represented, and the FPM’s refusal to cede a minister from its share.

“Someone has to end up compromising to give us the right to representation that we won in the elections, otherwise what’s the solution, new elections?”

Joumblatt earlier Thursday attended a meeting of the Druze Spiritual Council, which he said was unrelated to the meeting the day before of Christian political leaders.

“This meeting has nothing to do with yesterday’s meeting in Bkirki or with some demonstrations of a political nature that emerged from here or there,” he said. Joumblatt said it had been a periodic meeting of the council to follow up on topics related to the community.

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