Date: Feb 7, 2019 Source: The Daily Star Lebanon: Cabinet commits to CEDRE reforms Hussein Dakroub| The Daily Star BEIRUT: The new Cabinet is set to meet Thursday to endorse its policy statement that commits to CEDRE reforms, paving the way for a Parliament vote of confidence next week, ministerial sources said Wednesday. “The Cabinet will meet [under President Michel Aoun] at Baabda Palace at 12:30 p.m. Thursday to approve the draft policy statement before sending it to Parliament,” Minister of Youth and Sports Mohammad Fneish told The Daily Star. This comes as a 10-member ministerial committee tasked with drafting the government’s policy statement Wednesday wrapped up the final version of the document on which it had agreed the day before, after making amendments to some articles. As widely expected, the Lebanese Forces ministers voiced reservations over the article pertaining to Hezbollah’s arms, one of the contentious issues along with ties with Syria. Fneish, one of three Hezbollah ministers in the new 30-member national unity government and a committee member, said the committee had agreed on all provisions, including key economic and financial reforms recommended at CEDRE. “The next step is now for Speaker Nabih Berri to call for Parliament sessions to debate and ratify the policy statement before the MPs grant a vote of confidence to the government,” Fneish said. He added that a vote of confidence with a wide majority was guaranteed, given that the main political parties are represented in the government. During his weekly meeting with MPs at his Ain al-Tineh residence, Berri said if the Cabinet approved the policy statement Thursday, he would call for parliamentary sessions in the morning and evening next Tuesday and Wednesday to debate the document before granting a vote of confidence to the government. “If the need arises, another session will be held next Friday afternoon because Thursday is a national holiday,” MP Ali Bazzi from Berri’s bloc told reporters after the meeting. Speaking to reporters at the end of the committee’s third and final meeting chaired by Prime Minister Saad Hariri at the Grand Serail, Information Minister Jamal Jarrah said the ministers wrapped up the reading of the final version of the policy statement after making “some minor amendments without touching on substance.” “The atmosphere today was very positive. There was no argument or problem on any article, or any point because we had finished drafting [the document] in a final manner yesterday [Tuesday]. There were reservations by the Lebanese Forces representatives over their demand that the resistance be [mentioned] within the state’s legitimate institutions. But these reservations were not adopted by the committee,” Jarrah said. He added that except for the LF representatives, all the ministers agreed on the formula of the previous policy statement regarding Hezbollah’s arms. Despite reservations voiced by LF ministers at the time, the previous policy statement emphasized that the government would spare no efforts to liberate remaining occupied land, while stressing “the right of the state with its institutions and people to resist Israeli occupation and repulse its attacks.” May Chidiac, minister of state for administrative development, one of the four LF ministers, said her party would not withdraw its ministers from the Cabinet despite differences over Hezbollah’s weapons. “We will oppose from inside [Cabinet] and we will be the voice of conscience in this government,” Chidiac, a committee member, said. Jarrah said the government was committed to implementing a series of key economic and financial reforms that were included in the draft policy statement and were seen crucial to moving forward on accessing more than $11 billion in grants and soft loans pledged by international donors at the CEDRE conference held in Paris last year. He reassured the Lebanese that the government would not increase taxes as part of its plans to reduce spending and increase revenues. “We are committed to reducing the budget deficit by increasing revenues and reducing expenditures. Increasing revenues does not mean increasing taxes. Perhaps the expansion of tax collection increases revenues, as well as increasing the number of taxpayers and improving the economic situation and growth,” Jarrah, who belongs to the Future Movement said. “There are many sources to increase revenues without resorting to taxes. No one mentioned taxation. During all deliberations, the concern was to increase the size of the economy, reduce expenditures and thus reduce the deficit.” He said the policy statement included the restructuring of institutions and ministries. “I prepared a paragraph on the abolition of the Information Ministry and its replacement by the National Media Council.” Asked what are the guarantees that promises contained in the previous policy statement to stop waste of public funds, fight corruption and reduce the budget deficit that had not been fulfilled would be implemented this time, Jarrah said: “We certainly have a difficult economic situation and our budget is suffering from a large deficit. Deficit reduction, economic development, fighting corruption and stopping squandering are no longer a luxury, but an urgent necessity for the government. Today I see sincere intentions, and there is a decision from all parties to save the economic situation.” As part of the needed reforms, the policy statement stipulates that Lebanon would reduce the deficit by 1 percent each year over the next five years. To boost revenues and reduce state spending, the state will begin by reducing the subsidies, estimated at $2 billion annually, to the state-run Electricite du Liban, according to the draft statement. The draft statement stressed that Lebanon has committed “a consistent financial and monetary policy to boost confidence in the national economy and reduce the public debt-to-GDP ratio by increasing the size of the economy and reducing the treasury budget.” While the draft statement reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the declared policy of dissociation from regional conflicts, Jarrah said all the Lebanese agreed on the return of Syrian refugees to safe areas in Syria. Jarrah said the policy statement did not mention the words “political solution” or “voluntary return.” Separately, Aoun met at Baabda Palace with Education Minister Akram Chehayeb and Industry Minister Wael Abu Faour at the request of former MP Walid Joumblatt, the leader of the Progressive Socialist Party. The meeting came a few days after Joumblatt lashed out at both Hariri and Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil, accusing them of violating the Taif Accord on the Cabinet formation. “We conveyed to the president Joumblatt’s greetings and his stress on the positive relationship with the president and the presidency and the meaning of this relationship, be it at the national level, or at the Mount Lebanon level,” Abu Faour said after the meeting. He added that Aoun had played “a big role” in deepening Christian-Druze reconciliation, national unity and coexistence in the mountain region. On tensions between Hariri and Joumblatt, Abu Faour said: “The relationship with Prime Minister Hariri is historic and is not new. There were differences that always happen in politics. An agreement was reached two days ago to stop media exchanges. We can say today that we have entered the phase of direct dialogue.”