The Lebanese Cabinet approved on Saturday the Ministerial Statement for the new government, to be presented to the parliament to gain the vote of confidence upcoming week.
Information Minister, Melhem Riachy, relayed to the press the on goings of the session after its conclusion. He said that President of the Republic, Michel Aoun, who chaired the cabinet session in Baabda Palace, underscored the importance of the work of the government to be productive and fast.
President Aoun added “after gaining confidence, we will be working on issuing a new electoral law and preparing necessary measures to hold the elections on due date.”
Prime Minister Saad Hariri, in turn, hoped that the new government would gain confidence so it would “focus on issuing a new electoral law and taking care of daily life issues.”
Riachy went on with the official statement of the Cabinet, pointing out that President Aoun welcomed the statement issued by the Security Council, which condemned Israeli settlements on Palestinian lands. He noted that this was the first time this happened and the media should focus on it.
On the events during the session, Riachy said that the Council of Ministers directly began examining the ministerial statement and made a few comments on some of the items on said draft. Minister Michel Pharaon as well as ministers of the Lebanese Forces objected to the paragraph pertaining to the right of Lebanese citizens to form a resistance, considering that resistance was the sole right of the State.
After lengthy deliberations, the Cabinet approved the ministerial statement.
The Information Minister then answered questions of the press.
When asked about the female quota, Riachy asserted that this matter would be discussed at the House, so would be the matter of the electoral law. To that, he confirmed that the term “proportionality” was not mentioned in the ministerial statement. However, the issue remained open for Parliamentary discussions.
The overall atmosphere of the Cabinet session was positive, according to Riachy. He confirmed the right of any political faction to express its opinion, whether in agreeing or objecting to national matters, as did the LF and Minister Pharaon.
“The ambiance of the session was excellent and reflects good intentions to work hard for the success of the government’s work in upcoming few months,” said the Information Minister.
Riachy declared that the confidence vote sessions would last three days, the timing of which would be designated by House Speaker Nabih Berri between Christmas and New Year holidays.
