Berri Voices Optimism over Cabinet Formation Process, Praises Hariri's Endeavors
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Speaker Nabih Berri expressed optimism on Monday over the ongoing contacts to form a new cabinet between the political foes, hailing the efforts exerted by head of al-Mustaqbal movement former Prime Minister Saad Hariri.
“Ex-PM Saad Hariri isn't only cooperating with endeavors to form an all-embracing cabinet but also cooperating to remove all obstacles confronting it,” Berri said in comments published in local newspapers.
Asked about the deadline set by President Michel Suleiman to form a cabinet, the speaker said that “the deadline encouraged the process of cabinet formation.”
The president said recently that there was a need to form a new government before March 25, the deadline set by the Constitution for the parliament to meet to elect a new president.
Suleiman's tenure ends in May 2014.
The government formation process has witnessed an intensified a political activity in an attempt to end the standstill since Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam was appointed in April.
The 8-8-8 government lineup awaits that March 14 approval, while al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc has set a series of questions regarding the cabinet's ministerial statement, the rotation of portfolios and the veto power.
The 8-8-8 formula divides ministers equally between the centrists and March 14 and 8 alliances, in which each get eight ministers with “decisive ministers” for the March 14 and 8 coalitions.
Asked if the March 8 alliance answered the March 14 coalition's questions, Berri said there were “no questions, answers or conditions but suggestions to improve the cabinet lineup.”
Concerning the rotation of portfolios, the speaker said that “Salam was the first to propose such a measure and I support it on the basis of justice and inclusiveness.”
“It is time to end a custom in Lebanon that ministries become owned by those who fill them,” Berri said.
13 January 2014, 08:20
31
Lebanese politicians are playing the Lebanese for fools with this ongoing farce. And the Lebanese are good little sheep who will follow. How Sad.
13 January 2014, 09:11
43
Berri's wealth is estimated between 2-4 billion U.S Dollars
http://www.albawaba.com/main-headlines/cables-lebanese-speaker-family’s-wealth-hits-about-us2-billion
13 January 2014, 09:12
42
Also from wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nabih_Berri
See also: Contents of the United States diplomatic cables leak (Middle East)#Corruption of Nabih Berri
During his tenure as speaker of the Lebanese parliament, Berri is estimated to have gathered a fortune of over USD 2 Billion.[12]
Among the earliest examples of Berri's corruption early in his tenure as speaker of parliament was a coastal motorway in southern Lebanon which was overpriced by three digit million USD sum, and whose contract was won by a firm run by Berri's wife, Randa Assi.[13][14]
Berri's current wife Randa's sister, Samira Assi, is said to have made a fortune by getting a contract from Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to print one million copies of Gaddafi's "Green Book".[16] Assi's deals are seen as highly controversial, since the founder of the Amal Movement, Musa al-Sadr, is known to have been disappeared on the orders of Gaddafi himself.
13 January 2014, 13:39
20
Baba, sadly one can't but concur with this view, but then as I mentioned in another thread, we can't blame the people all the time. When the people look around them, what do they see, but militia guns more numerous and more powerful that their army's. Once the army becomes strong again as everyone wants, then it should come as No surprise to anyone, to see and hear people begin to make their voices heard and their wishes enforced. Many don't want to see a strong army and that's because they want to keep reigning over this country of ours. Thanks heavens that some countries are beginning to open their eyes to the truth of things in Lebanon.
13 January 2014, 09:58
34
Thank God you are safe my dear especially with all those bush fires in the Dahiyeh of Australia.
13 January 2014, 10:02
34
the_roar: it seems you cannot open your mouth without insulting people. Who paid you to be lawyer here? Comment on the topic or show us your back. We are sick of your useless comments and your plastering this venue with lame and silly unrelated comments.
13 January 2014, 10:44
43
Careful gentleman… he has the icon of a Lion and calls himself the roar, he is almost Super Human. He usually post endless pompous rants about his idols the pajama x-genaral and the Iranian thug in hiding. But if you rile him up, he is likely to insult your mother, put a curse on you or threaten to slap you … beware :-((((
13 January 2014, 16:23
00
many lebanese expats in australia tend to get into hard drugs and a life of crime. i am afraid the_roar is another welfare crack child, making a bad reputation for lebanese abroad :(
13 January 2014, 12:06
21
“Ex-PM Saad Hariri isn't only cooperating with endeavors to form an all-embracing cabinet but also cooperating to remove all obstacles confronting it,” Berri said in comments published in local newspapers."
now M8ers brains will bug.... LOL
13 January 2014, 13:44
20
There will come a time when people like Berri, of all sides, Christians, Muslims, Druze hence and so forth will find themselves at the receiving end of the will of the people. When the LAF becomes strong, in fact as everyone of the people wants, we shall then begin to see how the will of the people will translate itself on the ground. That will be the time when they will be confident enough to tell this rusty, filthy, greedy, blood-sucking old guard to leave, and leave for good. They'll tell them in no uncertain ways, that we in Lebanon have a youth that is a lot more educated, a lot more charismatic, a lot more patriotic, a lot more informed and a lot more decent and visionary. There will come a time when anyone's child could aspire to become a ruler, and not to have to be a Berri, or a Jumblat, or a Gemayel, or Frangieh to rule, Inshallah, that is not far now. God bless our army.
13 January 2014, 15:44
00
enshallah bro WL, enshallah, everything has its time, Lebanon will rise like a Phoenix together with its army.
