Geagea: Govt. Won't Make Any Difference, We'll Only Join if Baabda Declaration is Policy Statement
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea on Wednesday stressed that there is no “fundamental dispute” with the Mustaqbal Movement, noting that the LF would only join the new cabinet if the Baabda Declaration was adopted as the ministerial policy statement.
“I'm more and more convinced that the LF won't take part in the cabinet,” Geagea said in an interview on Future TV, before underlining that his party would join the new government “if the Baabda Declaration was adopted as the only political component of the ministerial Policy Statement.”
“When (Hizbullah MP) Ali Ammar says that they insist on the army-people-resistance equation, what can you expect from such a government?” Geagea asked rhetorically.
In response to a question, the LF leader said: “The relation with (ex-PM Saad) Hariri is something and the political stance is something else,” pointing out that his stance on the cabinet formation process “reflects a major decision by the party's executive committee” and not only his personal viewpoint.
“Emotionally speaking, we all want a cabinet and we want ministerial portfolios, but rationally speaking, I cannot fool myself as this cabinet will not make a difference,” Geagea noted.
“I have not discussed, at any moment, the issue of ministerial shares or portfolios, and claims that we've rejected to join the cabinet because we'll only have one portfolio are totally unfounded,” he stressed.
“There is no fundamental dispute with Mustaqbal but during negotiations we had a procedural disagreement on whether we should join the cabinet before or after reaching a political agreement with the other camp,” he said.
Geagea noted that a cabinet that can “change people's lives” is a cabinet that can make “political changes.”
“I've been surprised by the public opinion, which knows the type of governments it wants and will not settle for any cabinet,” he said.
He stressed that the unstable security situation in the country will remain the same after the formation of the new cabinet, “because Hizbullah is fighting in Syria.”
“Of course I don't want to throw Hizbullah into the sea, but I can't continue to bear the repercussions of the actions it does without consulting anyone,” added Geagea.
“The country is being depleted due to Hizbullah's policies and whatever we do, we won't be able to change anything unless it changes its behavior,” he emphasized.
Geagea pointed out that according to the information he's been hearing, “Hizbullah will have more than 8 ministers.”
“I've learned that Suleiman's share will include a minister for the party and Salam's share will include another ... We hope this will change,” he added.
Geagea noted that Hizbullah has only “theoretically” backed down from the so-called 8-8-8 cabinet formula.
“The solution is to maintain my political stance and continue struggling for the success of my project, and had I wanted to sit with them, I would've done that years ago,” he went on to say.
Geagea revealed that some March 14 independents and the National Liberal Party “will also not take part in the cabinet and portfolios were never the concern of March 14.”
“Let us not forget that we are being assassinated on the streets and that we are being pursued,” he said.
“The calls for dialogue after every assassination have become suspicious calls by individuals who do not want to shoulder their responsibilities,” Geagea stated.
“If we are the party that is keen on the country, should we cover up for the policies that are harming the country? We tried a national unity cabinet led by Saad Hariri between 2010 and 2011, but they toppled it with the first juncture,” he explained.
Geagea said that in a coalition cabinet, the March 14 camp “would only be splitting spoils with Hizbullah.”
“The events of the past two weeks have created a state of disarray in the March 14 coalition and this camp must prepare well for the presidential election,” he said.
Geagea pointed out that “March 14 has significant chances to elect the candidate it wants as president of the republic.”
Asked whether he would run in the presidential election, Gegaea said reaching the Baabda Palace would be meaningless if he couldn't implement his “political project.”
In response to another question, Geagea said: “I believe that Hariri has not changed his stance on nominating me for the presidency.”
He added that he supports electing a partisan candidate as president. “I'm with electing either a March 8 candidate or a March 14 candidate and the president would then implement its project. If Lebanon is divided, should we create a state that combines Hizbullah's statelet and the Lebanese state? The answer is no. The conflict is over political plans,” added Geagea.
The cabinet formation process was put on the front burner after Speaker Nabih Berri proposed a revised 8-8-8 government formula and President Michel Suleiman said he would form a so-called neutral cabinet if the political rivals don't agree on an all-embracing government within days.
Amid the LF' rejection of Hizbullah's participation in the cabinet, some compnents of the March 14 camp have accepted the 8-8-8 formula in principle, but are awaiting awaiting answers pertaining to the ministerial policy statement and the rotation of portfolios among political parties.
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.
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22 January 2014, 22:07
Geagea: Geneva II will succeed, but not now, and I don't know the time it will take.
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22 January 2014, 22:03
Geagea: The solution in Syria -- on which Russia and the U.S. have agreed but will take a long time to realize -- is "no ISIL, no Nusra, no regime."
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22 January 2014, 22:02
Geagea: Geneva II is a major victory for the Syrian opposition and for the first time ever, a delegation other than Assad's is representing Syria.
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22 January 2014, 21:58
Geagea: It could be for surveillance purposes and I cannot accuse anyone before confirming all the details.
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22 January 2014, 21:57
Geagea: I consider the issue to be a message in the context of the messages received by Sethrida and March 14 leaders and the assassination of Mohammed Shatah.
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22 January 2014, 21:55
Geagea on suspicious drone over Maarab: Army Commander General Jean Qahwaji was very responsive and he followed up on the issue and on the second day he promised me that the army would address the issue.
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22 January 2014, 21:40
Geagea: I'm with electing either a March 8 candidate or a March 14 candidate and the president would then implement its project. If Lebanon is divided, should we create a state that combines Hizbullah's statelet and the Lebanese state? The answer is no. The conflict is over political plans.
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22 January 2014, 21:38
Geagea: I believe that Hariri has not changed his stance on nominating me for the presidency.
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22 January 2014, 21:33
Geagea: I would take part in cabinet if the Baabda Declaration was adopted as the only political component of the ministerial Policy Statement.
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22 January 2014, 21:31
Geagea: March 14 has significant chances to elect the candidate it wants as president of the republic.
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22 January 2014, 21:29
Geagea: The events of the past two weeks have created a state of disarray in the March 14 coalition and this camp must prepare well for the presidential election.
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22 January 2014, 21:26
Geagea: Reaching the Baabda Palace would be meaningless if I couldn't implement my political project.
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22 January 2014, 21:23
Geagea: In such a cabinet, we would only be splitting spoils with Hizbullah.
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22 January 2014, 21:16
Geagea: I don't want any portfolios and let them take them.
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22 January 2014, 21:11
Geagea: If we are the party that is keen on the country, should we cover up for the policies that are harming the country? We tried a national unity cabinet led by Saad Hariri between 2010 and 2011, but they toppled it with the first juncture.
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22 January 2014, 21:08
Geagea: The calls for dialogue after every assassination have become suspicious calls by individuals who do not want to shoulder their responsibilities.
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22 January 2014, 21:06
Geagea: Let us not forget that we are being assassinated on the streets and that we are being pursued.
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22 January 2014, 21:05
Geagea: Some March 14 independents and the National Liberal Party will not take part in the cabinet and portfolios were never the concern of March 14.
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22 January 2014, 21:02
Geagea: Hizbullah has theoretically backed down from the 8-8-8 formula but the solution is to maintain my political stance and continue struggling for the success of my project, and had I wanted to sit with them, I would've done that years ago.
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22 January 2014, 21:02
Geagea: According to the information I've been hearing, Hizbullah will have more than 8 ministers and I've learned that Suleiman's share will include a minister for the party and Salam's share will include another. We hope this will change.
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22 January 2014, 20:59
Geagea: The country is being depleted due to Hizbullah's policies and whatever we do, we won't be able to change anything unless it changes its behavior.
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22 January 2014, 20:57
Geagea: Of course I don't want to throw Hizbullah into the sea, but I can't continue to bear the repercussions of the actions it does without consulting anyone.
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22 January 2014, 20:56
Geagea: The security situation will remain the same, because Hizbullah is fighting in Syria.
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22 January 2014, 20:55
Geagea: A cabinet that can change people's lives is a cabinet that can make political changes and I've been surprised by the public opinion, which knows the type of governments it wants and will not settle for any cabinet.
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22 January 2014, 20:46
Geagea: During the negotiations, we had a procedural disagreement on whether we should join the cabinet before or after reaching a political agreement with the other camp.
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22 January 2014, 20:42
Geagea: I have not discussed, at any moment, the issue of ministerial shares or portfolios, and claims that we've rejected to join the cabinet because we'll only have one portfolio are totally unfounded.
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22 January 2014, 20:41
Geagea: Emotionally speaking, we all want a cabinet and we want ministerial portfolios, but rationally speaking, I cannot fool myself as this cabinet will not make a difference.
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22 January 2014, 20:41
Geagea: The relation with Hariri is something and the political stance is something else. My stance reflects a major decision by the party's executive committee and it's not only my personal stance.
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22 January 2014, 20:39
Geagea: When Ali Ammar says that they insist on the army-people-resistance equation, what can you expect from such a government?
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22 January 2014, 20:38
Geagea: I extend my warmest condolences to the families of the martyrs and I wish the wounded a quick recovery.
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22 January 2014, 20:38
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea in an interview on Future TV: I'm more and more convinced that the LF won't take part in the cabinet.
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22 January 2014, 20:38
Geagea: Before anything else, I want to tell the residents of Dahieh that we stand by them in the face of the bombings that are targeting them.
22 January 2014, 21:13
1621
hahaha 100%
wondering were the missing lebanese are? take a dive underwater, you'll find tens of containers in which geagea dumped his opponents alive.
22 January 2014, 22:54
199
Momo- Missing Lebanese will inevitably be located among the 55,000 pictures you low life syrian! It takes an amoral person to make fun of missing martyrs that fought bravely for their country. If this isn't proof that you are not Lebanese, I don't know what it. take a hike!
23 January 2014, 12:05
214
lollll now you want to respect martyrs bulk-mash? now you want to discuss ideas ibnalahbal? hahahhaha the hypocrisy is limitless.
23 January 2014, 16:34
111
momo- that's the best you got? weak as ever. tell me weakling, why have you avoided the stl articles? for someone who has been here for years claiming the stl is a farce, I have yet to see you disprove a single claim. for all the yapping you did, one would believe you would have a single credible rebuttal to what the stl prosecutor has alleged. you will always stay weak as the people you represent are the lowest of the low and have committed the most atrocious crimes.
22 January 2014, 22:20
207
Ur wishful thinking, not reality.
Btw, it's not because Nassy is Aoun's master that Saad is Geagea's master...
22 January 2014, 22:44
184
geagea is repentance personified, u wouldn't believe somebody would change that much...
22 January 2014, 22:56
179
FT- the only thing you need to deal is your general will always be known as a coward with no principles. It must really irk you to see your mortal enemy stand behind his principles, even if it means not participating in a sham of a government. Choke on that!
23 January 2014, 04:14
163
mc,
your posts are so thought provoking ....... Your M8 Government has accomplished so much (thanks to lack of obstruction by LF) over the last 3 years. Can Lebanon take more of such accomplishments?
23 January 2014, 05:24
164
mckinl posts are so irrelevant it's not even funny. He thinks he is a think tank. Often, he talks to himself.
22 January 2014, 21:14
1810
as those against geagea cannot oppose his arguments which depict the reality of hezbollah, they just resort to his past... it avoids them to think too much....
22 January 2014, 21:23
1912
actually, those attacking him for his past are doing worse than what he did or is alleged to have done :)
22 January 2014, 21:35
01
This is unacceptable. People are dying, innocent children. Where are you people heading? Stop supporting them and I mean all of them. May the light reach the people and wake em up. We all pray for all the families who lost dear ones worldwide. May The blessings of the Holy Father be with all of us, Amen.
22 January 2014, 23:36
1320
@Dr. Geagea, you have my respect sir but if I am being an honest Lebanese, I would have to say though I agree with all of your stances and statements, it would be a serious error in judgement for you to run for the presidency. Not only will half the Christians and their M8 allies completely reject you and deny you the seat it would also damage you reputation as a fair and honest leader to your supporters. There are other more qualified ways and with exceedingly better chances to succeed to deliver your project for Lebanon. Running extremely contested for the presidency with your past from the civil war era, whether real or imagined, will only fuel hatred and widen the schism in the Christians ranks. Please Dr. this is not about you now, it is about the fate of the Lebanese. We want a United Christian front and the same goes for Aoun, Gemayel and Franjieh.
23 January 2014, 00:17
66
Quien is we? who's the 'we' in 'We want a United Christian front' ??????????
United for what? are we at war with the moslems? Are they murdering us? aren't some of our correligionario apologists of murders in syria?
I don't want nothin 2 do w/ them. Actually, I want them 2 remain as far as possible from my family and I. I want some of the people u mention 2 face their creator soon. They have blood on their hands. they don't represent Christ, the fact is they are only Christians on their IDs.
23 January 2014, 01:24
66
Christians forgive primesuspect, that is one of the pillars of our religion. It is for our heavenly father to judge, not us. As to "we" I may very well be presumptuous, but it is my desire and my strongest feeling, that the silent majority of Christians are tired of the internal in-fighting and the wounds of 7arb el elgha2 which don't seem to heal. Forgive my feelings and desire in this instance which are not based on facts on the ground obviously. I am not at all advocating a fight with the Muslim, conversely I am advocating not aiding him in his shia/sunni struggle to flush the country down the toilet.
23 January 2014, 02:18
33
primesuspect very brave post. M14 christians are the truest on earth.
22 January 2014, 23:55
176
Geagea is the guy in the crowd who noticed and said, with reheard to the emperor's new clothes, "but, he is not wearing any clothes?" Geagea is speaking the truth, but in Lebanon! the state of Denial, the truth has very little currency. Rather, rewards go to those who can BS and pretend that things are as they are not. Lebanon is, in this sense, truly the first Orwellian State.
23 January 2014, 00:14
113
Is anybody keeping count of Dr. Arreet 7akeh's won'ts? I know I lost count of his predictions, and his won'ts perhaps count 10 times more than those.
23 January 2014, 02:23
173
FT, geagea is a master strategist, everything he does is calculated. he knows aoun's next 10 moves, and he already plotted the next 20 moves ahead of him. aoun has no plan, he simply betrayed the nation in return for the power and protection of Hezbo arms. little did he know that 6 years later there would be a civil war in syria with the Ba'ath stripped of half the land and billions of GCC dollars at the ready 24/7 to help the brave syrian rebels. you picked the losing horse, bub, too bad.
23 January 2014, 08:53
152
“When (Hizbullah MP) Ali Ammar says that they insist on the army-people-resistance equation, what can you expect from such a government?”… I am glad he is sticking to his principals. This is how a man speaks unlike that rambling Lunatic Aoun.
23 January 2014, 10:08
215
Mr Samir
Baabda declaration is a must but something has to be added to it
declare takfires parties and salafist and wahabist and jihadists outlaws
23 January 2014, 10:32
92
nothing makes me laugh harder,when a shia labels a sunni for takfir or terrorism and visa versa ....u are both 'same same' stupidity rules... metel ka2eno wahad menkon el Vatican aw Swissra!
23 January 2014, 12:41
10
Look at the past of all the political leaders and simply be wise and judge..forget religion..BE REAL! TUPAC!
