Al-Rahi Urges Berri to Hold Parliamentary Sessions to Determine Characteristics of New President

Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi warned on Sunday against “tampering with the presidential elections,” hoping that a strong president would be elected.

He urged during his Sunday sermon Speaker Nabih Berri to hold parliamentary sessions in order to determine the characteristics of the new president.

“Ensuring quorum for the parliamentary elections is a national and moral commitment,” he added.

“Creating or seeking vacuum is an insult to the people and lawmakers' dignity,” he remarked.

Lebanon is in need of a strong president, who can fortify the state and its institutions, defend the constitution, and put an end to corruption, al-Rahi stressed.

The current circumstances in Lebanon require internal unity and building ties of cooperation with Arab states and the international community, the patriarch said.

President Michel Suleiman's six-year term ends in May but the constitution states that the parliament should choose a new head of state within a two-month period before the end of the incumbent's term, which started on March 25.

M.T.