Change and Reform: Returning to Constitution Resolves Presidential Vacuum

The Change and Reform bloc lamented on Tuesday the state of affairs in Lebanon, condemning the ongoing vacuum in the presidency.

MP Ibrahim Kanaan said after the bloc's weekly meeting: “The vacuum is a product of deliberate neglect and the solution lies in returning to the constitution.”

“What is to become of the presidency if we do not respect the constitution and National Pact?” he wondered.

Lebanon has been plunged in vacuum in the presidency since the term of President Michel Suleiman ended in May.

Lawmakers failed to elect his successor after seven presidential elections sessions following a boycott of the majority of March 8 alliance MPs, mainly those of the Hizbullah and Change and Reform blocs, over an ongoing dispute over a candidate.

Addressing the bombing in the Tayyouneh area in Beirut earlier on Tuesday, Kanaan said: “Condemning bombings is no longer enough.”

He criticized how such incidents are being exploited to achieve political goals.

“Is it reasonable to link them to political files?” he asked.

“Aren't the security developments being used to impose certain realities on the Lebanese people?” Kanaan continued.

“The security developments should be tackled through security, not political, measures,” he demanded.

One person was killed and at least 20 wounded when a suicide bomber detonated himself at an army checkpoint at the Tayyouneh roundabout at the entrance of Beirut's southern suburbs in the early hours of Tuesday.

The car bombing came three days after a suicide attack in the east of the country which left one person dead and 30 wounded. The attack was the first in Lebanon since March.