Berri: We Can't Appoint Premier without a President, Parliament

Speaker Nabih Berri reiterated his assertion that a president should be elected before holding the parliamentary polls, reported al-Joumhouria newspaper on Monday.

“We cannot appoint a new prime minister before the election of a president,” he added in response to head of the Mustaqbal Movement MP Saad Hariri's declaration that a speaker of parliament cannot be elected before a president.

Berri explained that the appointment of a premier requires consultations between the president and the speaker and lawmakers.

“The persistence of the presidential vacuum therefore hinders the election of a prime minister,” he stressed.

“Officials must therefore elect a president in order to safeguard state institutions,” he remarked.

Hariri delivered a speech on Friday during which he proposed a roadmap that includes the election of a new president, formation of a new cabinet that is similar to the current one, withdrawal of Hizbullah's fighters from Syria, and establishment of a comprehensive plan to combat terrorism.

He also urged against the extension of parliament's term, but remarked that parliamentary polls should take place after electing a new president.

M.T.

H.K.