Qabbani: I Will Not Vote for Aoun

Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc MP Mohammed Qabbani said in a statement issued Friday morning that he would not vote for presidential candidate, Free Patriotic Movement founder MP Michel Aoun, the National News Agency reported.

“In line with my political convictions and those of the people of Beirut, I confirm that I will not be voting for Aoun during the upcoming presidential election session,” Qabbani stated.

A parliamentary session is scheduled to convene on October 31 to elect a president and fill the over two-year vacuum at the post.

On Thursday, al-Mustaqbal Movement chief and ex-PM Saad Hariri has formally endorsed the presidential nomination of Aoun, describing his decision as a “major political risk” that he is willing to take for the sake of the country.

Hariri had endorsed Aoun after his previous support for the presidential nomination of Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah.

At least five members of Hariri's Mustaqbal bloc, including its head ex-PM Fouad Saniora, have also said that they will not vote for Aoun.

Several MPs from the bloc boycotted Hariri's speech at the Center House on Thursday, as an objection to Hariri's step.

Al-Mustaqbal Movement Secretary General Ahmed Hariri told VDL (100.5) on Friday that (Saad) Hariri will take a clear stance in the coming hours as for the MPs who boycotted Thursday's speech at the Center House.

Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and Hizbullah, Aoun's Change and Reform bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum.

Hariri had launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Hizbullah's ally MP Suleiman Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah.

The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid have argued that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.