Suleiman, Miqati Discuss Cabinet Agenda ahead of Key Session

President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati held talks Monday in Baabda on the latest developments and the agenda of the cabinet session scheduled for Wednesday, state-run National News Agency reported.

Wednesday’s session comes a week after Miqati announced the postponement of the previous cabinet meeting and the transfer of Lebanon’s annual share of funds to the U.N.-backed Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

Miqati’s sources confirmed to An Nahar daily in remarks published Monday that the council of ministers will convene on time at the Baabda Palace.

But they rejected to discuss the details of the contacts aimed at convincing the ministers of MP Michel Aoun’s Change and Reform bloc to end their boycott.

The ministers have said their participation in cabinet meetings depends on a set of conditions that the government and Miqati should meet.

But the sources said that a wage boost proposal made by the bloc’s minister Charbel Nahhas is on the cabinet agenda – a step towards meeting the other demands of the Change and Reform bloc.

Miqati’s visitors quoted him as saying that he “does not see any problem in Aoun’s demands” which are being put on the agenda of the council of ministers.

Despite Miqati’s remarks, Nahhas and Tourism Minister Fadi Abboud told al-Liwaa daily that the return of the ministers to the government hasn’t been settled yet.

He hoped that the government would assume its responsibilities towards the file of wages.

Al-Joumhouria newspaper quoted sources close to Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement as saying that the ministers won’t take part in Wednesday’s session because the government hasn’t so far changed its attitude.

After months of political wrangling, Miqati announced last Wednesday that he had transferred Lebanon's share of funding to the STL probing the Feb. 2005 assassination of ex-Premier Rafik Hariri.

Meanwhile, FPM sources told Al-Manar television that “discussions are still ongoing on whether FPM ministers, without their colleagues in the Change and Reform bloc, might boycott Wednesday’s cabinet session, as the reasons for such a move have not changed.”

For its part, MTV said “all indications suggest that the FPM will boycott Wednesday’s cabinet session.”

“However, it has been surprised by the stances of its allies, the Tashnag Party and the Marada Movement, which have decided to attend the session,” MTV noted.