Bou Saab meets al-rahi in presidential 'exploratory tour'
Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab met Tuesday with Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi in Bkerki, as he starts an "exploratory tour" to discuss the presidential crisis with Lebanese leaders.
"Our real problem is not the name of the president but that parties are not willing to communicate," Bou Saab answered a reporter in a press conference after the meeting, after he had said that he did not discuss with al-Rahi any names.
Bou Saab said that al-Rahi has hailed his initiative and hoped it would break the presidential impasse.
The Deputy Speaker later met with Tajaddod MPs Michel Mouawad and Fouad Makhzoumi.
He had met last week with Hezbollah MP Mohammed Raad and will meet today with Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea.
Meanwhile Bkerki sources told media outlets that Bkerki has no vetoes against anyone, including Marada leader Suleiman Franjieh and that a candidate, once elected, must forget the party he belongs to and become a president for all Lebanese.
The crisis is national and not Christian, the sources said, adding that parties must communicate inside Parliament during open-ended sessions to elect a president.
02 May 2023, 17:10
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Lebanon is in intensive care. New president critical tasks:
1. RESTORE SOVEREIGNTY & TRUST WITH WORLD & DIASPORA
> Insure no arms outside army, including Hizbollah and Palestinians
> Demarcate land and maritime borders with Syria including Shebaa Farms
> End political mafia & political dinosaurs
> Dignified Syrian refugees return to Syria
2. REVIVE ECONOMY
> Close all illegal crossings
> Eliminate political risk, UN Charter Neutrality
> Recovery & reform plan: End corruption, Accountability, Streamline gov processes
> Restructure banking, unified currency, end EDL subsidy
> Restore high education & targeted fields (AI, Cyber security, Pharma, etc)
3. VISION & NEW PROJECTS
> Renewable energy (solar, wind, dams)
> Infrastructure (tunnels, monorail, fiber optic)
> Modernize industry & agriculture (automation, robots, AI)
> Tourism (trails, cruise, new airports, attractions)
02 May 2023, 19:15
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Nooo .. "Our real problem" is that the parties' differences reflect unreconcileable views of what it means to be a good Lebanese citizen, And the political system imposed does not result in accommodating all citizens' needs.
End Taif and let citizens sort it out while the government protects neighbor from neighbor .. foreign interests need not concern themselves .. we've got this.
