Saniora: Govt. Not Useful for Anything, Jeopardizing Country

Head of al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc, ex-PM Fouad Saniora, on Thursday slammed Prime Minister Najib Miqati’s government as “not useful for anything,” accusing it of “jeopardizing the country.”

“Miqati bowed to regional desires that coincided with the interests of” Hizbullah upon the formation of the government, Saniora said, during the third round of parliamentary debate over the government’s policies.

“Can anyone tell us about the fate of (Syrian dissident) Shebli al-Aysami and the Jassem brothers” who went missing in Lebanon, Saniora asked.

Addressing the latest row over leasing power-generating vessels, Saniora stressed that “al-Mustaqbal Movement has nothing to do with the Turkish ship” that was leased by the government.

Saniora also accused Telecom Minister Nicolas Sehnaoui of “withholding his ministry's funds in a special safe at the central bank instead of depositing them into the treasury.”

Turning to the Syrian crisis, the former premier said “what applies to the entire Arab region, applies to Syria, and what was happening in Damascus yesterday cannot be repeated in the future,” in reference to the so-called Arab Spring.

“Syria has entered the phase of change, which has become a reality. We said from the beginning that we are against interference in Syria, but that does not mean we can't express our solidarity with the Syrian people,” Saniora said of his camp’s stance on the crisis.

“We are not involved in arms trafficking, we are only supporting the process of change with peaceful means. Syria's people know their country better,” he noted.

Slamming Hizbullah’s controversial arsenal of weapons, Saniora said “those proud of their arms and of the ‘glorious day’ are returning to the same methods today,” referring to the May 7, 2008 clashes.

“Confronting Israel and its occupation is not subject to debate, but the arms that contributed to liberating the land are being used now for intimidation and we demand that be put under the state's authority,” Saniora urged.