Suleiman Adamant not to Sign $5.9 billion Spending Bill
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
President Michel Suleiman reiterated on Thursday that he rejects to sign any decree that contains “legal and constitutional violations,” shrugging off demands by the March 8 forces to approve the $5.9 billion extra-budgetary spending of 2011.
In remarks to An Nahar daily, a day after the government tackled the issue, Suleiman said: “I won’t sign the decree because it includes legal and constitutional violations.”
“I told the cabinet to amend the bill by taking into consideration the remarks of the parliamentary finance and budget committee … and send it back to parliament,” the president told the newspaper.
Suleiman reiterated that legal and constitutional experts informed him the bill would be challenged for being “illegal.”
Parliament has failed to approve the bill that would legalize the 2011 spending of Premier Najib Miqati’s cabinet over differences between the March 8 majority and the March 14 opposition coalition.
This has prompted Hizbullah, Amal and the Free Patriotic Movement to pressure Suleiman into resorting to article 58 of the constitution which allows him to issue a bill deemed urgent by the government after the failure of the legislature to approve it.
But the president stressed that “a more comprehensive draft-law should be proposed to the parliament,” shrugging off the March 8 pressure exerted on him.
Suleiman also criticized the opposition for withdrawing from the parliamentary session that was set to approve the bill. “The session shouldn’t be obstructed through lack of quorum, which is not the solution even if it is a democratic right.”
26 April 2012, 14:35
23
@Flamethrower, stop your bullshit as usual. It is not the president's fault. He wants things to be done properly thats it. You want things to be done quickly without accountability . Anyway dont worry we remember your project of nearly 2 billion $ for power plants from the great genious Imbassil that wanted to rip us off but maybe you forgot about him too. Not to mention that the FPM supposedly wanted to give more prerogatives to the president and powers to act freely. All they do is obstruct him on what he is his right to exerce in a democracy. But hey i gues the FPM and Hezbollah know a lot about democracy. Specially Aoun who kicks out Abou Jamra and Nahhas for not obeying orders from the great boss.
27 April 2012, 09:37
10
Skyfall: EDL losses during the Rafic Harriri era were more then 14 billion USD taken from your money and mine, so if by investing 2 billion you can solve the problem he created it's an excelent deal.regarding the president prerogatives: FPM is asking him to use the ones he already has and he is refusing!!! finally regarding Abou jamra and Nahas well if you had watched NAhas on Tuseday you would have understood that he decided to go and no one asked him to do so and thank you for finally admitting how great is Nahas (the man who kckied saouda nad sanioura in the groins)
26 April 2012, 14:35
32
Just watch how the M8rs will start bashing the president. They have no loyalty but their pockets.
26 April 2012, 14:40
33
All you have done in this governement is take back what was agreed upon from 2005-2010 governements but that was never applied, between wars you created in 2006 with your friends the zionists, to may 2008, to tents in downtown in 2009 for a year, to obstructing every parliament meeting or resigning from every cabinet just to contest the STL supposedly. We can see how you contest the STL now loosers . You forgot about it ? Hezbollah's goal is Lebanon and Aoun's goal is the presidency for him or his demanted son-in-law Imbassil and they can count on you FT with your retarded close-minded backwarded unrealistic and fictionnal mind and your friends that are lost in a spiral of imbecility and denial. M14 is surely not the best to govern but a far lesser evil than your circus friends.
27 April 2012, 09:42
10
Check ur dates man the sit in ended in 2008 not 2009!! 2009 was an election year and Harriri jr was PM! MAy 2008 was a war between 2 armed factions Harriri's and Hizballah/Amal the later won, hard luck HArriri militia.
2008 never kept Sanioura from doing his other stealing duties (please read the world bank reports!!) and why didn't HArriri submit his accounts from 2008 till 2011 date oh his one way ticket to ryad, he had 3 years to do it!! man if you can't do the time don't do the crime
26 April 2012, 15:23
03
I wouldnt like to sign anything like this in Lebanon either. Who knows what I would be signing. How many pockets I would be filling. How many Lebanese I would be robbing...
26 April 2012, 21:27
00
Skyfall no doubt you are against representational voting. You like things done right? The approval of the STL by the previous government was unconstitutional but I'm certain you approve of that. Suleiman wants to appoint the Head of the Judicial coucil and that is his bargaining position. No Judge no budget, Quid pro quo. That is also unconstitutional. As for ImBassil. He isn't in it for the money. One more thing, Israel wants instability in Lebanon and Syria . Hezbollah is unexpected consequence of Israeli actions. If Saudi wanted to fund Hezbollah like they are presently funding salafist terrorists in Syria (I'm also sure you like that) then Hezbollah wouldn't be exclusively an Iranian proxy. But Saudi doesn't semm to mind Israel invading Lebanon and killing Lebanese or Egyptians or Turks or anyone else. Do they?
