Geagea: We Approved Orthodox Gathering Proposal for Sake of Agreeing on New Electoral Law
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Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea acknowledged that differences within the March 14 camp exist over the parliamentary electoral law, but added they are being resolved.
He said: “We supported the Orthodox Gathering proposal at the electoral subcommittee for the sake of reaching an agreement over an electoral law.”
An agreement over a new law can be reached in the upcoming days if political powers continue the serious efforts they have shown in the past few days, he remarked to al-Liwaa newspaper in an interview that will be published on Monday.
Moreover, Geagea said that the mere thought of delaying the elections, set for June 9, will be “fatal for out democratic system.”
“Postponing the elections for a month or two for technical reasons aimed at allowing the Interior Ministry to take the necessary preparations is the only acceptable excuse,” he said.
The rival parties are yet to agree on a draft law after the adoption of the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal by the joint parliamentary committees, which drew a sharp debate among the opposition's faction and with rival coalitions.
The polls are likely to be postponed if the parliament gives the green light to the proposal that divides Lebanon into a single district and allows each sect to vote for its own MPs under a proportional representation system.
But the draft law has been rejected by al-Mustaqbal bloc, the centrist National Struggle Front of MP Walid Jumblat, and the March 14 opposition’s Christian independent MPs. It has been also criticized by President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati.
Addressing other developments in Lebanon, Geagea told al-Liwaa: “A real state in Lebanon cannot be built amid Hizbullah's control of the country's strategic decision-making power.”
Furthermore, he criticized the party for acknowledging that it is taking part in the fighting in Syria.
He said: “No one can ignore Iran's role in Syria and the party should have stressed the need to maintain neutrality or support the people's revolt, but it unfortunately chose to take the opposite route.”
Hizbullah's position has sparked the outrage of the Syrian people, which may drag Lebanon towards the unknown, warned the LF leader.
A Hizbullah source had announced in February that some Lebanese people residing in Syria and who are members of the party are combating the “armed groups” involved in the fighting.
The members took it upon themselves to take part in the fighting without consulting the party, he revealed.
In October 2012, Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah had confirmed that some party members were indeed fighting in Syria.
03 March 2013, 12:05
75
Geagea is really running scared now ... His voters are evaporating. The old guard anti-HA are fuming over the opening of the party while others are seeing the real threat coming from salafists not HA.
It is clear that the LF will need a more expansive membership for the on the ground campaigning they will need to hold onto their seats. Yet this will dilute the power of the patronized old guard.
Geagea has real problems to confront. It is not clear that his patrons are willing to fund Geagea as they have in the past. Both Auon and Geymael are going to pick up many votes from LF.
03 March 2013, 14:23
73
The real fanatic is you ... Your hatred over rules your intelligence until your words are as vomit ...
03 March 2013, 12:38
611
10 more yrs "fa2ouss geagea" will fade away sloooooooooooooooowly
then he will have time to manage his bars in m3ameltein and pick up more flowers, if he's able to bend........
03 March 2013, 15:19
00
anyone who tries to flee the truth that christians have to be fairly represented as taef stipulates are the bad guys
this is the main point and all the rest ie electoral laws have to get this fact. be it orthodox or whatever law....
03 March 2013, 16:33
63
It is as deep of a political insight as the one from chouchou ..... sometimes you have to fight fire with fire.
03 March 2013, 17:09
90
No I do not know who it's a mistaken copy paste of a nr that called me and was trying to find who it was.
03 March 2013, 17:13
73
That us because he was the only one to be judged as he refused to capitulate to the Syrians. Had Aoun not sought refuge in France he would have had the same treatment.
03 March 2013, 17:26
46
Ft!....
come on man! are you going to deny the real beliefs of the shia community?
we all know those are their beliefs! these teachings are taught in your schools at an early age.
furthermore, the hate towards sunnis has been there for as long as I can remember, and I recall a story:
when we were at school a long time ago, we were to go for a trip to tyre in our schoolbus. it did not matter that we were Christians, we were asked not to call one of our friends by his real name: his name was Omar.
it was ordiary for any Omar to be attacked in the south, just for his name.
so spare us your BS.
this shiism of iran is the most extremist sort of extremism.
03 March 2013, 17:34
34
let us consider this matter a bit:
- 35% are Christians and they want to elect their Christian MPs.
- 35% are shia, and they want to rule he country.
- the above two do not accept that Al Mustaqbal is a multi confessional party, and they want to deny them the right to elect MPs that are not sunnis.
furthermore they empower sunni extremists to reduce the popularity of of mustaqbal.
so, yes your comment is correct, for as long as religious extremists rule the mind of the weak, we will have the same rulers.
03 March 2013, 17:51
05
Yes people there is grumbling within the LF old guard, but this is nothing new really. There has alway been a current within the LF (myself included, for what little my opinion is worth) that never felt comfortable with some parties within the M14 alliance that are connected to radical sunnis and marketing "Arabism" whenever given the chance. The LF is in a predicament: stay with M14 and be criticized for having played a role in the rise of radical Sunnis in Syria and Lebanon. Leave M14 and you will be criticized for strengthening HA's control of the country. Remain neutral and you will wiped out of the electoral lists... Shou 3al 3al2a.
03 March 2013, 19:30
45
FT
there is nothing inciting hate in my comments: all I did was state facts.
if you want to hide the true image of extremist shia like hizbushaitan, then try to do it properly by telling us what I said is not correct.
but you cannot, because you know it is.
03 March 2013, 19:33
14
actually it was your aun who was promised the presidency if he could oust the LF. but he could not, thus they ousted him.
as for Geagea, he was offered good positins in the cabinet provided he would accept the Syrian regime, but he refused, thus he was put in prison.
this is to set the truth of things: we remember the details of that period.
03 March 2013, 21:57
24
actually you and your clown are the best laughing subjects on this site and in Lebanon.
04 March 2013, 06:04
42
The book is called al kafi. Go read your book if you call yourself Shia. You should know what's in your booksmabout your madhab. Why do the shia follow there imams blindly. I'm not sectarian but the Shia know very little about there own religion. Yes it is there own, the sunnah are innocent of these people, even though you may have some ignorant ones who think we are brothers and sisters. Nope that's not the case. It's all in there books, so don't say I'm spreading sectarian comments. By the way us sunnah are not a sect. We are 95% of the Muslim world, that's the majority and the majority cannot be defined as a sect
04 March 2013, 06:10
22
Even though stargaze and flamethrower may deny this is from there Shia books, you two are ignorant and like cattle, it doesn't matter what you say or do. We look at what your scholars are saying, your tv channels, there's is many videos on YouTube that expose you. Shiaism is a cult, may Allah guide them to the straight path, not the path of mutah and taqqiya and the wajib jihadi to killl Sunni Muslims. And there sistani forbade them to fight the Americans in Iraq. This is why America and Israel are not scared of the Shia, they pose no threath
