Berri Lauds President's Oath of Office, Says Work Must Now Begin
Speaker Nabih Berri lauded the oath of office taken by President Michel Aoun, as he stressed the necessity to restore the State's activity now that a president has been elected, al-Joumhouria daily reported on Tuesday.
“What I and the Lebanese have wished for has become true. Now we have a president which means that the phase of action must start,” visitors to Berri quoted him as saying.
On the speech he made at the beginning of the parliament session that saw Aoun become president, and whether it sends a message that he extends his hand to all parties, Berri said: “Of course it is, it is much more than that. It is a stimulus for all political parties without exception, particularly for the president so that we are able to cooperate and save Lebanon from the crises it is living.
“I referred to this in my speech, and I have expressed full readiness to be the first to collaborate with the president to launch the wheel of the state again. The foundation here, as I have said and I repeat, is the election law which is the only rescue factor for the state and the institutions as it rectifies balance and representation for all components,” said the Speaker.
“President Aoun and I have referred to these points in our speeches,” he went on to say, adding “I am relieved that the president has stressed the need to agree on an electoral law before the end of the parliament mandate.”
President Aoun took his oath of office on Monday at the parliament shortly after his election by the majority of 83 MP votes out of 127.
Elected by the legislature as Lebanon's 13th president, Aoun said that “the first prerequisite of real equal (Christian-Muslim) power-sharing is the approval of an electoral law that ensures fair representation before the date of the next elections.”
Aoun's election ends a presidential void that lasted around two and a half years. The FPM founder was tipped to become president after his nomination was formally endorsed by al-Mustaqbal Movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri earlier this month.
Analysts have warned his election will not be a "magic wand" for Lebanon, which has seen longstanding political divisions exacerbated by the war in neighboring Syria and has struggled to deal with an influx of more than a million Syrian refugees.
The 81-year-old former army chief had long eyed the presidency, and his candidacy was backed from the beginning by Iran-backed Hizbullah, his ally since a surprise rapprochement in 2006.
Source: Naharnet
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