Parliament Petition Seeks to Compel Aoun to OK Extraordinary Legislative Session
The issue of launching an extraordinary legislative session seems to be the subject of a major standoff between President Michel Aoun and Speaker Nabih Berri.
“Aoun has informed the relevant parties, especially his partner in the jurisdiction to launch an extraordinary legislative session, PM Najib Miqati, that he does not intend to launch a parliamentary session,” al-Joumhouria newspaper reported on Tuesday.
“Presidential sources say that the President is practicing his constitutional right and does not see a necessity to launch the session, seeing as he does not want to provide a cover for halting the prosecution of MP Ali Hassan Khalil and stopping the execution of the arrest warrant that was issued against him by Beirut port blast investigator Judge Tarek Bitar,” the daily added.
The Speakership meanwhile believes that MPs have a constitutional right to launch an extraordinary session through coming forward with a parliamentary petition that carries the signatures of the majority of lawmakers, which would compel the President to launch the session, al-Joumhouria said.
The daily added that the petition was prepared in the beginning of the year and has been sent to MPs to win their signatures.
Sources from Aoun’s Strong Lebanon bloc meanwhile expressed their rejection of the petition, describing it as “a provocative measure against the President.”
“President Michel Aoun remains firm in the face of any provocation and he does not bow to any blackmail,” the sources added.
Parliamentary sources hit back, also in remarks to al-Joumhouria, stressing that the petition is “a constitutional right for the MPs.”
“Should it win the signatures of the needed parliamentary majority, the President will become compelled to launch the session, and his refrainment from that would be a blatant violation of the constitution,” the sources warned.
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