Berri says Aoun's 'strong president theory' has 'miserably failed'
The “strong president theory” that ex-President Michel Aoun used as a slogan for his tenure “has miserably failed,” Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri has said.
“A strong president is one who can unite the Lebanese around him and around state institutions, not one who practices the power of elimination and stokes up disputes and sentiments,” Berri added, in a meeting with Press Syndicate chief Awni al-Kaaki and the members of the syndicate.
Asked about his health, Berri said: “Health is good, but the country’s health is not.”
As for the controversy over the Taif Accord, the Speaker said: “The Taif Accord is not a composition lesson, it is rather our constitution and the importance lies in implementing it.”
“The Accord made the Lebanese equal and pushed Muslims to be stricter than Christians in preserving the current formula,” Berri added, noting that any of the two religious communities’ leaders is not in favor of any formula that contradicts with the current one.
Berri also lamented that he has failed three times to secure the creation of the National Commission for the Abolition of Political Sectarianism, the approval of a non-sectarian electoral law and the establishment of a senate.
Asked about accusations that he is “protecting” Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh from prosecution, Berri said: “Ask those who extended his term … If he is a wrongdoer I will not give him a cover.”
Source: Naharnet
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