Govt. holds 1st session, forms policy statement panel
The new government held its first session Tuesday at the Baabda Palace during which a ministerial panel was formed to draft the government’s policy statement.
The government’s official group photo was taken prior to the session, featuring President Joseph Aoun, Speaker Nabih Berri, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, Deputy PM Tarek Mitri and the ministers.
Aoun opened the session by asking the conferees to observe a minute of silence over the victims of the latest Israeli war on Lebanon.
Salam meanwhile asked ministers to dedicate their time to their ministerial work and to resign from the board of any commercial company or bank.
The panel that will draft the ministerial statement comprises Salam, Mitri, Finance Minister Yassine Jaber, Culture Minister Ghassan Salame, Public Works Minister Fayez Rasamny and Industry Minister Joe Issa al-Khoury.
MTV said the statement will include the phrase “the state’s right to monopolize weapons,” which was used by Aoun in his inaugural speech, adding that the word “resistance” will not be mentioned in the statement.
Al-Jadeed TV said “the ministerial statement will be quickly finalized and will be based on the monopoly of arms in the hands of the state, removing occupation and implementing Resolution 1701.”
Al-Akhbar newspaper has reported that Salam has agreed with Hezbollah and the Amal Movement on a text taken from Article 51 of the U.N. Charter.
The Article stresses “the inherent right of individual or collective self-defense if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security.”
According to al-Akhbar, Salam also wants to include in the statement the reconstruction plan, implementing the law on broad administrative decentralization, establishing the National Commission for the Abolition of Political Sectarianism, the financial reform and bank restructuring laws, and committing to holding municipal and parliamentary elections with the possibility of submitting proposals to amend the electoral laws.
Source: Naharnet
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