Report: Hizbullah Seeking to Improve Aoun’s Ties with Jumblat ahead of 2013 Elections
Hizbullah is seeking to improve ties between Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblat and Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun ahead of the 2013 parliamentary elections, reported the pan-Arab daily al-Hayat on Sunday.
A prominent political source told the daily that Hizbullah wants to improve these ties out of a hope that they may forge an alliance and achieve a March 8 parliamentary majority in 2013.
In addition, it said that the party wants to guarantee Aoun’s superiority among Lebanon’s Christians through allying himself with Jumblat in areas where the Druze leader enjoys strong political power, such as the Chouf, Aley, Hasbaya, and Rashaya.
Tensions between the two MPs emerged as a result of disagreements over a number of issues that have been proposed at cabinet, such as the electricity file, parliamentary electoral law, and dealing with displaced Syrians in Lebanon.
The March 8 camp is pushing for the adoption of proportional representation for the law, which is opposed by Jumblat.
The MP’s supporters had accused those seeking proportionality of wanting to limit the Druze chief’s political weight.
Aoun had stated after the Change and Reform bloc’s weekly meeting on Tuesday that “the March 8 camp is not seeking to limit any side’s political weight.”
He noted however in an indirect reference to Jumblat: “If some side is enjoying more than its actual weight on the ground, then would want to restore the people’s rights in this matter.”
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