Suleiman Demands Altering Quorum for Presidential Elections after Failure of Majority Vote
إقرأ هذا الخبر بالعربية
Former President Michel Suleiman condemned on Saturday the ongoing failure to elect a new president more than a year after his term ended.
He told Voice of Lebanon radio (93.3): “We demand the elimination of the two-thirds quorum at parliament to elect a president after we reached a dead end in this matter and none of the candidates garnered a majority of votes.”
In addition, he warned against “describing a strong president as one who only defends his sect.”
“A head of state should represent the whole of Lebanon, Muslims and Christians alike,” Suleiman stressed.
Furthermore, he criticized the proposal made by the Change and Reform bloc over electing a president through a popular vote.
“Such a suggestion cannot be applied now and it manipulates the Taef Accord,” he noted.
The former president then remarked that a new head of state cannot be elected in Lebanon “as long as Hizbullah is involving itself in the war in Syria.”
Lebanon has been without a president since May 2014 when Suleiman's term ended without the election of a successor.
Ongoing disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps over a rival candidate have thwarted the elections.
Head of the Change and Reform bloc MP Michel Aoun had proposed that a new president be elected directly by the people in two phases, first by the Christians, who would eliminate candidates and on a second phase by the Lebanese people.
According to the MP, another solution would be to hold a popular referendum. The candidate who garners most votes would be elected by the parliament as a new president.
The initiative also includes the possibility of electing the Maronite candidate who has the majority of representation at the parliament, while the fourth is staging the parliamentary elections ahead of the presidential polls based on a new electoral law that provides equality between Christians and Muslims.
M.T.
13 June 2015, 11:11
93
That is certainly correct because the parliament is supposed to be in continuous and open reunion and the first vote with the required quorum of 2/3 has already taken place. All successive assemblies require only a quorum of 50% plus one deputy. But Monsieur du Barry wanted to please M8...the rest is History.
13 June 2015, 11:18
00
A head of state should represent the whole of Lebanon, Muslims and Christians alike,” Suleiman stressed.
prime minister should represent the whole of lebanon .......
head of parliament should represent the whole of lebanon ,,,,,
so all position should be treated the same what goes for the prime minister and head of parliament goes for the presidency
you want a president tawafouki so must be the prime minister and the head of parliament
this is real patrtenership
god bless democracy
13 June 2015, 11:38
00
A head of state should represent the whole of Lebanon, Muslims and Christians alike,” Suleiman stressed.
the best way to achieve this is a popular vote
god bless democracy
13 June 2015, 15:09
85
Resistance ? Which resistance ? The one that destroyed National Unity and the living together???
13 June 2015, 15:11
85
You want a PEOPLE vote? No problem ...let all the Lebanese abroad participate in the vote. Your Caporal will get less than 5% from the Christians abroad!!!
13 June 2015, 15:35
68
The RESISTANCE that is whipping the floor with you holy rebel head chopping organ eating Saudi brought democracy lovers ya Bumble that Resistance :)
13 June 2015, 15:12
86
@theresistance4.0. We now have a good idea of what it would have been like if your side ruled Lebanon, the nature of this post of yours alone is ample testimony of what could have been La Sama7 Allah. The more people like you write, the more we feel convinced that our stand against your aims is noble and worth every single sacrifice. Should you have felt somewhere in time that people like me did for a while believe in your rhetoric, well now is the confirmation that when feathers fly, bare skin is explanation enough as to why times are changing. Calling fellow posters as you did is in truth like your spitting against the wind, the day will come dear friend when you will need a handkerchief to wipe your face from your own excesses, and charity will be the furthest thing to you.
13 June 2015, 15:54
85
@theresistance4.0, of course, to each his opinion and may God help us all. I respect your views to my very end and will defend you right to free speech, but then rest assured, my mind is mine and no one can ever creep over it. The objective is Lebanon, not Syria, not Iran, not Yemen, not the US, not France just our little Lebanon of 10,452 M2. Lebanon is bigger than us all, and even though you see wrong in me but trust me, moderate people like me are the surest guarantee of this nation and that means every single Lebanese. I said it before and will repeat it again, I am one of those who means no harm for Hezbollah and will never bloat the death of one of its fighters, but I know wrong from right, and what HA is doing today is because of the wrong it got into 5 years ago, not I can only wish it good fortune and wisdom to make it come back to the fold.
13 June 2015, 15:17
95
Mr. President, I am truly sorry to tell you this: You are a good man, a decent man, a noble man, but your single worst mistake you committed was to leave the presidency. You believed in the law and the constitution when the opponents of Lebanon keep flaunting it. You thought that you were doing the right thing and you certainly had in mind that had you stayed then the enemies of Lebanon would have accused you of standing in the way of democracy. But look at now what they did, their intentions were very clear from day one, Sir, you should have stayed, and you should have stomped your boot on their necks, period.
13 June 2015, 15:50
68
News are bad? Which news? You mean the dreams of M14ers (as yourself) who praised groups like Al-Nusra and only lived to seem them crushed like a bug by the #MenOfGod? Bad news for you maybe :)
13 June 2015, 16:14
95
This kind of language will get you nowhere ya Lebanon08 and a perfect indicator that in this conflict, your side will end up in poor shape.
13 June 2015, 18:06
00
how about all Lebanese vote including the ones who are living abroad if they are good to pay their relatives bills they are good enough to have their say.
