Change and Reform Hails Berri's Stance on Legislation as Step in Right Direction

The Change and Reform bloc welcomed on Tuesday the stand of Speaker Nabih Berri on the contentious legislative session, saying it adheres to the National Pact.

MP Ibrahim Kanaan said after the bloc's weekly meeting: “The position takes into consideration the stances of Christian blocs and is the first step towards resolving the dispute over the parliamentary electoral law.”

Berri on Monday called on the joint parliamentary committees to convene to tackle some 17 electoral draft-laws.

Once an agreement is reached on “two or three laws”, they can be referred to parliament where they will be addressed during a legislative session, explained the speaker.

Kanaan continued: “We cannot elect a president without respecting the will of parliament and the people.”

Failure to elect a head of state has been caused by the failure to respect the constitution and National Pact for several years, he noted.

The Change and Reform and Lebanese Forces bloc support holding a legislative whose first article on its agenda is the electoral law.

The Kataeb party meanwhile stresses that parliament should only meet to elect a head of state.

Berri said on Monday however that “parliament is entitled to hold a legislative session regardless of the conditions in the country.”

Parliament convenes twice a year in two ordinary sessions -- the first starts mid-march until the end of May and the second from the middle of October through the end of December.

But the absence of a president since the end of President Michel Suleiman’s term in May 2014 has paralyzed the parliament and led to wrangling among cabinet ministers.

M.T.