Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri affirmed that “necessities permit prohibitions in matters related to the election of the President of the Republic and the government issue,” asking, “Is it reasonable that we are suffering from the crises we are experiencing, and some are working to disrupt and sabotage everything?”, saying, “The power of the presidency is not like that.” The allegations that are being hidden behind, yes, we should have elected a president of the republic yesterday before today and tomorrow before the day after tomorrow, recalling what he announced at the festival of Imam Musa al-Sadr in Tire about electing the president of the republic, that what is required is a national president who unites and does not separate a president who has a Christian and Islamic standing and accepted Anything in national terms, a president who collects and does not subtract, a president who believes in Lebanon’s relations with its Arab surroundings, a president who believes in the Taef Accord,” asking: “How can these titles converge with the voices calling for division and federalization that are covered by the titles of expanded financial administrative decentralization?” He stressed that “Lebanon is like an atom that, if it is divided, explodes. Lebanon is too small to be divided.”
During his meeting with the Press and Editors Syndicates, headed by Captains Awni Al-Kaaki and Joseph Al-Qusifi, he said: “After 11 electoral sessions, they took the white paper from us, and said why is there no candidate? To which most of the blocs responded, with the exception of the two main blocs. It was no longer acceptable to continue with that, and there was no choice but to nominate a name that enjoys the characteristics that I mentioned in the August 31 speech on the anniversary of Imam al-Sadr’s disappearance in Tyre. I held dialogues with international bodies, especially with the ambassadors of the five countries, and I told them We thank you for the support you will provide to the person we choose.”
Berri continued: “I want to ask here who is Suleiman Franjieh. Was he not a candidate when President Emile Lahoud was extended? Wasn’t Ambassador David Hale nominated him? Was he not a candidate when General Michel Aoun was a candidate? Allow me to speak as a Maronite. I have a share in the Maronites. I am.” Lebanese, the Maronites started from the north, grew, and expanded from there to all of Lebanon, and Franjieh is the son of this north.”
He asked, “In the previous elections, did not the Christian and Maronite leaders meet in Bkerke, and on that day, four names were agreed upon, and that whoever is elected from among these four is a representative of the Christians and the Lebanese? Was not Suleiman Franjieh one of these four?” He added: “What do we want from the President of the Republic?” I need a president who talks with Syria about demarcating the borders and resolving the crisis of the displaced, because if we are going to rely on the Europeans and the Americans, they are indifferent to this issue.
Berri said, “The wise man is not only the one who knows good from evil. The wise man is the one who knows good from evil.”
Regarding his meeting with the Saudi ambassador, Berri said, “The communication was and will continue, and several meetings took place before this meeting.”
Berri concluded by saying: “The political solution begins with the presidency of the republic, and Suleiman Franjieh extended his hand to everyone for the benefit of all people. It paved the way for Lebanon and the Lebanese to follow an advanced path that preserves sects and limits sectarianism, and the entrance to that only applies Article 22 of the constitution. If we do not move towards a civil state, Lebanon will not recover.
In his activity, Berri received at the headquarters of the second presidency in Ain, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Lebanon, Walid Al-Bukhari, where a presentation was made of the general conditions in Lebanon and the region and the bilateral relations between the two countries. Good must prevail,” pointing out that “the current stage requires resorting more than ever to the good word and always betting on benevolent wills.”
Berri also received the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations and the Chair of the United Nations Group for Sustainable Development, Ms. Amina Mohammed, and the accompanying delegation. The meeting dealt with the general situation and the development projects implemented by the United Nations in Lebanon.
The President of the Council also received the head of the American Task Force for Lebanon, former Ambassador Edward Gabriel, and the accompanying delegation, in the presence of the American Ambassador Dorothy Shea, where a presentation took place on the general situation in Lebanon.
After the meeting, Gabriel spoke, saying: “We had a constructive conversation with Berri and the need to quickly elect a president of the republic, and we talked about the necessity of carrying out the necessary reforms for the functioning of the institutions in this country and stopping the bleeding. We also discussed the issue of the displaced, and we talked about working to quickly restore electricity to the people, Especially about adopting solar energy in municipalities on all Lebanese lands. Berri also stressed the importance of approving the law related to the development of solar energy, and we will see progress in this framework during the coming weeks.
Returning to the issue of the presidential elections, the emphasis was on holding this election as soon as possible, as well as the issue of the displaced. We will see, after returning to the United States, possible solutions.
