Geagea Seeks 'Radical Change' by Running for Presidency
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea stated that the situation in Lebanon is “difficult and bleak”, which is why the time is right for him to run for president, reported the pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat on Thursday.
He told the daily: “We must introduce radical change over how to solve Lebanon's problems.”
“I want to complete what President Michel Suleiman started, which he unfortunately only began during the last seven months of his term,” he said.
“I want to commence with my presidential program immediately should I succeed in the elections,” Geagea remarked.
“I do not seek power, but I believe that the situation in Lebanon can no longer support the ongoing problems,” he continued.
The LF chief explained that he based the decision to run for the presidential elections on promising factors and his intention to extract Lebanon from its current situation.
“My allies want to see me elected as president, in contrast with what some sides are attempting to portray,” Geagea said in reference to media reports of a rift between the LF and the Mustaqbal Movement.
“In fact, my allies will be the most at ease should I be elected as president,” he said.
Geagea is poised to officially declare his nomination for the presidency, after his press office announced that the party's Executive Committee will meet Friday to discuss his presidential program.
Asked if Hizbullah will accept his nomination and possible election, Geagea replied: “What not? Perhaps the party also wants to end the current deteriorating situation in Lebanon.”
“I believe that they are better off dealing with a serious person whose way of thinking they are aware of instead of someone whom they do not know so well,” he explained.
“When one is in a crisis, they unconsciously seek someone else to get them out of it,” he added.
“I do not think that Hizbullah's main support base is in the greatest of shape … and I do not think that it is capable of altering the current situation,” he stated.
“We are calling for the rise of the state that achieves stability and security that serve all sides,” Geagea said.
“The program we are planning serves the interests of all sides and eliminates a current flawed situation, which started with the civil war and still persists under various slogans because the Syrian regime needed it for its regional and international agendas,” he noted.
“Shouldn't Hizbullah's youths be at university instead of the battlefield?” he wondered in reference to party members taking part in the fighting in Syria alongside the country's ruling regime.
“Shouldn't they working on building a solid economy instead of earning their salaries from Iran?” asked the LF chief.
“Hizbullah's support base will be the first beneficiary from my presidential program because it is ultimately suffering the most from the current situation, whether on the social, security, or economic levels,” he remarked.
“Hizbullah's supporters will gain the most from the establishment of a strong state and achievement of security and stability,” he added.
M.T.
H.K.
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