Gemayel Urges Factions to Address Presidential Elections in their Dialogue
Kataeb Party MP Sami Gemayel welcomed on Monday the dialogue between the Free Patriotic Movement and Lebanese Forces and the dialogue between the Mustaqbal Movement and Hizbullah, hoping that they would address the deadlock over the presidential elections.
He said: “We hope that these talks would set the elections as a priority.”
He made his remarks during a press conference after the Kataeb Party's weekly politburo meeting.
“At a time when people in the region are staging revolts against their rulers, Lebanon enjoys a constitution, but we have decided to resort to an unconstitutional mechanism to elect a president,” Gemayel added.
“We have also invited foreign powers to interfere in our affairs to help end this impasse,” he lamented.
“We cannot blame foreign powers for our failure when we are the ones who have abandoned the constitution,” Gemayel said.
The MP accused some parliamentarians of thwarting the electoral process by violating the constitution and refraining from taking part in the polls.
“This is unacceptable. Reaching power is not a goal, but serving the people should be this aim,” he stressed.
“The factions are more concerned with finding alternatives to the president at a time when the region is being fragmented and torn apart by extremism,” he noted.
“We have started to resort to gimmicks to maintain the proper functioning of the country in the absence of a president,” the MP continued.
Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May without the election of a successor.
Disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps over a compromise candidate have hindered the polls despite 18 electoral sessions being held.
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