Aoun Vows to 'Eradicate Corruption', Urges Fast Govt. Formation
President Michel Aoun on Wednesday called on all parties to “facilitate” the formation of the new government as he promised Lebanese citizens that steps will be taken to “eradicate” the rampant corruption in the country.
“There are a lot of domestic and external challenges ahead and we can only confront them through our unity and solidarity and by giving the priority to the national interest,” Aoun said at the annual iftar banquet in Baabda, which brings together the country's top leaders and officials every year.
“We must seal all the possible gaps through which the winds of violence and disturbances could leak from abroad into the country,” the president added, warning against disunity and “conflicting visions and interests.”
With the election of a new parliament and Speaker, Aoun said that the next step is to "form a national unity government that can confront the challenges, a government that can deal with the regional and international situation while preserving domestic stability."
The president added that the new government should also "carry on with reforms as it seeks to combat corruption, modernize state administrations" and "implement an economic plan that can lead to the country's growth and rise."
"Everyone is asked to facilitate the formation of the new government, seeing as the pressing situation does not allow any waste of time. The standards of the formation process are well-known and we only have to abide by them and implement them," Aoun went on to say.
He cautioned that "the most important challenge is the economic situation that has deterioated due to accumulations and continous crises that have been running for decades and that have been aggravated by the repercussions of the global economic crisis and the wars in the region."
Aoun warned that “any economic plan will not fully succeed if we do not devise practical solutions to resolve the growing Syrian refugee crisis.”
The president also said that he "promises all Lebanese" that the State will take "decisive steps to eradicate corruption" before next Ramadan.
Aoun's speech comes on the eve of binding parliamentary consultations to name a new premier in which caretaker Prime Minister Saad Hariri is expected to be re-appointed to his post.
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