Opposition says Azour remains its 'intersection' candidate
The MPs of the opposition forces have announced that ex-minister Jihad Azour remains their presidential candidate, in the wake of a 12th electoral session that failed to produce a new president.
“The electoral session has proven, without doubt, that the vast majority of the Lebanese people’s representatives clearly reject the candidate imposed by the (Axis of) Defiance camp, seeing as despite the rallying efforts and all the pressures that were exerted in the past days, he only managed to get 51 votes, in the face of 77 MPs who voted against this nomination, among whom 59 voted for the centrist candidate Jihad Azour,” 31 opposition MPs said in a statement.
“An additional number of MPs and blocs had openly announced their intention to vote for him in the second round,” the statement noted.
It added that the “approach of obstruction and imposition” was dealt a “resounding blow” in Wednesday’s session, noting that the voting result “practically ended the chances and possibility of imposing the Defiance camp’s candidate on the Lebanese.”
“We stress our continuation of calling on everyone to converge on Jihad Azour’s nomination … and we reiterate that he is the candidate that the opposition intends to intersect on with the aim of leading him to the presidency and launching the needed rescue journey,” the MPs added.
The statement was signed by the MPs of the Lebanese Forces, the Kataeb Party and the Tajaddod bloc, Change MPs Waddah al-Sadek, Michel Doueihi and Mark Daou, and independent MP Bilal Hocheimi.
In addition to the opposition MPs and some independents, the blocs of the Free Patriotic Movement and the Progressive Socialist Party also voted for Azour in Wednesday’s session.
And as some PSP MPs have reportedly said that Azour’s nomination cannot continue, the FPM’s stance on him remains unclear.
Source: Naharnet
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