Bkirki Calls for Proper Representation of Christians in New Cabinet

Bkirki has adopted a strong rhetoric recently to demand a proper Christian representation in the upcoming cabinet, calling for a fair and balanced division of portfolios.

“No one can be excluded from the cabinet and experience proved that eliminating others will increase the crisis and not resolve it,” Maronite Bishop Boulus Sayyah said in comments published in al-Joumhouria newspaper on Monday.

He considered that any cabinet formed without Christians will be deemed “unconstitutional.”

Asked if President Michel Suleiman would ink a decree that exclude the right representation of Christians, Sayyah said: “The president known his duties very well and has discussed the matter previously with the Maronite Patriarch” Beshara al-Rahi.

The bishop called on the Christian parties to agree among each other and have a unified stance in order to have an effective role.

For his part, Bishop Samir Mazloum told As Safir newspaper that the Maronite Patriarchate considers that Christians should be represented properly in the upcoming cabinet.

He noted that the Church calls for the formation of an all-embracing and fair cabinet in which all parties are given their rights.

On Sunday, Maronite Patriarch al-Rahi urged the need for political powers to end their tense rhetoric and instead place national interests above all else.

He called during his Sunday sermon for “the formation of a government capable of rising up to challenges, especially staging the presidential elections on time.”

The ongoing disputes between the rival March 8 and 14 camps have thwarted the formation of a new government since Prime Minister-designate Tammam Salam's appointment in April.