Rival Parties Resolve Cabinet Dispute over Power Mechanism

The political arch-foes agreed to hold a cabinet session next week after reaching a deal to meet with an uncontroversial agenda and on the procedure of inking decrees.

Prime Minister Tammam Salam informed Speaker Nabih Berri that rival parties agreed to attend a cabinet session next week after his return from a short visit to Kuwait, al-Liwaa newspaper reported on Friday.

The PM will head to Kuwait on Sunday.

Berri said that parties reached common grounds on two points regarding the mechanism regulating the government’s work during the ongoing presidential vacuum.

The first compels the premier to prepare the cabinet's agenda 72 hours ahead of its meeting, in which any controversial article would be canceled.

The second touches on the inking of decrees, which should be done in harmony.

The cabinet assumes the executive tasks of the president as stated by the constitution until a new head of state is elected.

Berri expressed concern that the cabinet would turn into a caretaking cabinet if the political situation remains as it is, An Nahar newspaper reported.

“The constitutional institutions would be paralyzed,” the speaker decried.

He considered that the main problem is the failure of lawmakers to elect a new president.

Lebanon has been plunged into a leadership vacuum after Michel Suleiman's presidential term ended on May 25 with rival political blocs still divided over a new leader.

Over the past two months the parliament convened seven times to try to elect a successor to Suleiman but failed during the last six sessions due to a lack of quorum.

H.K.

M.T.