Report: Cabinet Crisis Enters New Turn

W460

The government crisis is standing now on a new turn in light of MP Michel Aoun's calls to his supporters to take to the streets and PM Tammam Salam's call for a cabinet session next week which Aoun sees as a challenge, al-Joumhouria daily said on Saturday.

Aoun has called on his supporters to be prepared to take to the streets in protest to the decree approved by the cabinet on Thursday to export agricultural and industrial products by sea.

Salam's call for a session next week to continue the discussions also angered Aoun, but sources to the PM assured that “he did not call for a meeting to challenge Aoun or any of his allies, but to carry on with governmental work” they told al-Joumhouria daily.

In a swift response to Salam's remarks, Change and Reform bloc MP Ibrahim Kanaan said: "We are being challenged and not the PM."

“The last cabinet session encouraged Salam to call for another one next Thursday because the ministers have shown determination to continue the work of the government at this stage in particular, which is what Salam wanted,” the sources added.

“We must reach a stage where the government carries on with its major duties in order to address the daily livelihood matters of people.”

Salam halted the meetings of the cabinet early in June when the FPM ministers threatened to boycott the sessions if the appointment of high-ranking military and security officials did not top the agenda.

On Thursday, the government approved the decree to allot 21 million dollars to help export agricultural and industrial products by sea despite a dispute on the issue because Free Patriotic Movement, Hizbullah and Tashnag Party ministers stressed that no issue should be discussed until the appointments were made.

Lebanon's agriculture and industrial sectors plunged in crisis after Jordan closed the Nassib border crossing with Syria earlier this year, making it impossible for the products to be transported by land through trucks to Gulf countries.

SourceNaharnet
Comments 1
Missing humble 04 July 2015, 11:37

Those who are destroying the Government are the real traitors.