Marada Hints Hariri Request Alone Not Enough for Franjieh Withdrawal

Culture Minister Rony Araiji of the Marada Movement hinted Tuesday that the movement's leader MP Suleiman Franjieh might not withdraw from the presidential race should his main backer, ex-PM Saad Hariri, ask him to do so.

“To clarify things, Franjieh had said that should all Lebanese components agree on a certain candidate, be him (Free Patriotic Movement founder) General (Michel) Aoun or anyone else, he would give up his nomination in his favor,” Araiji said in an interview with LBCI television.

“With all due respect to ex-PM Hariri and his movement, he does not represent all Lebanese components, seeing as there are Christian parties and leaders and other leaders such as Speaker (Nabih) Berri and MP Walid Jumblat,” Araiji added.

The minister also described as “inaccurate” reports claiming that Hariri visited Franjieh on Monday evening to “inform him of specific things.”

“This cannot happen due to the nature of the relation that links the two men,” Araiji said.

“In light of the meeting, Franjieh will carry on with his nomination and we didn't sense anything that suggests the contrary or any drastic change in the stances” of Hariri, the minister added.

Meanwhile, FPM-affiliated OTV quoted Marada sources as saying that “Hariri stressed to Franjieh that all options are on the table in order to put an end to vacuum.”

Hariri had returned Saturday to the country from a foreign trip that lasted several weeks.

Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and Hizbullah, Aoun's Change and Reform bloc and some of their allies have been boycotting the parliament's electoral sessions, stripping them of the needed quorum.

Hariri, who is close to Saudi Arabia, launched an initiative in late 2015 to nominate Franjieh for the presidency but his proposal was met with reservations from the country's main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah.

Hariri's move prompted Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea to endorse the nomination of Aoun, his long-time Christian rival, after months of political rapprochement talks between their two parties.

The supporters of Aoun's presidential bid argue that he is more eligible than Franjieh to become president due to the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.