FPM: Budget Must be Approved, Govt. Must Address Refugees Crisis

The Free Patriotic Movement stressed the necessity for the approval of the state budget “with reforms,” as he demanded the government to find solutions for the refugees crisis through the adoption of a policy that encourages them to return home, the National News Agency reported on Monday.

Speaking at the FPM's periodic meeting, head of the movement and Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil highlighted several issues mainly the country's economic situation, the Syrian displacement and parliamentary elections.

“We call on the Lebanese government to launch an economic vision with short-term and long-term plans covering various sectors," the meeting said in a statement.

“The first translation of this vision is to speed up the adoption of the budget for the year 2018. This budget should include all the reforms and recommendations set by the Finance and Budget Committee, primarily to stop financial squandering, control spending and work to end the accounting records as soon as possible within the time period provided by law,” added the statement.

On the issue of displacement, the FPM said: “The Lebanese government must address the problem of Syrian displacement immediately and to adopt the political paper, submitted by Bassil, which rejects the encouragement of displaced Syrians to stay in Lebanon and adopt a policy that encourages them to return to their country.”

The Movement has also stressed the need to “strengthening participation in the political decision,” emphasizing adherence to the desired reforms in the electoral mechanism.