Diab Says Up to Parliament to Find Constitutional Interpretation for Caretaker Powers

Caretaker Prime Minister Hassan Diab said Wednesday that parliament needs to find a “constitutional interpretation” that defines the limit of Cabinet's caretaker jurisdiction and role, days after Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah called for reactivating the resigned government.

“Instead of cooperation among everyone to push for the formation of a new government, demands for reactivating the resigned government have increased, amid warnings against violating the constitution and some accusations that we have been lax in acting in our caretaker capacity,” Diab said in a statement.

He added that the ongoing debate over the jurisdiction of the caretaker government highlights the need for “a constitutional interpretation” that defines the limit of Cabinet's caretaker jurisdiction and role.

“This interpretation is in the hands of parliament, which has this exclusive right, as the legislature itself has already announced,” Diab went on to say.

He also emphasized that the caretaker cabinet “has not hesitated to perform its duties to the highest levels of its caretaker capacity” and that “work at all ministries and the Premiership has not stopped.”

“The formation of a government remains the top priority and no task is more important today, and all those concerned must cooperate to achieve this national mission,” Diab added.