Report: Berri Thrives to Make His Govt 'Initiative' Succeed

Speaker Nabih Berri reportedly insists on making his initiative “succeed” in easing the hurdles delaying the formation of a government in Lebanon, the electronic al-Anbaa newspaper reported Tuesday.

The daily quoted Berri’s visitors as saying that the Speaker “more than ever, adheres to his initiative because any alternative would only mean Lebanon’s collapse.”

They said the “Speaker and loyal people like him, categorically reject the status quo,” stressing that “Berri will never allow Lebanon to collapse as long as he exists.”

President Michel Aoun and PM-designate Saad Hariri have failed, since the latter’s designation in October last year, to agree on a much-needed government to steer the country out of its crises.

In May, Berri revived an initiative that gained the support of several political parties including Hizbullah and the Progressive Socialist Party.

Berri’s initiative is seen as the last chance for Lebanon to have a government imperative to start the salvation process. Lebanon is wrangling with multiple crises, including an economic deadlock that drenched many Lebanon into poverty.