Report: Challenge of Suspension of 1960 Vote Law Deadlines has Suleiman's 'Tacit Approval'

A decision by the National Struggle Front of MP Walid Jumblat to challenge the suspension of deadlines applicable under the 1960 electoral law has received the “tacit approval” of President Michel Suleiman and al-Mustaqbal bloc chief Fouad Saniora, An Nahar daily reported on Monday.

The Front's intention to challenge before the constitutional council parliament's endorsement of a draft-law that suspended the deadlines until May 19 was revealed by caretaker Minister Wael Abou Faour, who is a member of Jumblat's Progressive Socialist Party.

Abou Faour told An Nahar on Sunday that “several of the deadlines that were suspended included major constitutional violations.”

On Monday, al-Mustaqbal sources said that the movement rejects parliament's endorsement out of its conviction that a law cannot be abolished unless a new one was adopted.

Several of the draft-law's articles are contradictory, they told An Nahar although al-Mustaqbal bloc MPs voted for its endorsement last week.

They said al-Mustaqbal “did not mind” to challenge it along with the National Struggle Front.

But MP Assem Araji, who is a member of the bloc, denied in remarks to Voice of Lebanon radio (100.5) that al-Mustaqbal would challenge the draft-law.

“The challenging is limited to the National Struggle Front,” he stressed.

The president's adviser, former Minister Khalil Hrawi, also denied in remarks to VDL (93.3) that Suleiman intends to challenge the draft-law.

The draft-law sets the deadline for submitting nominations to three weeks before the June 16 elections date.

It also stipulates that the deadline for withdrawing candidacies is 15 days ahead of the polls, rather than 45.

The suspension of the deadlines came amid a failure by the rival parties to agree on a new vote law.

The controversy on parliament's latest move was exacerbated by March 14 independent Christian MP Butros Harb's disclosure that Caretaker Interior Minister Marwan Charbel's decree had legal loopholes.

Charbel issued a decree on Saturday suspending the deadline for submitting election nominations until May 19.

The ministry will resume accepting nominations on May 20 and until May 25, said the decree.

Candidates seeking to withdraw their nominations should do so before June 1, it added.

But Harb told An Nahar that the suspension of the deadlines did not prevent the announcement of candidacies until May 19.

“The suspension only aims at giving more time … which means that the citizen has until May 19 to announce his nomination,” he said.