Salam Fears Government Would Suffer from Differences on Presidency

Prime Minister Tammam Salam has expressed fears that a possible vacuum in the presidency caused by the differences between the rival political parties would have negative repercussions on his cabinet.

Pan-Arab daily al-Hayat quoted officials as saying on Sunday that the failure of MPs to elect a new head of state by May 25 “would lead to a difficulty to manage the state's affairs.”

The officials, who were not identified, told the newspaper that Salam could “take a stance to reject his government's responsibility for any chaos or a decline in the achievements made since the formation of his cabinet, such as the implementation of security plans.”

Lawmakers have so far failed to elect a new president over differences between the March 8 and 14 alliances.

March 14 has officially backed the candidacy of Lebanese Forces chief Samir Geagea. But March 8 has been boycotting the parliamentary sessions over the lack of a consensual candidate, a reference to Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Michel Aoun.

The officials hoped the same atmosphere that reigned it during the formation of the cabinet would lead to an understanding to avoid a vacuum in the country's top Christian post.

They said the rival parties should start looking for alternatives if lawmakers failed again next Wednesday to elect Geagea.