Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc is gearing up to propose an urgent draft law that would call for a comprehensive settlement to the billions of dollars of extra-budgetary spending made since 2006, al-Liwaa daily reported Wednesday.

It said the opposition bloc that is part of the March 14 coalition will propose the draft law in an effort to ward off attempts by the March 8 parliamentary majority of clinching a vote on a $5.9 billion bill on spending made by Premier Najib Miqati’s cabinet in 2011.

Speaker Nabih Berri stressed Tuesday that a controversial extra-budgetary spending would be resolved through the adoption of a $5.9 billion spending bill first to pave way for a solution to $11 billion spent between 2006 and 2009.

In remarks to As Safir daily, Berri said that parliament should “first legalize the $5.9 billion, which the opposition March 14 forces had initially agreed to, so that the $11 billion problem could be resolved.”

A meeting chaired by Speaker Nabih Berri of parliament’s bureau and heads and rapporteurs of parliamentary committees on Monday will test his ability to resolve the dispute between the March 8 and 14 forces on extra-budgetary spending.

A parliamentary source told al-Liwaa daily that discussions will focus on the agenda of the March 5 parliamentary session and the possibility to launch the work of a joint legislative-ministerial committee to resolve the controversial spending.

Speaker Nabih Berri called for a session for the heads of the parliamentary committees on Monday amid efforts to resolve a dispute over the spending of funds during the governments of former Prime Ministers Fouad Saniora and Saad Hariri, reported the daily An Nahar on Saturday.

Informed parliamentary sources told the daily that the speaker is seeking the formation of a parliamentary-ministerial committee that can tackle the dispute and conduct contacts with the various blocs to reach a solution.

MP Ibrahim Kanaan, who is a member of MP Michel Aoun’s Change and Reform bloc, rejected the formation of a parliamentary committee tasked with studying spending made by the current and previous governments to find a comprehensive settlement to the issue.

In remarks to An Nahar daily published Friday, Kanaan said: “The idea of the (formation of) the committee was proposed by (Speaker Nabih) Berri on the eve of the (legislative) session given that the $5.9 billion spending bill and other draft laws on the agenda would be adopted.”

The al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc stressed on Friday that Change and Reform bloc leader MP Michel Aoun lost on three fronts when the March 14 lawmakers withdrew from a parliamentary session the day before.

Al-Mustaqbal sources told An Nahar that Aoun lost Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas, failed to win support for a $5.9 billion cabinet spending bill, and witnessed the removal of the Value Added Tax on red and green diesel, a move rejected by Energy Minister Jebran Bassil.

Change and Reform bloc MP Ibrahim Kanaan, who has proposed a draft law on the transportation allowance, rejected an alleged deal to garner a parliamentary support for his suggestion in return for the legalization of spending made above 2005 levels.

In remarks to An Nahar daily published Thursday, Kanaan said: “I don’t think that any official or lawmaker can tolerate the offense of such a settlement that hits sound governmental effort allowing cabinet spending and targets accountability and transparency.”

The resignation of Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas paved way for officials to avert a three-week cabinet crisis that had threatened the collapse of the government as the names of his successor were being speculated on Thursday.

“No candidate has been chosen yet, but it might happen in the upcoming few hours,” Free Patriotic Movement sources told An Nahar newspaper.

The official resignation of Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas on Wednesday was accompanied by signs of a political settlement reached between the top leaders that would witness a March 14 support for a draft law on the transportation allowance in return for a drop of March 8 majority demands to see records of billions of dollars spent by the governments of former Premiers Fouad Saniora and Saad Hariri.

President Michel Suleiman and Prime Minister Najib Miqati accepted the resignation of Nahhas who had been refusing to sign a transportation allowance decree linked with a wage hike made by the cabinet.

Change and Reform bloc MP Ibrahim Kanaan confirmed reports that the parliamentary majority forces were seeking to garner majority support for a draft-law proposed by him to authorize the cabinet to set the transportation allowance.

The draft-law “is a solution and guarantees the (continued) work of the cabinet, Kanaan told An Nahar daily published Wednesday despite reports that Speaker Nabih Berri could withdraw the draft-law and another one drafted by opposition al-Mustaqbal MP Nabil de Freij from the agenda of the session if the resignation of Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas was not sent to Premier Najib Miqati ahead of the session.