The controversial employment of Electricite du Liban’s contract workers, which paralyzed the cabinet and the parliament on Tuesday, is jeopardizing the alliance between Hizbullah and the Free Patriotic Movement as President Michel Suleiman is set to decide on the matter.

The ball is in the president’s court, who will have to either ink the parliament’s approval of the workers’ permanent employment or refer it back to the legislature, local newspapers said on Wednesday.

Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea voiced on Tuesday his rejection of the current conduct at parliament, saying that he “supports and opposes” granting Electricite du Liban contract workers full-time employment.

He said during a press conference at his Maarab residence: “Granting such a large number of workers full-time employment is not possible because it will lead to the bankruptcy of the state.”

Speaker Nabih Berri received on Tuesday a cable from French President Francois Hollande, confirming to him his country’s support for Lebanon.

He said: “Maintaining stability, peace, and democracy in Lebanon will be one of my top priorities.”

Speaker Nabih Berri suspended on Tuesday the parliamentary session for lack of quorum after Christian blocs boycotted it over the approval of EDL contract workers’ full-employment.

“The boycott is based on political reasons and not sectarian,” Berri said.

The parliament on Monday approved a draft law on hiring Electricité du Liban contract workers on a full-time basis.

The candidates will have to take part in a closed contest organized and supervised by the Civil Service Board, state-run National News Agency reported.

Meetings in parliament on the sidelines of the legislative session on Monday enabled the rival political parties of reaching an agreement over the controversial issue of financial spending following months of political quarrelling.

The deal on the LL11 billion bill was reached after some amendments were agreed.

Parliament is expected to convene on Monday and Tuesday in order to tackle 33 projects and draft laws, most notably one on state institution expenses and the other on the employment of Electricite du Liban contract workers, reported the daily An Nahar on Sunday.

Several contacts were conducted between the rival parliamentary majority and the opposition in order to ensure that spending draft law will be tackled at parliament, said the daily.

Members of parliament’s bureau refused to put an urgent draft-law on the allocation of LL11.561 trillion to cover the expenses of state institutions in 2012 on the agenda of a legislative session next week, An Nahar daily reported on Thursday.

A meeting held on Wednesday between the bureau’s members led to the rejection to put the cabinet’s bill on the agenda of the two-day parliamentary session next Monday, it said.

Speaker Nabih Berri and Prime Minister Najib Miqati have agreed on the need to consolidate an agreement reached between the different parties to improve the government’s performance, As Safir daily reported on Wednesday.

The newspaper said that both officials, who held talks in Ain el-Tineh on Tuesday, stressed the importance of giving a fresh impetus to the deal reached between the president, the speaker and the PM earlier in the month on the consolidation of the government’s work.

Imam of Sidon's Bilal bin Rabah mosque Salafist cleric Ahmed al-Asir considered on Tuesday that the campaign against him by the Syrian regime and its allies is linked to his opposing stances.

“The allies of the Syrian regime are besieging me” by turning the Sunnis against him, he told the Kuwaiti al-Seyassah newspaper.