Salam Doubts Benefits of Patience he is Exercising
Prime Minister Tammam Salam has regretted that the government's work has been paralyzed since the expiry of President Michel Suleiman's term in May last year, saying his patience is not a sign that things are on the right track.
Salam told al-Akhbar newspaper in an interview published on Wednesday that his cabinet “temporarily” began exercising the president’s prerogatives until the election of a new head of state.
But the parliament failed to elect a successor to Suleiman in more than a dozen electoral sessions, turning the government's “temporary” status into a “permanent” state, he said.
Salam has adopted the collective vote formula that requires the approval of the 23 ministers on major decisions.
The PM said the mechanism is not perfect but it is the only one available in the absence of a head of state.
“We could revise it … because it is coming under scrutiny,” he stated.
“I don't know for how long this could last,” Salam said. “Patience is beneficial but I don't want to send a message to anyone that things are doing fine.”
“If the patience I'm exercising aims to avoid paralysis and an explosion in the political situation, then it is important to elect a president,” he told al-Akhbar.
“This is the responsibility of the political parties that are represented in parliament,” Salam said, denying it was the job of his government to find a successor to Suleiman.
“Not only Christians but all parties are being harmed by the procrastination” in the election of a president, he said.
“But Christian leaders should be aware that the situation can't remain like this and that a solution should be found” to fill the country's top Christian post at Baabda Palace, Salam added.
G.K.
H.K.
| Copyright © 2012 Naharnet.com. All Rights Reserved. | https://cdn.naharnet.com/stories/en/165070 |