Mustaqbal: Mashnouq Remarks a Warning Bell, We Decide on Staying in Govt., Dialogue
Al-Mustaqbal parliamentary bloc on Tuesday described Interior Minister Nouhad al-Mashnouq's latest remarks as a “warning bell,” while stressing that it has the final say on the issue of staying in or leaving the government and the dialogue sessions.
In a statement issued after its weekly meeting, the bloc said Mashnouq's statement “reflected the dismay of the Lebanese over the current situations in the country and the state of its constitutional institutions.”
“These remarks are a warning bell for everyone, especially for the obstructors who are standing in the way of the country and its citizens,” it added.
On Friday, Mashnouq had hinted that al-Mustaqbal movement could quit the government and the ongoing dialogue if the political deadlock continues in the country.
“The persistence of the current situation would represent the first step towards leaving the government and the dialogue,” Mashnouq said at a ceremony commemorating slain Maj. Gen. Wissam al-Hassan.
Mustaqbal said Tuesday that the minister's statement “clearly underscored that the practices of the 'party of weapons' (Hizbullah) and its political and security violations have reached a totally unacceptable level.”
“It is no longer possible to tolerate the continued obstruction of the presidential elections and the government's work,” the bloc added, warning of negative repercussions on “civil peace and the political, economic and social situations.”
Stressing the importance of “overcoming this dilemma that has been created by Hizbullah and the Free Patriotic Movement,” Mustaqbal underlined the need to “activate the work of the government” and “support its security plans in all Lebanese regions, especially in the Bekaa.”
The bloc also said that it backs “fruitful and efficient dialogue among the Lebanese” as it expressed its “continued support for Prime Minister Tammam Salam and his government.”
Tensions surged between al-Mustaqbal movement and Hizbullah over the weekend in light of a war of words between officials from the two parties.
Speculation was rife last week that the cabinet would convene on Tuesday in order to tackle the garbage crisis, but no session has been scheduled until the moment.
The government's work has been paralyzed in recent months amid a dispute with MP Michel Aoun's Free Patriotic Movement over its decision-making mechanism and the thorny issue of military and security appointments, which has prompted a boycott by the movement's ministers.
Aoun announced last week that his ministers would not attend a cabinet session aimed at tackling the garbage crisis even though he supports Agriculture Minister Akram Shehayyeb's proposal to solve it.
Y.R.
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