Berri hits out at Aoun and FPM over demarcation, presidency, electricity
Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Wednesday lashed out at President Michel Aoun and the Free Patriotic Movement over several issues, in a speech marking the 44th anniversary of the disappearance of Amal Movement founder Imam Moussa Sadr.
“We remind those trying to take Lebanon back to the pre-Taef era that parliament is the only side entrusted with interpreting the constitution,” Berri said, referring to the controversy over whether or not the caretaker cabinet can assume the president’s powers in the event of a presidential vacuum.
“It is unacceptable to manipulate the constitution or rebel against it to meet the ambitions of this or that candidate, and it is illegitimate to surrender to some malicious wills that are seeking to plunge the country into the cycle of vacuum,” the Speaker added.
Moreover, he said that his parliamentary bloc “will vote for a figure who would gather and unite rather than divide,” adding that the next president should “believe in nationalist and patriotic principles and should deeply believe that Israel represents a threat to Lebanon’s existence.”
“Let no one claim to be more sovereign than us,” Berri added.
And noting that he is willing to cooperate for the sake of the formation of a new government, Berri rejected the calls for adding six state ministers to the 24-minister cabinet.
“We saw Tammam Salam’s 24-minister cabinet and how every minister in it was a president,” he said.
As for the sea border demarcation file, Berri hit back at Aoun’s latest remarks, describing them as an attempt at “showing off.”
Aoun had said Monday that some parties do not want the sea border demarcation file to be finalized during his presidential term, telling reporters that Berri and PM-designate Najib Mikati can be "asked about this matter, seeing as they possess the necessary information about everything that is happening in this file.”
“As we wait for U.S. mediator Amos Hochstein’s answer, we stress that our border and sovereignty are like our honor: we do not negotiate over them and we will defend them with all the capabilities that we have,” Berri said.
“The ball now is in the U.S. court and we’re not advocates of war, but if our sovereignty gets threatened, we will defend these rights and border,” the Speaker added.
Accusing the U.S. mediator of wasting time, Berri said: “Hochstein said that he will be absent for two weeks, but one month has passed and we have not received an answer. If there are Israeli considerations, what prevents TotalEnergies and others to drill in our undisputed areas.”
Berri also warned against procrastination and the usurpation of Lebanon’s rights.
Hitting out at the FPM over the electricity file, Berri said: “Is there a country in the world that has zero hours of power supply under the excuse of ‘they have not allowed us?’”
“Is it rational for Lebanon to be deprived of Jordanian and Egyptian gas due to the failure to form a regulatory commission at the Energy Ministry, which has drained a third of the state’s finances, under the excuse of ‘changing the law instead of implementing it?’” Berri added.
Source: Naharnet
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