Hamadah Slams Electoral Law Based on Proportionality
March 14 opposition MP Marwan Hamadeh said on Tuesday that the latest debate on a draft electoral law emerged to the surface to “cover up the continues scandals hammering the cabinet.”
Hamadeh slammed in comments published in An Nahar the efforts exerted by Lebanese officials to drop the 1960 law, which was agreed upon by all the political forces in the previous elections.
“The issue will not be able to pass” through the parliament, he stressed.
Hamadeh argued that “the debate on the issue aims at terminating a main political power in the country and weakening it.”
According to An Nahar, the lawmaker held a meeting with former Prime Minister Saad Hariri in Paris.
The two tackled the local situation and the current discussions on the structure of the March 14 forces.
For his part, Public Works and Transportation Minister Ghazi Aridi told reporters during a press conference on Monday that the debate over the electoral law aims at “getting rid of (Progressive Socialist Party leader MP) Walid Jumblat.”
He said that the adoption of a new law for the 2013 parliamentary elections based on proportionality indicates that the political powers can’t “stand” Jumblat anymore and want to deprive him of his seat in parliament.
Speaker Nabih Berri has continuously voiced his support for adopting an electoral law based on proportionality as Interior Minister Marwan Charbel formulated a proposal that is still being discussed by President Michel Suleiman, Prime Minister Najib Miqati and several other officials.
The options include considering Lebanon a single electoral district on the basis of proportionality, or maintaining the current electoral district division with the possibility of merging the small districts in one on the basis of merging the majority election and the proportional representation systems.
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