Bassil Expresses Disbelief on Suleiman's Rejection of Christian Consensus, Blasts al-Mustaqbal
Energy Minister Jebran Bassil expressed regret on Sunday that President Michel Suleiman has criticized the so-called Orthodox Gathering proposal and criticized al-Mustaqbal movement for allegedly targeting power sharing.
“I am surprised that he rejects the project unless I personally hear that from him,” Bassil, who is a leading member of the Free Patriotic Movement, told An Nahar newspaper in an interview.
“He would be held responsible for missing this opportunity or for targeting a rare Christian consensus,” he said. “But I don't think that the president would do such a thing.”
The Orthodox Proposal calls for a single electoral district and allows each sect to vote for its own lawmakers under a system of proportional representation.
March 14 opposition alliance's independent Christian politicians, al-Mustaqbal movement, and MP Walid Jumblat’s Progressive Socialist Party have criticized it for allegedly deepening sectarian divisions.
Suleiman has also described it as unconstitutional and media reports said the president would not sign the bill if adopted by parliament.
A meeting held in Bkirki between FPM chief Michel Aoun, Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel and Marada chief Suleiman Franjieh on Friday called for agreeing on an electoral draft-law that secures fair and just representation for all Lebanese communities.
The statement issued following the meeting under Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi came only days after representatives from the three major Christian parties and the Lebanese Forces agreed to endorse the Orthodox Gathering proposal.
Bassil described it as “strategic not just for Christians in the Orient but for Muslims in Lebanon and for the thought of coexistence and plurality.”
During a press conference he held Sunday, Bassil blasted al-Mustaqbal for what he called rejecting power sharing between Christians and Muslims. "We are under a Takfiri attack in politics," he said.
He called the Orthodox Gathering proposal as the draft-law of “confesssional proportionality” which has no other alternative.
Bassil also shrugged off criticism that the proposal is unconstitutional, saying if the blocs that reject it decided to bring it down in parliament, then the Change and Reform bloc would do so for draft-laws proposed by them.
The minister expressed belief that there is a parliamentary majority that backs the proposal.
Other suggestions include a March 14 draft-law that calls for dividing Lebanon into 50 districts based on a winner-takes-all system and a government bill referred to parliament which projects Lebanon as 13 districts in a proportional representation system.
“Our objective is to garner the support of major parties such as al-Mustaqbal and the PSP for the Orthodox proposal,” Bassil told An Nahar, asking “why would we now back off after we achieved the support of the majority?”
The minister reiterated the FPM's rejection to adopt the 1960 law in this year's parliamentary elections.
The law, which adopts the qada as an electoral district and is based on a winner-takes-all system, was used in the 2009 polls.
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