Miqati Insists on Nahhas to Abide by Cabinet Decisions to Resolve Crisis

Prime Minister Najib Miqati said on Tuesday that there’s no specific timeframe for ending the cabinet deadlock, stressing that Labor Minister Charbel Nahhas can resolve the crisis by signing the transportation allowance decree, according to al-Mustaqbal newspaper.

“The prospects for resolving the current cabinet crisis is blurry, and there is no specific timeframe to resolve it,” Miqati told the daily.

The premier denied that he discussed with President Michel Suleiman the possibility of changing Nahhas’ portfolio.

“The only way to resolve the current crisis is by implementing the cabinet’s decisions,” Miqati stressed.

The premier and the ministers of MP Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement have bickered over Miqati’s decision to appoint top civil servants in state posts reserved for Christians without consulting them.

Their dispute worsened during the PM’s visit to Paris last week after Miqati said ministers who don’t want to abide by the cabinet’s decision should resign. But Aoun slammed the premier’s statements calling on him to quit.

The PM refused to quarrel with anyone “leaving it for the public to judge,” and calling on others not to fool people and “be modest.”

According to As Safir newspaper, Miqati snapped back at Nahhas, who is loyal to Aoun, for refusing to sign the transportation allowance decree for political pretexts.

“This is why I suspended the cabinet sessions for a political reason,” he told the daily.

The minister argues that he will not sign any transportation allowance decision as it should be included in the salary in order to “legalize” it, but when the matter was subject to vote at the cabinet, his proposal won the support of 10 ministers while 19 voted against it.

Miqati revealed that Speaker Nabih Berri had pledged to approve the transportation allowance draft law once the cabinet issues the decree thus “legalizing” it.

In January, the cabinet approved a wage hike decree while the transportation and education allowances remain the contention point as Nahhas was tasked by the government to prepare a draft law and refer it to the parliament for adoption, allowing the government to set the minimum rates for transportation and education allowances, thus “legalizing” them.

“If they are accusing me of violating the constitution by suspending the cabinet session… They are also violating the constitution by not signing the decrees,” he stated.

Asked about the results of his visit to Paris, Miqati told An Nahar newspaper that the French officials “understood Lebanon’s stances regarding the regional and international developments.”

Last week, the Premier held talks with senior French officials including President Nicolas Sarkozy, PM Francois Fillon and Foreign Minister Alain Juppe.