Frem from Bkerki: I fear that this chaos will kill what is left of Lebanon

The Maronite Patriarch, Cardinal Bechara Boutros Rahi, met this morning in Bkerki with MP Neemat Frem, who later said:

  1. "I met His Beatitude today, at a turning point in the existence of Lebanon, since this day can be the beginning of a bad period that no one wants. The people who chose us as their representatives gave us the responsibility to change the current situation and what we are experiencing is leading us towards a new chaos of an unprecedented kind.
  2. This chaos may be seen by some as a creative chaos that will lead to a change of regime. But I fear that it will be fatal for what remains of the Lebanon we know, and for our people who emigrate on a daily basis and who, by their departure, are modifying the demography of the country.
  3. We must elect a President of the Republic as soon as possible. This is our duty as deputies and it is up to the people, not to the political parties and blocs, to hold us to account. I consider that the President of the Lebanese Republic must be consensual and elected in accordance with the Constitution with a majority of 86 votes out of 128.
  4. This is not impossible, for we agree on many fundamental issues - first and foremost the need to end people's pain and suffering, and to put an end to the financial and economic drain, to the depreciation of the Lebanese pound, to the miserable situation of schools, universities and hospitals, and to the collapse of public institutions.
  5. It is true that divisive issues persist and must be discussed seriously and forthrightly; this is the responsibility of the new president. But for now, we must elect a mission-driven president, who works for the salvation of Lebanon and for whom the concept of the new Lebanon lies in the reconstruction of state institutions, the revival of the economic and social situation, the implementation of expanded administrative decentralization, the creation of the Senate and the safeguarding of Lebanon's natural position in its Arab, Mediterranean and neutral dimension.
  6. I renew the call to elect a president today before tomorrow. By realizing this, we will save our country from perdition. We will also avoid starting a period of which we cannot get out and entering a constitutional chaos which will turn into a deadly one that will signal the end of the Lebanon we know."
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