Kataeb Party rejects Aoun presidency
Joseph A. Kechichian/Gulf News/March 17/16
Sami Gemayel fears ‘confrontation with region’
Beirut: Phalange Party leader Sami Gemayel, the son of a former president, confirmed that his party’s parliamentary bloc will not vote for either Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) founder Michel Aoun or Marada Movement chief Sulaiman Franjieh.
“What would we do if Aoun becomes president? We do not have the right to send the citizens to the unknown, seeing as we have a problem with his political principles and his vision of Lebanon as part of an axis,” said Gemayel on Wednesday night during the “Interviews with Paula Yacoubian” programme on Future TV.
“Why should we surrender and why should we give the presidency to Hezbollah?,” he affirmed at one point, which reflected public opinion after former prime minister Saad Hariri nominated Franjieh, the second March 8 candidate for the post.
Gemayel stated he and his party were not ready to vote for Franjieh either and, apparently, told both candidates of their decisions.
What was interesting in the young leader’s position was the realisation that recent developments, ranging from the Gulf Cooperation Council/Arab League designations of Hezbollah as a terrorist organisation to various internal shortcomings, have seriously hurt Lebanon. “What would we win if we push the Sunni community to extremism and the country to a confrontation with the [Arab] region?” Gemayel asked, citing the latest measures taken against Lebanon by the Arab Gulf States.
He berated Foreign Minister Jibran Bassil, the FPM chief and Aoun’s son-in-law, for “hostile” positions that jeopardised the livelihood of nearly 750,000 Lebanese working throughout the Arabian Peninsula.
Gemayel chastised March 14 allies for abandoning principles and making unnecessary compromises to maintain internal peace, reiterating that those who forego principles cannot lead a nation.
Lebanon has been without a president since Michel Suleiman ended his 6-years term in office on May 24, 2014. To date, the Lebanese Parliament, which elects the president, held one inconclusive vote when no candidate earned the necessary two-thirds to win, and 35 additional convocations that failed to secure quorums. Technically, and after the second ballot, parliament only needs to ensure a two-thirds quorum of its 128 members, though the president can now be elected by a simple majority vote of 65 deputies. The FPM and Hezbollah boycotted all 35 electoral sessions though the icing on the cake was that neither Aoun nor Franjieh bothered to attend their own potential .
Sami Gemayel Says Won’t Vote for Franjieh or Aoun over Fears of ‘Confrontation with Region’
Naharnet/March 16/16/Kataeb Party chief MP Sami Gemayel stressed Wednesday that his party’s parliamentary bloc will not vote for Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh or Free Patriotic Movement founder MP Michel Aoun in the presidency elections. “What would we do if Aoun becomes president? We do not have the right to send the citizens to the unknown, seeing as we have a problem with his political principles and his vision of Lebanon as part of an axis,” said Gemayel during an interview on Future TV. “Why should we surrender and why should we give the presidency to Hizbullah? Why would we have over the State to March 8 after all the perseverance we showed for years?” Gemayel asked. “We will not vote for Suleiman Franjieh and we were clear with him and with Aoun. We do not have a personal problem with them but we fear for the country’s interest,” he added. “What would we win if we push the Sunni community to extremism and the country to a confrontation with the (Arab) region?” Gemayel asked, citing the latest Saudi measures against Lebanon that the kingdom attributed to “hostile” stances by Foreign Minister Jebran Bassil – the FPM chief and Aoun’s son-in-law.
Lebanon has been without a president since the term of Michel Suleiman ended in May 2014 and the FPM, Hizbullah and some of their allies have been boycotting the electoral sessions. Al-Mustaqbal movement leader ex-PM Saad Hariri launched late in 2015 a proposal to nominate Franjieh for the presidency but his suggestion was rejected by the country’s main Christian parties as well as Hizbullah. The Hizbullah-led March 8 camp, as well as March 14’s Lebanese Forces, have argued that Aoun is more eligible than Franjieh to become president given the size of his parliamentary bloc and his bigger influence in the Christian community.
