‘Fair election law vital for reforms’
‘Will new PM-designate mend Lebanon?’
“THE nomination of Dr. Mustafa Adeeb to assume the task of the forming the Lebanese government was sudden without any preparations or consultations and that was the manner adopted by President Michel Aoun after the resignation of former Prime Minister Saad Al-Hariri,” columnist Dr. Abdulmohsen Hamada wrote for Al-Jarida daily.
“The consultations for the formation of the government before the appointment of the new prime minister were carried out by Michel Aoun to guarantee his quota and the quota of his son-in-law Gebran Bassil in the new government and to confiscate in advance the power of the appointed new prime minister, ignoring the fact that this was in violation of the constitution because we know the constitution gives the appointed prime minister the right to hold consultations with the local politicians prior to the formation of the new government.
“This method was objected to by many Lebanese politicians, but it seems this time, the French President Emmanuel Macron exerted pressure on President Aoun to nominate the prime minister prior to holding consultations over the formation of the new government so that it falls within the jurisdiction of prime minister-designate,
“There is news from Lebanon that Hezbollah and the Amal movement have been active in secret and publicly to speed up the agreement on a name to be assigned before Macron’s arrival in Lebanon, and media leaks reported that an hour before the former heads of government met to announce the assigned name they had chosen, the leaks began to surface about Mustafa Adeeb name, an implicit indication that the decision to name the prime minister is no longer taken by them, but rather had been confiscated by Hezbollah and Amal, who considered themselves the main partner in decision-making, as evidenced by the fact that this duo continued to reject the accepted name of Ambassador Nawaf Salam by a large segment of the Lebanese Revolutionaries and the Lebanese Forces Party Lebanese, especially the rebels and the Lebanese forces.
“MP Nihad Al-Machnouk criticized the method used by previous heads of government to name Mustafa Adeeb, and issued a lengthy statement in which he stated that the commitment of the Club of the Former Prime Ministers to the prior approval of the ruling coalition, specifically Hezbollah, in the name of the designated president, constitutes an abandonment of the national secretariat that was placed in the hands of those who were entrusted with it.
“However, Dr. Mustafa Adeeb who has been authorized to form the new Lebanese government holds PhD in Law and Political Science, and he had started his practical life as an instructor for the International and Public Law at various French and Lebanese universities.
“He was chosen by the former Prime Minister of Lebanon, Najib Mikati as his advisor at the time of the Syrian tutelage, and he does not know what kind of consultations he was providing at that time. He is married to a French woman and father of five sons, and there are some news reports showing that France had played a significant role in nominating him as a Lebanese prime minister, simply because the French officials know him well, and we know that his father-in-law has a close relationship with the French Elysee Palace.
“Adeeb felt from the early hours after his nomination as a designated prime minister that he was not accepted by the people, and he wished to be given an opportunity through which he could prove his ability to implement reforms that Lebanon needs and address the greed of the corrupt, and the man tried to inspect the stricken area in Gemmayzeh and Mar Mikhael, but he was surprised that the people of the region did not welcome that visit, as some activists asked him to leave the area, chanting, ‘We don’t want you, you are one of them’ (the current Lebanese ruling political class).
“On the other hand, Adeeb himself, had published a video clip on his account, showing the attempt that was exerted to expel him from the two areas in question, with his comment saying ‘I do understand the wrath of the persecuted people, but I undertake to fight corruption”.
“Anyway, it looks difficult to forecast whether or not the newly appointed prime minister will be able to fight both corruption and the corrupt and rescue Lebanon from its ordeal, but it is obvious that he realizes the dimensions of the Lebanese problem and the State’s need of reforms.
“Consequently, unless the officials there take the necessary reform measures, the State will be exposed to danger and as such we wonder if this man (Adeeb) will be in a position to carry out the necessary difficult task and put his name on the list of eternal people.
“However, it is obvious President Macron had not referred to the weapons of Hezbollah but had called only for excluding Hezbollah from the participation in the new government.
“In this context, we say if the new government manages to achieve all reforms and gain the confidence of the Lebanese people and avert the danger of famine in Lebanon and the ‘disappearance’, then the concerned officials, Hezbollah’s weapons can be thought of, especially since he noticed the growing divergence between Bkerke, the patriarchal seat, and Hezbollah, and the Maronite Patriarch’s repeated call for Lebanon’s neutrality and illegal disarmament.
“It is certain that Nasrallah will obstruct any reform steps if he feels that they threaten his influence, especially since he has a parliamentary majority that he obtained through the election law that was imposed by the force of his Iranian weapons.
“Reforming Lebanon requires finding a fair election law that guarantees all the rights of the Lebanese, and that all Lebanese parties sit together on equal footing with no party using its weapons to threaten the other and falsely claim that its weapons, represent the weapons of the resistance and rejection and eventually impose its orders on all of the other parties.
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“Lebanon is going through its biggest crises since its independence in 1943, when economic sanctions hit the country,” columnist Qais Al-Osta wrote for Al-Qabas daily.
“The sanctions were imposed because of the Hezbollah’s military adventures in the region, and this coincided with a popular move that resulted in the closing down of the government and touristic utilities, for nearly a year following the global Corona pandemic, and what completed the situation was the explosion of the Beirut port, the death and injury of thousands of Lebanese, in addition to material losses, estimated In billions.
“The solutions are known to resurrect Lebanon with some initiatives from countries interested in Lebanese affairs, especially some of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, in addition to loans from the World Bank and the revival of the Cedar Conference, which was held in Paris years ago, and resulted in the establishment of projects estimated at eleven billion dollars.
“The problem is that all these initiatives need two things: The first reforms from the Lebanese government related to the electricity sector, the main source of corruption, and the telecommunications sector, customs and the closure of smuggling outlets.
“The other matter is for Hezbollah to return to the Lebanese interior, and to leave the Yemeni, Iraqi, Palestinian and other arenas in which all the evidence indicates that the party has a fingerprint.
“Israel tried several times to overcome this party, but the party held up remarkably militarily, if we liked the party or hated it, the new war is not from Israel, but rather from the major countries that have supported Lebanon for years, and the question here is: How long the party can stand? And can the Iranian funds rescue it, particularly under the current phase where Iran itself is facing an unprecedented financial crisis.
“For its part, Hezbollah is betting on the initiative of French President Macron, and on the results of the US elections that may displace President Donald Trump and bring in Joe Biden and the atmosphere on the grounds will be less aggressive towards Iran, and therefore Hezbollah.
“Anyway, motivated by our love to Lebanon, we would like hereby to say that who had shown steadfastness before the tank will inevitably be defeated before the US dollar.
“In other words, if Paris is today concerned about Lebanon, then it may show less interest tomorrow, and the United States began to focus on the Near East and left the Middle East, because China is its next battle.
“Such being the case, we would like to tell the Lebanese officials don’t lose the compass, simply because most of your solutions used to come from three Gulf capitals, namely Kuwait, Al-Riyadh and Abu Dhabi, provided that Hezbollah should halt its adventures in our region, otherwise, any other solutions, shall remain ineffective and tasteless talk. Is the message clear. I hope so.”
“Voices calling for amendment of the demographic structure in Kuwait were raised without thinking about the consequences of a decision which is difficult to implement, given that Kuwait is a working country and its population is relatively small,” columnist Adel Fahad Al-Mesha’al wrote for Al-Rai daily.
“It is possible to adjust the demographic composition through the replacement or Kuwaitization policy in some administrative jobs, for example, because it is a desirable step and the number of Kuwaiti graduates with such specializations could cover the manpower needs in this field. On the other hand, ministries and the private sector must operate according to the mechanism of work that depends on achievement.
“Yes, I support the demographic modification, but the competencies we urgently need should be maintained, especially in technical work like doctors, engineers and craftsmen, not for administrators like advisor, secretary or typist.
“Some advisors in ministries give others the opportunity to see details of the country’s secrets. Sometimes, they even draft the residency laws in a manner that suits the qualifications of their children and grandchildren who could be outside Kuwait. Some residents, who live in their countries, are being paid as if they are working. This is corruption and it should be eliminated.
“Remember that the people of Kuwait have learned not to turn away from those who come to them, that it is not embarrassing for any Arab or non-Arab person to spend most of his life serving Kuwait, and have been associated with their children. Therefore, we have more than three generations of them who love Kuwait, yet we demand for their departure.”
“The thirtienth anniversary of the treacherous Iraqi invasion of Kuwait reminds us of the abnormal conditions in all parts of the world. Despite the changes in our lifestyle as a result of the epidemic that has spread throughout the world, it cannot be compared with the days of the miserable invasion and the conditions that we lived as Kuwaitis in our country or as refugees in various parts of the world,” columnist Dr Balqees Al-Najjar wrote for Al-Qabas daily.
“Losing your country overnight is something that neither reason nor logic could accept. When you go to sleep at home with your loved ones feeling a sense of security and safety in a peaceful homeland, you would not think of waking up to the sounds of tanks, military cars and stranger soldiers defiling the soil of the homeland.
“This is exactly what happened to the citizens and residents of Kuwait when the nation woke up at dawn on the second Thursday of August 1990 as they saw Iraqi soldiers with tanks and military vehicles pounding highways, roads and streets towards the capital.
“Citizens and residents on their way to work were stunned and could not believe what they saw. At first glance, everyone thought the tanks and vehicles belong to Kuwait. All of them were devoid of a slogan or flag indicating their identity.
“Definitely, it was done intentionally by the Iraqi regime in order to complete the plan of treachery on the land of Kuwait.”