Billionaire asked to form government amid crisis
BEIRUT — A billionaire telecoms tycoon, Najib Mikati, was appointed this week to form Lebanon’s next government, handing him the challenge of trying to pull the small Mediterranean country out of a downward economic spiral.
Mikati, 65, is the third politician delegated by the Parliament to form a government since the huge explosion nearly a year ago in the port of Beirut that killed more than 200 people and led to the resignation of the Cabinet in charge at the time.
Since the August blast, the country has continued to sink, with frequent protests against the political elite, chronic traffic jams, and the currency losing 90% of its value, leading to acute shortages of fuel, medicine and electricity.
Mikati warned after his designation as prime minister that easing Lebanon’s woes would not be easy. “By myself, I don’t have a magic wand, nor can I do miracles,” he said.
But before unveiling any plans, Mikati must come up with a Cabinet that can receive sufficient backing from a range of political parties in Lebanon’s sectbased political system. His predecessor, former Prime Minister Saad Hariri, tried for nine months to do so, only to announce that he had given up this month.
Mikati has a decadeslong history as a businessman and politician. A company he founded with his brother, Taha, has invested in real estate, telecoms and other businesses around the world, giving Mikati a net worth of $2.7 billion, according to Forbes.
He has served as prime minister twice before, once in a caretaker capacity after the assassination of Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005 and once from June 2011 to May 2013.
It was not immediately clear what steps Mikati would take to stem the crisis, but in his address on Monday, he said he had “international guarantees,” suggesting he had consulted with foreign countries including the U.S.