Minister of National Defense Maurice Slim pointed out that citizens reclaim their personal democratic authority on election day to delegate those who represent them in parliament. In a conversation with MTV, he stated that the army is prepared across all regions to proactively prevent any actions that could undermine the security and safety of the elections, adding: "We want Sunday to be a national democratic day par excellence, and for people to exercise their voting rights without facing any pressures or disruptions to security."
He mentioned that the army, along with various security forces tasked with protecting the electoral process, has a comprehensive plan, and as of Saturday, its preparedness is 100% across all Lebanese territories to safeguard this significant national process.
He pointed out that the central operations room at the army's command includes representatives from the internal security forces, general security, and state security through designated officers.
At the level of the five military regional commands, each regional commander is responsible for maintaining security in their area outside polling centers. Each commander has an operations room that includes the internal security forces.
It is noted that all other army units are already deployed across the country in their sectors and are performing their role in maintaining stability and controlling any attempts to disrupt security. Regarding polling stations, the army's forces protect the surroundings of these centers and facilitate voter access to them. Inside the centers, the army only intervenes if any disruption occurs and if the security forces require assistance. In that case, a responsible internal security officer requests army support through a written request, and the army acts upon orders from the operations room to assist the internal security forces in maintaining order inside.
In response to a question, the Minister of National Defense confirmed that the army is ready to implement President General Michel Aoun's order regarding the control of both the briber and the bribed.
