The public sector strike continues, entering its fifth week without any serious measures addressing the employees' demands. Today, caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati is chairing a meeting to discuss proposals that could address the demands raised by the Association of Public Sector Employees. Meanwhile, the issue surrounding the detention of Bishop Moussa Al-Haj has not subsided following the uproar caused by the investigation against him. Yesterday, Maronite Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi, in front of the delegations that expressed solidarity and condemnation in Dayman, strongly criticized the officials, demanding the rehabilitation of Bishop Al-Haj and the return of his passport, mobile phone, and belongings that were in his possession, refusing the detention of Christian clergy without the permission of the patriarchate.
At the same time, attention is turning to the legislative session that the Parliament will hold tomorrow, Tuesday, with a schedule of forty items. A parliamentary source emphasized the importance of this session, marking it as the first legislative session held after the parliamentary elections. MP Hassan Murad pointed out through "Al-Anbaa" electronic news outlet the "urgent repeated law proposal regarding the amendment of Article 17 of Law 163 of 2011 to include a map and coordinates for demarcating the southern territorial waters and the exclusive economic zone according to the line drawn by the army to safeguard our resources, placing us in a strong position in negotiations to establish our rights," expecting its approval in the session and noting a similar law proposed by MP Paula Yacoubian, which may push both proposals to the Defense Committee.
Regarding the governmental situation, Murad ruled out the formation of a government during this period, believing that matters are postponed until September, when all topics will be resolved as he mentioned, noting that the month of August is allocated for negotiations both internally and regionally according to the data and expectations he possesses. Likewise, financial and economic expert Dr. Anis Abu Diab, in a call with "Al-Anbaa" electronic platform, highlighted the importance of the banking secrecy law and the law to unify the exchange rate and the customs dollar, which are the most significant items on the agenda concerning negotiations with the International Monetary Fund. The remainder falls into a phase of waiting and wasting time at the expense of people's hunger and impoverishment, awaiting the arrival of Amos Hochstein to Lebanon at the end of this month, while the remaining details seem insignificant to the concerned parties, as Abu Diab perceives, expressing astonishment at how the majority of legislative proposals related to the World Bank are not included on the agenda.
