The political body of the Free Patriotic Movement stated that the COVID-19 crisis should serve as an incentive to speed up government formation, urging the caretaker government to fulfill its responsibilities.
The political body of the Free Patriotic Movement clarified in a statement following its regular electronic meeting chaired by MP Gebran Bassil, which was dedicated to the implications of the COVID-19 crisis, that the constitution holds the caretaker government responsible for negligence, which, in these difficult health and financial circumstances, can harm, even endanger, citizens. This imposes a legal and moral responsibility on the negligent minister towards the citizens.
The statement added that the body views with concern the increasing number of COVID-19 infections and related deaths, given the limited resources available to both the state and the private sector. It called for a national solidarity stand with the infected, which includes a series of measures such as enhancing hospital capacity to provide more beds for COVID-19 patients and the necessary medical equipment and supplies. It emphasized the importance of participation from Lebanese expatriates worldwide in this solidarity stance and urged the government to allow the importation of all licensed vaccines.
The body also called on the Ministry of Public Health and the COVID-19 committee to take the decision to ban travel to Lebanon from countries where the so-called mutated strains of COVID-19 are appearing. It warned against violating the pharmaceutical practice law by concealing quantities and types of medication for exploitation amid the potential price hikes, which poses a danger to citizens' lives and increases their suffering. It demanded that the Ministry of Public Health and the relevant judiciary expose and pursue the perpetrators.
