Member of the "Strong Republic" bloc, MP Pierre Bou Aassi, stated that "the existence of a government is not a luxury, and what is happening in Tripoli is a wake-up call." He considered that "the political mix between Hezbollah's authority and the ongoing conflict between the President of the Republic and the designated Prime Minister will not produce a government today, and this is at the expense of the people."
In a statement to "Voice of Beirut," Bou Aassi said, "The Lebanese Forces only make their choices based on their convictions, and this has been their path since they took up arms in defense of Lebanon until today. They were imprisoned and then participated in governance; their path does not change, and their convictions do not change." He considered that "the President's credit has dissipated today, and he has lost the trust of the people, and the recent events and the Beirut port explosion are clear evidence of that." He added, "No one in Lebanon has taken credit similar to what President Aoun took. In the period when he appointed a transitional Prime Minister, he was head of the executive authority and commander of the army in the absence of Parliament and with a homogeneous society and popular support; he ended all that with destructive wars. He rose again after going to France and gained significant popular weight, arriving at the presidency with direct support from Hezbollah primarily and through a settlement. But what did he do with that credit? What did he do for those who trusted him and looked at him as the savior to rebuild the state and ensure stability and prosperity? That credit is not yours but belongs to the people."
Bou Aassi revealed that "the Forces chose between the option of electing Aoun as President and the death of the Republic. The elections occurred two and a half years after presidential vacuum, which forced them into this choice, to avoid chaos, within a political agreement that the other side did not respect. Thus, it was not their first choice." He reminded that "they nominated the party leader, Dr. Samir Geagea, during this period, but none of the surrounding group remained when Hezbollah imposed the choice of Aoun or chaos."
He pointed out that "everyone who participated in governance is surrounded by suspicions of corruption. Let the judiciary make the decisive decision to determine who is a perpetrator and who is not, and let them start with us as Lebanese Forces."
Regarding the party’s position on the Governor of the Central Bank, Riad Salameh, he noted that "the Lebanese Forces were the first to raise the issue of the governor since 2017 through their Vice President, MP George Adwan, from under the dome of Parliament. They were then attacked for addressing a Christian position while people’s money was at stake." He mentioned that "what led the state into mismanagement and corruption was that the banks indebted the state, which was accompanied by negligence from the banking oversight committee and the governor." He recalled, "We were the ones who proposed legislation that led to the lifting of banking secrecy for a year to proceed with forensic financial auditing. There is no cover for anyone, and we support the judiciary's work with complete transparency."
Bou Aassi reiterated that "the main goal at this stage is to hold early parliamentary elections, abolish the current council, and recreate authority," stressing that "resigning from the council does not change anything." He considered that "the reaction of some MPs that led them to resign is a wrong step, as there are major challenges in Parliament that they were obliged to confront."
He concluded, "The existence of the opposition in Parliament is not a negative matter; on the contrary, it is an important and natural thing. Resignation will not resolve the COVID crisis, the vaccination plan, or the election law. We do not want resignation, but rather the dismissal of Parliament."
