Next Thursday, September 1, Lebanon will enter the constitutional period for electing a president, while the exchange of statements and interpretations continues regarding the persistence of President Michel Aoun in the Baabda Palace after the end of his term. He and his political team refuse to entrust the task of managing a potential presidential vacancy to the caretaker government if political maneuvering prevents the formation of a new government. Following sources have noted the presidential team's, including the "Free Patriotic Movement," inclination towards justifying constitutional interpretations, particularly regarding the threat of forming a transitional government headed by Gibran Bassil or a military government led by a Maronite, similar to Aoun's government in 1989. This has raised concern among circles interested in maintaining national stability, which has issued strong warnings.
The compounded danger in this context is highlighted by the "Free Patriotic Movement" team suggesting the approval of the Maronite patriarchate for these interpretations, stemming from the concern for the sectarian balance of the presidency. In contrast, the newspaper "Al-Liwaa," close to President Najib Mikati, expects the government to be formed in the final moments of Aoun's term, which ends on October 31, and that the country will be spared any political or constitutional issues that could lead to a security explosion.
Following sources indicate communications being made by "Hezbollah" with its allies in the "Free Patriotic Movement" to expedite the formation process and pave the way for issuing the formation decrees, after the final touches on the new cabinet are agreed upon during the anticipated fifth meeting between Aoun and Mikati.
Meanwhile, all eyes are on the position that Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri will announce next Wednesday at a festival organized by the "Amal Movement" in Tyre, commemorating the disappearance of Imam Musa al-Sadr, along with his companions Sheikh Muhammad Yacoub and journalist Abbas Badreddine in Libya. Informed sources stated that Berri, who has remained silent regarding the escalating relationship between the president and the designated prime minister, will focus on the precise status of Lebanon and the dangers surrounding its present and future.
His statements are expected to include a roadmap for exiting the current desert of madness, laying out to the relevant parties a choice between preserving Lebanon as a unifying homeland for all Lebanese or allowing it to fade away, taking with it the past, present, and future.
The ambiguity surrounding the presidency continues to prevail, whether regarding specifications or names, except for a solitary candidate who appeared on the presidential scene yesterday: the former chairman of the Higher Council for Privatization, Ziad Hayek, who caught the attention of the "Free Patriotic Movement's" orange channel by intentionally announcing that his wife is Iranian and that he speaks Farsi.
Two more presidential nominations are expected to be registered, this time female, from the former ambassador to Jordan, Tracy Dani Shamoun, granddaughter of the late President Camille Chamoun. She is expected to officially announce her candidacy tomorrow, Monday, at a ceremony she is holding at the "Le Gabriel" hotel in Ashrafieh, attended by 100 political, parliamentary, diplomatic, and media figures. She will then participate in a televised debate with any non-sovereignty presidential candidate.
In the same context, the Lebanese woman residing in the United States, May Rihani, is expected to announce her candidacy for the presidency in a few days and will come to Beirut to start her communications. She hails from the Metn region and is from the family of the famous Lebanese writer Amin Rihani.
As the constitutional deadlines approach, the electricity blackout continues, thanks to collusion between oil mafias and generator owners, while Energy Minister Walid Fayyad speaks of raising tariffs, without clarifying how he will deal with 40% of subscribers, including displaced individuals who do not pay their subscriptions. This implies that the tariff increase, without an increase in supply, will fall on citizens who comply with the law, representing an ineffective escape forward.
To prevent the complete blackout from extending to Rafik Hariri International Airport, Public Works and Transport Minister Ali Hamieh requested the electricity administration to ensure continuous supply to the airport from the Litani hydroelectric plants, and it was decided to raise the output of these plants during the downtime of thermal plants from 50 megawatts to about 90 megawatts.
The dismal electricity reality in Lebanon was addressed by the leader of the "Progressive Socialist Party," Walid Jumblatt, who received Energy Minister Walid Fayyad and urged him to appropriately address matters. Jumblatt tweeted: "Isn't it better to adjust the customs dollar since traders in Lebanon and Syria have profited at the expense of the Lebanese citizen? Isn't it better to raise the electricity tariff and establish an effective billing system, given that generator owners have thrived beyond imagination? Isn't it better to pass the remaining essential reform laws instead of this torrent of hatred and forgery from a failed authority?"
