Patriarch Yazigi to Deputies: Do Not Evade Responsibility

Patriarch John X Yazigi of Antioch and All the East for the Greek Orthodox remarked that "we gather today close to the Independence Day and how much we need statesmen in these days when Lebanon is experiencing a vacancy in the presidency. The election of the president is the responsibility of the nation's deputies, and using external balances as an excuse is merely a smoke screen to evade a historical responsibility that rests solely upon them.” During the inauguration ceremony of the Saydnaya Monastery in Hasbaya, Patriarch Yazigi stated: “We demand that the deputies take on their responsibilities and elect a president for the republic, as Lebanon cannot afford for its institutions to be a breeding ground for decay, nor its citizens to be a victim of poverty, deprivation, and displacement. We also call for justice in the Beirut port explosion case, this wound that has yet to heal.” Yazigi added: “I salute our brothers in the Druze community and affirm that we, along with you, are the children of the proud mountain and the vast Beqaa, and the children of every particle of this homeland that unites us and that we cherish.”