Political circles of all kinds are busy trying to decode the initiative of Speaker Nabih Berri to shift from caution to publicly naming the head of the "Marda" movement, Sleiman Frangieh, at this very moment as a candidate for the presidency, supported by the duo of "Amal" and "Hezbollah" and their allies from parliamentary and political components.
Reliable sources tell the newspaper "Al-Joumhouria" that "Berri's initiative did not arise from nothing, nor does it come in the context of what some consider a game of pulling rabbits out of hats, just for political excitement during a wasted moment. The Speaker approaches this matter with the utmost seriousness and responsibility, and his public endorsement of Minister Frangieh's candidacy does not merely mean confirming the obvious and mourning the era of blank votes, but rather clarifying the presidential points, as what he said openly and clearly in support of the head of the "Marda" movement is fortified by what he has not yet said, while time has become critical, compelling all parties to assume their responsibilities to extract the country from the labyrinth of vacuum deepening the crisis and increasing the fractures in the Lebanese body."
Berri told "Al-Joumhouria": "The country is stricken, and its condition is deteriorating from bad to worse, and the sin of obstruction has exacerbated the collapse whose devastating effects now threaten the present and future of the country, and thus the current situation cannot continue as it is."
Berri emphasized that "completing the presidential file has become a national, humanitarian, and moral duty, and hence the initiative to announce support for Minister Frangieh's candidacy, which is a step that may motivate all parties to present a candidate or candidates." He said: "It is now necessary for nominations to occur, which is a self-evident matter, so that competition can take place. We are ready to go to the parliament, as at the moment when there is an opportunity for competition, I will immediately call for an electoral session; let the elections proceed and let whoever succeeds, succeed."
Berri pointed out that "I held eleven sessions, and as we all witnessed, they were nothing but theatrical sessions, or rather a farce. Therefore, I am not willing to call for any session where the theater and farce are repeated. All of those sessions were so, and I say that no session will be held unless there is competition." He stated: "Their argument was that our team does not want to elect, and this is not true. We have been, and continue to be, adamant about electing a president and providing all the conditions that enable us to agree on one or more candidates and to go down to the parliament and elect. In any case, I said that our candidate is Minister Sleiman Frangieh, so let them come and agree on one or more candidates, and let us go down to the parliament and engage in the democratic game in a healthy competitive atmosphere, and elect the president."
In response to a question about the possibility of securing a quorum for the electoral session, especially since some parties have announced that they would disrupt the quorum, Berri said: "Those who do not complete the quorum should bear the responsibility in this case."
On the other hand, Berri rejected the notion that the parliament is paralyzed and its legislative role is disabled, saying: "No one can disrupt the parliament or strip it of its legislative role. The parliament is not paralyzed, and what happened recently regarding the legislative session and some parties’ refusal to attend it does not target the parliament or disrupt it, but rather it is a reaction to the convening of the Cabinet, meaning that the attack is on the Cabinet, not on the parliament."
