Moments of terror were experienced by people last night along the coast from the Hatay province in Turkey to Lebanon due to an earthquake that measured 6.4 on the Richter scale. Its tremors reached various Lebanese regions, prompting some residents in several cities to take to the streets. In response, the Minister of Education made a precautionary decision to suspend classes today and called for an immediate inspection of school buildings to ensure their safety.
Meanwhile, political and social tremors in Lebanon have not ceased, with daily repercussions affecting most sectors. A new outcry arose yesterday during a labor movement against officials to expedite the election of a President to ensure the functioning of institutions and initiate a rescue plan before it is too late. Additionally, a meeting of the Council's bureau has been postponed indefinitely amid Christian opposition to holding a legislative session. The meeting scheduled between Prime Minister Najib Mikati and Central Bank Governor Riad Salameh to discuss ways to curb the rising dollar has also been postponed, confirming that the situation remains complicated without signs of a resolution to all issues.
In this context, Elias Khoury, a member of the Strong Republic bloc, stated in an interview with the electronic newspaper "Anbaa" that "the priority for the Lebanese Forces is to elect a President. As for the interpretation of the constitution regarding urgent legislation, it has now become subject to interpretations from all parties." He noted, "The legislator included this provision in the constitution solely for urgent situations as the priority lies in electing the President and forming a government to restore the country and implement reforms. Manipulating the constitution to pass some matters under the guise of urgent legislation at the expense of prioritizing is not permissible." Khoury affirmed that "the Strong Republic bloc has not refused dialogue, but it believes that it should commence in the House of Representatives and among parliamentary blocs, continuing until an agreement is reached on a President. For the bloc, dialogue must be within a specific framework starting from agreements on fundamental points."
In matters concerning finance and the economy, with the banks' strike and the postponement of the meeting in the Grand Serail, financial and economic expert Antoine Farah described the banks' strike as "partial," considering that ATMs are still operational and banks are managing company affairs. He anticipated that "the strike would continue because the fundamental issues for which it began have not been resolved." Farah indicated that "the postponement of the financial meeting aims to take measures to curb the rising dollar, and it is related to the fact that officials want to address the banking issues first so that banks can reopen and then begin measures to address the dollar rise."
He added, "If the Central Bank wanted to reactivate the Sayrafa platform, which it had overlooked before the banks' strike, it could still operate it even with the banks on strike since ATMs are functioning and companies can manage their transactions in the banks as well." He considered that "the solution will not come unless through a comprehensive package addressing all the issues raised by the banks, while simultaneously reactivating the Sayrafa platform in an attempt to curb the dollar."
Moreover, Farah pointed out that "much of what Deputy Speaker Elias Bou Saab said regarding capital control is logical; he explained that capital control is not the cure but rather a measure to prevent transfers abroad before seeking a solution." He noted a confusing point related to the withdrawal ceiling of $800 for each depositor, which Bou Saab interpreted as encompassing 190,000 depositors based on those benefiting from Circular 158. However, this is not accurate, as there are 900,000 depositors entitled to benefit from Circular 158. Bou Saab based his numbers on the beneficiaries of Circular 158—around 190,000 depositors—but in reality, a large number of depositors did not apply for benefits from Circular 158, possibly fearing that signing it would forfeit their right to claim their remaining funds from the banks. If this were legislated through capital control, there are 900,000 depositors, most of whom would try to take advantage of this situation, and the amounts withdrawn at the $800 minimum would be very large, which the banks, with their current liquidity, would not be able to cover. Therefore, this point needs clarification, and a logical and realistic consideration should be made between the needs of depositors and banks' decisions to arrive at a feasible solution.
In addition to these details related to depositors' rights, which have formed and continue to form the cornerstone of all legitimate demands for a comprehensive financial rescue plan for the state that includes deposit protection and loss distribution away from small depositors, the country will remain in continuous collapse as long as the intentions of some political forces revolve around achieving self-interests, even at the expense of Lebanon losing all its lifebuoys, which delays all possible initiatives to solve the ongoing crisis.
