The head of the Lebanese Forces party, Samir Geagea, stated that "the presidential file in Lebanon is one of the strange phenomena of our times, as it is unreasonable that more than seven months pass with a vacuum after the end of the constitutional deadline, especially after the ongoing crisis for four years and the popular uprising that accompanied it, while we were supposed to see a change in this file following the outbreak of the 2019 revolution." During a seminar organized by the "Employers' Association" – Tourism Department of the Lebanese Forces in Maarab, titled "Tourism: Reality and Challenges," he affirmed that "nothing will change in the country under the current power structure, and this is the basic point that the Lebanese Forces must work on to reach a decentralized structure that removes us from additional crises, which requires long discussions with other parties."
He said, "Ultimately, after some awaited external interventions to lead to the voting for the head of the Marada Movement, Sleiman Frangieh, alongside continuous negotiations, we have reached two candidates between whom a choice must be made, namely between Frangieh and former minister Jihad Azour." He considered that "there is no blame on the resistance axis for the current vacuum, but despite all the calamities in the country, we hear statements from several MPs, who are supposed to align with the opposition, declaring that they will not vote for any candidate on the pretext of not accepting the alignments, and worse, they claim to be for change and reform and part of the opposition."
Geagea pointed out that "we lack the minimum logic, and this is what destroys society," believing that "elections are a form of alignments as is all politics, and rejecting these alignments means not voting for anyone at all, especially since those who wish to vote for one of the candidates can do so without getting involved in them." He continued: "We pose the issue objectively, so we ask, is it permissible after all we have been through to hear such words from MPs elected for change? Or to see other MPs who are dissatisfied with either of the two names because, in their view, Frangieh is a resistance candidate and Azour is a candidate of settlements, at a time when there are also MPs who want to vote for a third candidate, who at best will receive six or seven votes, which will disrupt the presidential entitlement as happened in the past with those who voted with a blank ballot?"
Geagea added: "Based on the realism in political work, and because we do not want the presidential vacuum to continue, we must choose a candidate who is minimally acceptable." In this context, former minister Michel Firzli talked about his experience at the Ministry of Tourism, expressing "the importance of coordination between tourism and all other ministries," hoping that "those in charge of the state will give it the necessary attention and support."
The head of the Tourism Department at the Employers' Association, Maher Afif, confirmed "the Lebanese Forces' support for the tourism sectors whether on the legislative level and follow-up in the Parliament, or at the level of concerned ministries and relevant public institutions, to enhance development opportunities and restore tourism's stature in Lebanon, through: prioritizing the Lebanese worker whether on a full-time or part-time basis, drafting laws that consider the uniqueness of this sector, strengthening media presence, creating alternative means to attract and protect investments in light of the current banking collapse, and encouraging Lebanese students to choose this sector to represent their professional future."
The seminar included videos and an open discussion among participants, after which MP George Okis read the following recommendations:
- The necessity of establishing a second airport capable of receiving charter flights.
- Creating tourist ports capable of accommodating tourist yachts.
- Reactivating the role of the Supreme Council for Tourism Development.
- Increasing the operational budget of the Ministry of Tourism.
- Activating religious and rural tourism.
- Supporting the environmental aspects of tourism, particularly cleaning beaches and preserving forest and woodland resources.
- Mandatory membership of all workers in the tourism sectors in existing tourism unions.
- Supporting the sector of tour guides and tour leaders.
- Enhancing communication between tourism sectors and the Ministry of Tourism on one side and Lebanese embassies abroad on the other, to promote Lebanese exhibitions and their participations.
- Developing policies to support tourism activities in municipalities and converting those activities into sources of revenue for the municipalities.
- Rethinking the distribution of revenues from Casino Lebanon.
- Urging the media, advertising, and marketing sectors to cover all programs and activities and promote them widely and continuously to reach the Lebanese expatriate, becoming an important source for marketing tourism.
- And the most important recommendation remains ensuring political and security stability, which is the fundamental pillar of tourism.
