Samir Geagea, the head of the Lebanese Forces Party, emphasized that "June 14, 2023, is pivotal, and anyone who casts a blank ballot or names candidates not proposed or resorts to slogans will contribute, alongside the resistance axis, to the obstruction of the presidential election." He announced the launch of a solar energy project that will light up the entire region of Deir al-Ahmar. Geagea spoke at a dinner for the Northern Bekaa Coordinating Committee of the Lebanese Forces, attended by MPs Strida Geagea and Antoine Habchi, the president of the Deir al-Ahmar Municipal Union Jan Fakhri, the party's secretary-general Emile Makrzel, regional coordinator Elias Bou Roufol, municipal leaders, and a crowd of locals.
He affirmed that "we are not in a normal political crisis today, but rather it is merely an expression and manifestation of a deeper existential crisis; hence, we are unsure how long we can continue with this leadership structure that has shown its failure. We must think differently so that Lebanon remains Lebanon, and the people of Lebanon remain the people of Lebanon."
He noted that "those who listen to the rhetoric of 'Amal Movement' and 'Hezbollah' about dialogue at the start of the presidential vacuum are led to believe that they want to reach a result; however, it has become clear that they will not accept any name we propose and only desire the head of the 'Marda Movement' Suleiman Frangieh—something we will not accept."
Geagea argued that "to end this obstruction, we went to the utmost limits of positivity and converged with opposition forces and the Free Patriotic Movement on the name of former Minister Jihad Azour, considering him a neutral, consensus candidate on one hand and a technical one on the other. Despite all these specifications, the 'Shiite duo' viewed him as a challenger candidate. Therefore, it is evident that anyone we support will be considered a challenger because the 'resistance axis,' particularly 'Hezbollah,' does not want a president except one affiliated with it."
He continued: "Speaker Nabih Berri claimed that Christians are not united on a candidate, so he stopped calling for sessions and demanded we agree on a candidate's name. When we, as Christians and opposition, aligned on a single candidate and two serious candidates emerged, we reverted to the same 'tune.' So, while Berri ostensibly called for a session, we do not know what will actually happen in it."
Geagea, who indicated that he does not harbor any hopes of positivity from the 'resistance' team after leading the country to this state, asked, "How can we expect a positive step from this axis when all it cares about is implementing its substantial project, which is different from ours and far removed from the country's interests?"
He added: "The independents and the change deputies associated with the opposition need to be scrutinized because after our agreement on Azour to facilitate matters, some of them presented us with 'strange and bizarre' proposals, including rejecting sectarian and denominational alignments. Yet, any election, regardless of its type, will be according to specific alignments, and an individual must choose between at least two candidates. To reject this means to not elect anyone. Moreover, every deputy in parliament represents a specific sect 'whether they like it or not,' and thus these deputies hide behind such excuses to evade responsibility."
He highlighted that "there are also those starting to propose other names that will only attract a few votes, meaning it is impossible for them to reach the presidency, which will yield no result other than obstructing the elections." Geagea believed that "the resistance axis has obstructed and will continue this course. However, we do not know if these deputies realize that their actions contribute to this as well."
As for those criticizing Azour and considering him part of the establishment, he remarked: "You have confused us. Here, we ask who gave you the authority to classify people? For the sake of argument, let's assume that candidates are indeed from this establishment; this leads you to choose whom you see as less engaged with it."
He reiterated that "June 14, 2023, is pivotal, and those who resort to blank ballots or names without hope or slogans will contribute, alongside the resistance axis, to the obstruction."
On this occasion, Geagea announced the launch of the solar energy project that will power the entire region, the first of its kind in Lebanon, which will commence implementation in a few weeks. He indicated that it will provide independence, dignity, and freedom for the residents, as well as significant economic benefits and savings in energy consumption. He clarified that "this strategic project has been pursued by MP Habchi for years and will be implemented with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), with the region only needing to secure 10% of its funds, which has already commenced."
Geagea reminded that the people of Deir al-Ahmar were the first to stand by him in wartime, during his imprisonment, and therefore he does not forget them. He added: "With the arrival of MP Strida Geagea to parliament, I was reassured about Bsharri, while the concern remained about Deir al-Ahmar, which was not represented by the Lebanese Forces in parliament. Thus, I have sought since 2005 to implement some projects with its people until MP Antoine Habchi arrived in parliament in 2018, and we began developmental work together."
For his part, Habchi likened this phase to the period of "Greater Lebanon," saying: "Despite all the fragmentation that Christians experienced back then, there were prominent figures in the church and politics, in addition to strong institutions that managed to confront crises after World War I. Today, we face an existential problem as we stand on a historical juncture where we sense a loss of reason and logic from some who do not reflect on their words; in the beginning was the word, so this group must understand that every word they speak ties them to others."
He considered that "anyone who sees our issues as merely political and thinks it is just a matter of electing a president is mistaken; our situation is existential and requires a leader who can bear responsibility." He pointed out that "in this historical context, a lot is expected of the 'Lebanese Forces' president to navigate this stage, but we all hope to succeed with our people who choose their existence and dignity each time, alongside every Lebanese with a free conscience and a Christian identity who stands by his history and future."
