"A minister getting his hair cut in his office within the ministry" — a scene that has provoked the ire of many Lebanese people on social media in recent hours. Energy Minister Walid Fayad was seen sitting in his office while a barber was cutting his hair, igniting a wave of criticism in a country where citizens "long" for electricity to come for more than two hours.
Some questioned what preoccupies the minister when there is no electricity at all in the entire country. Others mocked the image, considering it provocative, especially after the Ministry of Energy announced in a statement days ago that electricity would be cut off to all vital facilities.
Additionally, some commentators sarcastically discussed Fayad's achievements in this sector, which remains unsuccessful despite the enormous amounts spent on it. Others shared a video of Fayad denying that the ministry is "begging from others" (meaning to solicit), asserting that "Lebanon distributes dignity to the entire world and does not beg."
This came after Electricité du Liban announced last Saturday a complete power outage across the country, including in vital facilities such as the airport. They added that electricity supplies would resume gradually once new fuel supplies are secured, either through a swap agreement with Iraq or other sources. Algeria later confirmed that it would promptly supply Lebanon with quantities of fuel to operate power stations.
It is worth noting that Lebanon has been suffering from electricity outages since the 1990s, while cash transfers to the electricity corporation to cover chronic losses have contributed to a massive public debt of tens of billions of dollars, with citizens still not enjoying a reliable electricity supply.
