Representative Mark Daou indicated that “yesterday’s retreat focused mainly on the presidential election, and agreement on broad lines to prepare for an initiative that includes basic points.” He said: “We are working on putting forward an initiative that outlines the priorities of the next era, to establish a political incubator for it that restores the role of the President of the Republic as an arbiter between the presidencies.”
He added, on Radio Free Lebanon: “The presidential election has a seriousness and accuracy that makes the change deputies unite to have one voice.”
He considered that “there is a development in the way of approaching matters with the change deputies, as we are the closest in the views among us, but we differ in some files because we are not a party even on the issue of weapons. to common points.
He pointed out that “the party’s weapons had more than one impact on the Lebanese situation, and there is a direct responsibility for it in more than one file, but there is a need to approach the political alignments with two main dimensions: the sovereign and the economic. He explained that “MP Osama Saad did not attend the meeting because he considers that the dialogue should not be open so that it is not understood as a political alignment and we can understand it. As for MP Abdul Rahman Al-Bizri, he is waiting for the outcome of the meeting to inform him of it, and Dr. Charbel Massad had a medical mission and might not attend.”
He believed that “the excessive love of the Progressive Socialist Party for Hezbollah will apparently withdraw from the presidential elections, and his priority is to bring out a suitable candidate to maintain balances within the system.”
He stressed that he won a large proportion of the votes of the Lebanese expatriates. He said, “I do not think that I received thoughtful votes from the Progressive Socialist Party because I was the first in every Aley district, but I have contact within the parliament with the Socialist deputies as with all the blocs, but there is no political dialogue with it as a party.”
Regarding the description of the leader of the “Lebanese Forces” party, Samir Geagea, for a future president, he said: “Personally, I agree with him with broad headlines and I am close to him, but we may disagree regarding the mechanism of managing the issue.” He pointed out that there is contact with the Lebanese Forces Party in the Council, and they met in two sessions and discussed the files, and in some files, such as the independence of the judiciary, they coordinate in the Subcommittee with Representatives George Okeis and George Adwan. He said: “In places where there is a public interest, we coordinate, of course, because they are active in the council.”
In the file of the presidential elections, he stressed that they are change representatives with the idea that the opposition will gather, but there is no agreement so far among the change representatives on the positioning of the Lebanese forces. He said, “I do not think that we will disagree with the forces over the president’s specifications, but we have to see if we agree on the person of the president. In fact, the forces are the largest Christian bloc, not the Free Patriotic Movement, especially since Hezbollah gives its ally many votes, and thus what Bassil claims is the largest Christian bloc.” A new bully from him, had it not been for Hezbollah’s pressure and assistance, he would have lost several seats, and I think he would have won by his own strength more than nine deputies.”
He added: “We will announce our initiative at the beginning of September. There is no veto in advance on dialogue with anyone, but I think that our positions and the positions of the other parties will filter these meetings.”
He pointed out that Army Commander General Joseph Aoun is not a presidential option for them as changers, because he needs a constitutional amendment, “We are once morest any amendment now. 99.99% Suleiman Franjieh is also not an option. Gibran Bassil is 100%, and we will put Michel Moawad and Nima Afram as names for discussion.”
He said: “Disrupting the presidential elections quorum is our right if we see that we need more consultations, of course only before the end of the legal deadline, that is, before October 31.”
He considered that “if Aoun stays in the palace for one day outside his mandate, this is called an occupation of a presidential position.” He said: “Aoun assured us, as changers, that he will leave Baabda Palace at the end of his term.”
He pointed out that “the issue of forming a government is far beyond the issue of switching portfolios. There is a process of targeting the covenant and the movement in recent months, while Mikati remains, so he raised the ceiling because he does not want to form a new government and is trying to increase his popular balance, especially in the Sunni arena, and if a prime minister is elected in the covenant.” Next we agree to it and it is possible that we will participate in the government.”
He said: “When Hezbollah says that everything related to it is related to Iran, we cannot believe that the nuclear agreement has nothing to do with the demarcation of the maritime borders, and it is certain that any launch of Hezbollah’s marches, Iran is aware of it.”
Daw concluded: “We and the battalions support the formation of an international fact-finding committee to investigate the port explosion. The truth must be reached even following years.”
