Tuesday 29 September 2020
Last update on Tuesday, September 29, 2020 At 4:28 PM
The designated Lebanese Prime Minister, Mustapha Adib, gave up forming the government after failing to achieve this task. French President Emmanuel Macron called this failure a "collective betrayal".
The announcement was made live on Lebanese channels on Saturday, after the meeting between Adib and Lebanese President Michel Aoun at the presidential palace in Baabda.
Mustapha Adib apologized and justified himself by stressing that “the consensus announced at the beginning to form the government no longer exists”.
“As soon as I held consultations to form a government, several political blocs announced that they would not name anyone, despite my promise not to suggest names that could constitute a provocation to anyone”, he added.
Macron : “I am ashamed”
For its part, the Presidency of the Lebanese Republic explained via Twitter that “Mustapha Adib exposed to President Aoun the difficulties and obstacles he was facing in the process of forming the government, then presented him a letter of apology for not having trained it”.
Lebanese presidency added that “Michel Aoun thanked the designated Prime Minister for the efforts made and informed him to have accepted his withdrawal”.
Emmanuel Macron castigated on Sunday the “betrayal” of the Lebanese political class. “I am ashamed” for the Lebanese leadership, said the French president at a hastily called press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris.
Political parties had committed themselves to the tricolor leader, who came to Beirut at the beginning of September, to form a cabinet of “competent” and “independent” ministers within two weeks, a condition for sending the necessary international aid to the government, crucial for the recovery of the country.
Amal and Hezbollah singled out
Formation of the government came up against obstacles linked to the demands of the Amal Movement, led by Nabih Berri (Speaker of Parliament), and shiite party Hezbollah.
On August 31st, Lebanese President Michel Aoun announced that he had tasked Mustapha Adib with forming a government that would succeed his predecessor led by Hassan Diab, having resigned on the 10th of the same month after the huge explosion in the port of Beirut.
Source : Ecofin Agency.
