NNA - President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, continued his dialogue-preparatory meetings, today at the Presidential Palace.

MP Raad:

After the meeting, MP Mohammed Raad, made the following statement:

“The meeting with His Excellency specifically addressed the call for national dialogue, which the President had called for. We reviewed the proposed terms for dialogue, and our position was in support of this call, in agreement with our participation in the proposed national dialogue.

We stressed that Lebanon, which is in a time of hardship and distress, is in need of not interrupting dialogue. In a time of prosperity, the call for dialogue is normal and necessary, and in a time of hardship and pressure, continuing dialogue is more than a necessity.

Hence, we affirmed our response to the invitation and our participation in it. We call on our partners in Lebanon to show reason and wisdom and to abandon bidding and thinking, because this country is our homeland, and we are concerned with preserving it and not taking it to the abyss. Whoever builds it after the abyss is us and no one else. All the others will remain outside the country and we the Lebanese citizens only, will remain the masters of this country”.

MP Arslan:

After meeting the President, MP Arslan made the following statement:

“The current situation is unenviable. We are in a crisis, and people are living in very difficult conditions. What is happening is a true crime against all Lebanese.

The economic and financial slackness and the loss of control over the dollar rate require everyone to assume their responsibilities in a more accurate, broader and responsible manner. The complete chaos in the constitutional institutions has made people lose confidence in these institutions, and this is a dangerous matter and has negative repercussions on our homeland and its unity.

We are not talking about politics, as there are economic and financial constants linked to people’s decent living. They should not be related to political positions and interactions, the price of which is paid only by the citizen, whether he is employed in the public or private sector or unemployed.

Continuing in this dark path threatens the security of the country. In this context, the dialogue must be permanent, and there is no justification for anyone to reject the principle of dialogue. We can sit down several times and every day to debate and may even disagree on some points, but we must proceed according to the rule of democracy and what the majority decides.

It is not permissible to continue to obstruct this issue, especially at the gates of a collapse that has already occurred, but rather it threatens more accumulated collapses that could occur.

From this point of view, we supported the invitation of His Excellency the President to dialogue, and we will participate if the dialogue is called for. I hope everyone should leave political positions outside the framework of the table, and talk seriously to find solutions to the financial and social problems that the citizen suffers from”.

Questions & Answers:

Question: You are calling for no disruption, but the Council of Ministers is being disrupted.

Answer: “I do not want to enter into the “egg and chicken” debate. I would like to reach a conclusion about not weakening the constitutional institutions, because the opposite will weaken the citizen’s confidence in the state. Therefore, everything is broken, and it is required to move all state institutions and positive dialogue among us as Lebanese to get out of this crisis”.

Question: Do you think that parties which object dialogue play an internal political role, or are there external indications that prevent the Lebanese from engaging in dialogue?

Answer: “I do not want to accuse anyone, nor do I have a black intention in front of me in this matter. What I am saying is that I do not justify any Lebanese figure resigning from its active role because of the necessity of finding solutions and activating a sustainable national dialogue that is not limited to one or two points, in light of the on-going social and financial collapse. The Lebanese Charter, the constitution and the Lebanese situation, necessitate the principle of permanent dialogue among the Lebanese”.

Question: Is there a certain “color” taken on this dialogue, as if it is a dialogue of opposition?

Answer: “I have already answered that, and I said that I separate our political positions from the principle of the general national dialogue”.

Question: You are part of the political class; don’t you bear part of the responsibility for what Lebanon has reached today?

Answer: “The responsibility is borne by all of us, and we are all required to find solutions and dialogue for this and to save the financial, economic and social situation in the country”.

Question: How do you participate in a dialogue in which the Druze majority does not participate? Is it possible to ally with former MP Walid Joumblat in the upcoming elections?

Answer: “The issue of the majority or the minority is not raised, and my attendance at the dialogue is from my representative position and not from any other site. As for the elections, it is too early to talk about them, and not all alliances have been drawn up yet. The country is currently collapsing, and there are priorities”.

Question: There is a political group that has a position on the dialogue table. What dialogue are we talking about, and will it turn into a door for translating any agreement that will be imposed on the Lebanese from abroad?

Answer: “Let us first acknowledge a basic issue without practicing the “Ostrich” policy. We are facing a real political system crisis in the country, and we have been talking about this for years. This system is unproductive, and does not lead to solutions. Rather, it distributes responsibilities in a chaotic manner in a way that loses responsibility. Therefore, we must engage in dialogue to close many loopholes that the constitution does not close, unfortunately”.

Question: There is talk of a one-sided dialogue.

Answer: “I do not want to accept this issue, and I am still asking if everyone will bear the responsibility in this matter, as no one participates in the dialogue as a favor to anyone”.

Question: But the dialogue usually doesn’t lead to results.

Answer: “In this case, what is the alternative? Deciding not to talk? Reaching a dead end?”

Question: The Presidency of the Republic says that the political dispute should not turn into a national dispute.

Answer: “Exactly because these matters threaten the unity of the country and the postulates upon which the principle of establishing the entity was based”.

Question: Are you with fiscal decentralization?

Answer: “When we reach it, we speak. But it is necessary to discuss the financial and economic issue”.

Former MP Franjiyeh:

After the meeting, former MP Franjiyeh made the following statement:

“We responded to His Excellency the President’s personal invitation to meet. Since the first day of his election, we have already said that when His Excellency the President invites us to meet, we are ready, and I told him that we will remain on this principle until the last day of his term, in order to give our opinion and if he wants to take it or hear it, it is up to him. There is no personal position with His Excellency; rather we meet together on strategic issues.

As for dialogue, it must be between two groups with different opinions, or it should be within one team, there is no point in dialogue just for the sake of form. Therefore, we wished them success, and any decision taken by this team, we will support it without hesitation, knowing that they will not agree on something we oppose, but that we attend only for the sake of attendance, there is no point in that. Therefore, we will not participate in the dialogue”.

Questions & Answers:

Question: Is it true that there is an effort by Hezbollah for reconciliation between you and the Free Patriotic Movement in preparation for an electoral alliance?

Answer: “Hezbollah only works for the good between us and the Free Patriotic Movement, but everyone has their own opinion. It must be known. Is Minister Gebran Bassil ok with allying with the corrupt”.

Question: Is the dialogue a prelude to your path to the presidency?

Answer: “If the matter was true, I would have worked to please His Excellency the President. But I said my opinion”.

President Aoun will complete his preparatory meetings tomorrow, where he will receive a delegation from the “Consultative Meeting” Bloc, a delegation from the “Social Nationalist Party” Bloc, the “Armenian Representatives” Bloc, and a delegation of “Strong Lebanon” Bloc.—Presidency Press Office 

=============