The Speaker of the Parliament, “Nabih Berri,” received the Chairman of the Parliamentary Education Committee, MP “Hassan Murad,” at the Second Presidency headquarters in Ain El Tineh. During the meeting, they discussed the general situation and political developments, in addition to some legislative matters.
“Berri” also held a meeting with the Minister of Finance, “Yassin Jaber,” to discuss the current financial situation.
The Speaker of the Parliament also received the Minister of Information, “Paul Murqos,” and the meeting dealt with the general situation and political developments, as well as discussing legislative affairs related to the media law, contractors with the Ministry of Information, the financial gap law, and the rights of depositors.
Following the meeting, “Murqos” stated: “This is a periodic visit to the Speaker of Parliament, and we discussed topics related to media legislation, especially the media law approved by the Administration and Justice Committee, chaired by MP George Adwan. I wished the Speaker to include it in the first public session of Parliament, after it had taken up a large part of the discussion in the committees, and the Administration and Justice Committee finished it in its entirety and it became ready for approval.”
He added, “I also wished for the approval of the draft law subjecting contractors with the Ministry of Information to the retirement charter, which was on the agenda of the General Assembly, had it not been for the loss of quorum in the last session, and the Speaker promised well.”
“Murqos” continued: “The Speaker pointed to the issue of Tele Liban and the valued efforts it is making, the latest of which was the interview with His Excellency the President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun, which the Speaker described as very good. We also touched on general media topics, especially legislation, including the financial gap law and the repayment of deposits.”
He explained that he presented to the Speaker a set of observations he had previously made in the Council of Ministers, which were based on a legal study he presented to the Council, noting that the Council took some of these observations into account, while others were ignored and were the subject of his reservation in the minutes of the meeting. He pointed out that he explained to the Speaker the content of these observations, expressing his hope that the Parliament would adopt them, similar to many other observations on the draft law.
“Murqos” indicated that “Berri’s” reaction was positive in this regard, stressing three main points, the first of which is protecting deposits, preserving them, and enshrining the rights of their owners, the second is not to touch gold, referring to the additional provisions introduced into the draft law to achieve this goal, and the third point relates to the issue of credibility in the promises that can be given to depositors, so that they are based on clear figures and calculations, and free of errors or promises that may undermine any of these rights.
The Speaker of Parliament also received the former Director General of General Security, Major General “Abbas Ibrahim.”
