“Lebanon Debate”
Representative Pierre Bou Assi said, in a television interview, that “we have the right to be dissatisfied with President Joseph Aoun,” considering that the presence of Foreign Minister Youssef Raji at his side on his foreign visits constitutes an “added value.”
Once again, the Lebanese Forces do not miss an opportunity to target the President of the Republic, even when it comes to a power that belongs to him alone, which is to choose the members of the delegation accompanying him during his foreign visits.
President Aoun is not obligated to accompany Raji or any other minister, nor is he waiting for the approval or blessing of the “Forces” to determine the delegation that will represent Lebanon abroad. Whoever accompanies him on his tours is a purely presidential decision, with no new material for political bidding.
As for describing Raji as an “added value,” this comes at a time when his performance does not rise to the level of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, despite his representation of the President of the Republic on a number of foreign visits. The ministry has never witnessed such a low level in its performance and role, which makes defending the minister and portraying his presence as necessary in presidential delegations separate from the actual outcome of his work.
Thus, the issue does not seem to be related to who accompanies the president on his tours, as much as it reveals the insistence of the “Forces” on seizing any opportunity to direct their arrows at Aoun, even through the gate of a decision that concerns him alone.
