Turner
Salam received the Political Director and Director-General of Geopolitical Affairs at the British Foreign, Development and Commonwealth Office, Christian Turner, accompanied by the British Ambassador to Lebanon, Hamish Cowell.
The meeting discussed the latest political developments in the region, in addition to the situation in Lebanon, especially in the south, the continued British support for the Lebanese army to carry out the tasks assigned to it, and the necessity of complete Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon.
Economic bodies
Salam received a delegation from economic bodies headed by former Minister Mohamed Choucair, who said after the meeting: “We held a fruitful meeting with His Excellency the President, at the beginning of which we wished him all the best, and affirmed our full support for him and all the national positions he takes.
During the meeting, we touched on a number of important topics, most notably the issue of end of service, because all companies suffer from this issue. We made it clear that we knew how important this file was, especially if the country was still standing on its feet thanks to the private sector. Today, we requested that we be treated as a private sector, as happened with the two cellular companies, “Alpha and Touch,” with regard to the issue of patents.
We also touched on the issue of Rayak Airport and asked for there to be an airport in the Bekaa, as we hoped that work would be completed on this airport as happened with Qlayaat Airport. His Excellency the President asked us to prepare a study on the subject, and within a week we will present this study.
The meeting also dealt with the compensation fund and the financial gap, and we also talked about the issue of the commercial registry in Baabda, which is unfortunately still closed. As for the last topic, it related to privatization, where the President explained the details of the law related to it, and we hope to find solutions to all the issues that we raised, and we promised his country to follow up on all the issues.”
The hunchback
He also received a delegation from the Lebanese Coalition for Sovereignty and Transitional Justice, headed by former MP Misbah Al-Ahdab, who said after the meeting: “We came to confirm our support for the Prime Minister, who today has become a symbol of the state of law and justice in the face of a fait accompli that degrades institutions. We here denounce the systematic campaigns against the Prime Minister, including abuse, slander, and insults aimed at breaking the prestige of the position of prime minister.”
This site cannot be broken, because it represents Lebanese legitimacy, and breaking it means breaking the site of the Presidency of the Republic, the Presidency of the House of Representatives, and all state institutions. The challenge here is not a challenge to the prime minister who is working to build the state, but rather a challenge to the concept of the state and its institutions, and a cover-up for the party’s reality in crisis, as there is no longer any justification for any weapon outside the framework of the state, especially the one that was used inside Lebanon and involved in Syrian blood. As for the argument that the Shiites are a major sect and have the right to keep their weapons under the pretext of protecting their security and dignity, this is unacceptable, because that is a call for all sects to arm themselves, otherwise they are without security and dignity.
Today, President Salam has restored its constitutional role to the position of prime minister, after this position was subject to marginalization and was used by previous heads of government to cover and legitimize the decisions of the de facto powers. Today, this site has regained its natural place in the government system, as a guarantee of the balance of powers and a protection of the concept of the state.”
He added: “We presented news through lawyer Mohamed Sablouh about violations by officers who refused to implement the Prime Minister’s orders to invalidate communication documents. We put this news in the name of the state, the judiciary and the security services. The prestige of the state is indivisible, and the officer who does not implement the decisions of the executive authority must be punished, not covered up, to serve the interests of the fait accompli that has impoverished the Lebanese and plundered their money. It is not permissible for the state agencies and institutions to continue adopting and supporting them.” Whoever overthrows the state and takes up arms against it, and these agencies fight those who embrace the state and defend it. We want weapons to be confined to the hands of the state and its legitimate institutions only, whose duty is to protect all components of Lebanese society. As for saying that internal strife will occur if the state withdraws weapons, this is strife in itself, because keeping the weapons in the hands of the party will inevitably lead to the collapse of the state. The vast majority of the Lebanese do not want these weapons because It has become clear that the function of this weapon is no longer to resist Israel, but rather to control the Lebanese decision and use it as a card in the hands of the Iranian negotiator.”
Representative KabbaraHe met with the Prime Minister, MP Karim Kabbara, and discussed the general situation with him.
Pisces President Salam also received the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Middle East Airlines, Mohammed Al-Hout, and the company’s conditions were reviewed.
