Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Tuesday chaired the first meeting of his country's new government, calling on Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and members of his cabinet to undertake "reforms," fight corruption and "be loyal to the Lebanese state."
The cabinet meeting, formed last Saturday a month after Salam's appointment and ending an interim government that had governed the country for two years, was held at the Baabda Presidential Palace.
"The first meeting of the Council of Ministers was chaired by the President of the Republic and in the presence of the Prime Minister (…) At the beginning of the meeting (Aoun) called for a minute of silence for the martyrs of the Israeli aggression," said the Minister of Information, Paul Marcos, in a brief appearance before the press.
He indicated that The head of state welcomed the formation of the “Government of reform and salvation”, since “according to the president, the path to salvation lies through reform.” He also asked the ministers to work towards this political transformation of Lebanon, since “there is no bankrupt country without a bankrupt administration.”
According to Marcos, the head of state urged the ministers to be “loyal to the Lebanese state”, to make efforts “to serve the population and to cooperate and discuss” in order to come up with solutions to the country's crises.
"Belonging and loyalty, the president told the ministers, must be to the State, and not to any other party," Marcos told reporters.
Aoun was referring to Lebanon's fragmented political situation, where power is divided among the Christian, Sunni and Shiite religious denominations.
"We will work for the reform and development of the ministries (…) the important thing is not only the formation of the government, but that it strives to (gain) trust starting with the fight against corruption (…) as well as dealing with urgent matters such as the general budget and the municipal elections," Aoun said, according to the Minister of Information.
Another urgent matter, he added, is “implementing UN Security Council Resolution 1701 and ensuring Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon on February 18, despite the challenges.”
The president also asked the new ministers to avoid “criticism of friendly and brotherly countries”, to “not allow Lebanon to be a platform for such criticism”, and for “the ministers to express their opinions through official channels as appropriate”.
The Prime Minister, for his part, called on his Cabinet members to be “transparent” and “dedicated” and during the meeting he formed a committee of five ministers that will be in charge of drafting the government programme, which will be presented to Parliament, he added.
This program must include, among others, the plans of the new Executive to face the economic crisis that has affected the country for years, as well as the recovery and reconstruction after the war, in addition to the monitoring the Israeli withdrawal from the south in accordance with the ceasefire agreement with Israel, which came into force on 27 November.
The agreement, which was originally for 60 days but was extended until February 18, is based on UN Resolution 1701 and stipulates an Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the withdrawal of Hezbollah fighters north of the Litani River.
I trust that this new leader of Lebanon will not allow himself to be controlled by the terrorist assassins of Hezbollah. He has a magnificent opportunity to confront those responsible for the sad situation of the Lebanese people.
Focus on getting Hesbolla out and the money will start to appear.