BEIRUT: Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt said in comments published Friday that he is still undecided on which candidate he will endorse for the presidency.
“I will choose [a candidate] at the last minute after consulting my conscience and my partners,” he told Al-Ousbou Al-Arabi magazine.
“I consult Speaker Nabih Berri first, the Future Movement and other sides,” Jumblatt said.
“I will not declare anything about the subject and I prefer we have [announced] candidates with clear economic and social platforms.”
Jumblatt also denied media reports that he would not vote for Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea or Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun.
“I never said that,” he said.
The two-month constitutional deadline for electing a new president started on March 25 and Parliament is set to meet next Wednesday to elect a new president.
Jumblatt also reiterated his criticism of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and blamed him for the deterioration of war-torn Syria.
“Bashar Al-Assad, with his megalomania and stubbornness, wanted to punish his people and refused to listen to their righteous demands,” he said.
“Whether we liked Hafez al-Assad or not, we have to admit he built a strong Syria whose role [in the region] cannot be overlooked. The son destroyed it all,” Jumblatt said.
Meanwhile, Mohammad Raad, head of the Hezbollah parliamentary bloc, said his party would support a presidential candidate who defends the resistance.
“We want a candidate who will support and protect the resistance strategy and who is keen on the unity of the Lebanese people,” Raad said during a memorial service in south Lebanon.
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