BEIRUT: The dialogue between Hezbollah and Future is the only good development Lebanon witnessed in 2014, Speaker Nabih Berri said in remarks published Thursday, adding that he sought to preserve the current government amid the prolonged presidential paralysis.
“If there is anything good about 2014, it is the launch of this dialogue,” Berri told reporters in a gathering for local media, according to Al-Hayat.
“Both the Future Movement and Hezbollah were very keen on cooperating with each other [during the first dialogue session] and it was noteworthy the support such a dialogue received locally from both the March 8 and 14 [coalitions] as well as internationally.”
Berri sponsored a much-needed dialogue session between rivals the Future Movement and Hezbollah earlier this month to defuse rising sectarian tensions as a result of the crisis in neighboring Syria. The dialogue is also set to find a mechanism to end the presidential vacuum.
“It is supposed to create an environment that could resolve other disputes,” Berri said. "Israel is syphoning our oil resources while we are not even working in our institutions. Lebanon is some $66 billion in debt, which is the core of the problem. The sectarian tensions are not about a dispute between religions, but rather poverty is the most important element that takes such a sectarian turn."
Berri, who has been speaker of Parliament since 1992, blamed MPs for paralyzing the body's work.
“For the past two years, we weren't able to pass any laws. Was it Parliament's fault or the absence of a government and the result of some unconstitutional fatwas by some MPs?” Berri said.
He was referring to a boycott by most lawmakers against attending Parliament sessions except for urgent draft laws, arguing that the branch should not function normally in the absence of a president.
He also said there were 33 laws passed by Parliament that Cabinets including the current one had not yet begun implementing, saying he formed a committee to follow up on the implementation.
Asked why the Parliament never held Cabinets accountable for failure to implement pressing laws, Berri said he sought to preserve the livelihood of the current Cabinet as much as possible amid a presidential paralysis.
“This Cabinet is not responsible for such a matter. Even if it was responsible for failure to implement laws, I want to preserve, as much as I can, this Cabinet amid the presidential vacuum. It is part of this country's unity.”
"Unfortunately, we now have 24 presidents and 24 prime ministers. If we want to hold one of them accountable, that would imply threatening the entire government.”
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