Fouad Siniora (left), Tammam Salam (middle), and Najib Mikati (right). (Credit: NNA)
BEIRUT — Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and former prime ministers Fouad Siniora and Tammam Salam held a meeting Monday evening at Mikati's office during which they called for "swift and radical steps" to take the country out of its political and socioeconomic crises.
In a statement published after the meeting, the former PMs said that the "dangerous situations" at play in Lebanon call for "swift and radical steps to advance the paths of real national salvation."
These steps include, according to them, the rapid election of a new president, which should be one of Lebanon’s “priorities.”
They noted that a new president should have the “confidence” of all the Lebanese and not "a specific group," and should “respect the constitution.” They listed the different characteristics the future head of state should uphold, including the "eagerness to respect the principles and decisions of the Arab and international laws," and adherence to principles such as transparency and separation of powers.
They also stated that a strong government should be formed that “regains the confidence of its brothers and friends in it and its future so that it can begin to stop the collapse and restore the desired recovery.”
Mikati, Salam and Siniora also called for an "appreciation of the efforts" of Mikati's caretaker government that "follows up the affairs of the state and the citizens in the current presidential vacancy."
The role of the cabinet has been at the center of a dispute between the caretaker prime minister and former president Michel Aoun and the party he founded, the Free Patriotic Movement. Aoun supporters have insisted that a caretaker cabinet such as the current one can't assume the responsibilities of the president in case of a continued vacancy.
In theory, the cabinet can take on presidential powers in case of a presidential vacuum, but Parliament asked in early November that it not do so, in order to prevent stoking further dispute.
The international community has repeatedly called on Lebanon to put an end to its executive power vacuum, pleading for the election of a new president without delay. Lebanon must also implement serious reforms in order to obtain a financial assistance package from the International Monetary Fund.