A Lebanese Forces office in Batroun on the day of the parliamentary elections in May 2022. (Credit: Ibrahim Chalhoub/AFP)
BEIRUT — The Lebanese Forces (LF) are taking action. Energy Minister Joe Saddi (LF) announced at a press conference on Tuesday that he would be "suspending" his participation in Cabinet meetings, following discontent from Samir Geagea's party over the 2027 budget draft approved last Thursday, and amid a more general, increasingly vocal public outcry against the management of the electricity sector.
"I announce that, at this stage, I am suspending my participation in Cabinet sessions until the government assumes its responsibilities regarding the energy sector, seriously examines the proposals submitted, and responds to legitimate demands aimed at ensuring continued electricity supply and protecting citizens from additional burdens," the minister announced. He emphasized that his decision "is not an abandonment of my responsibilities, but on the contrary a way to fulfill them and make the voice of the Lebanese citizens heard, so that they do not bear the burdens of the global energy crisis alone."
A 300,000LL tax
"Responsibility is not limited to attending Cabinet sessions that do not grant the energy sector the attention that the current situation and global crisis demand," he further criticized. In Lebanon, the price of diesel has almost doubled since the end of February due to disruptions caused by the war in the Strait of Hormuz and threats looming over Bab al-Mandeb, two strategic passages for global oil trade. "The government allocates the Health Ministry [headed by Rakan Nasreddine, a minister affiliated with Hezbollah] the necessary budgets to care for those affected by the war and the displaced, while the cost of the electricity provided to them is not covered," Saddi added. "Electricité du Liban is nevertheless a public establishment, just like public hospitals and other state institutions," he said.
"The government must assume its responsibilities," he repeated, following a ministerial meeting which, according to him, "resulted in no concrete answer to the proposals presented." The main proposals were recalled in a statement published by the party Tuesday morning, after a meeting of the LF presided by Samir Geagea: "a variable electricity tariff to free the Lebanese from the grip and high costs of private generators, obligating state institutions to pay the amounts owed to Electricité du Liban, eliminating the 300,000LL tax on fuels, and requiring the state to cover the cost of exemptions it has granted to certain regions." Last week, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam requested the formation of a ministerial committee to study the request to suspend the 300,000LL tax and its impact on revenues.
"I asked ministries and public institutions to pay their unpaid electricity bills, but the response has been only partial and sporadic. How can citizens be asked to pay their bills in full when state institutions themselves do not pay the amounts they owe, which prevents us from buying fuel?" Joe Saddi continued, clarifying that he "asked the government to settle the bill for support provided to those affected by the war, so Electricité du Liban can buy fuel and ensure electricity supply."
After Saddi's press conference, Georges Adwan, MP and number two of the Lebanese Forces, told L'Orient-Le Jour that the energy minister's decision stems from the fact that "the government is pushing him into debt, that is, tapping into depositors' money, as the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) did (in charge of the Energy Ministry from 2008 to 2025), which he will not do." In their statement, the LF also harshly criticized the fact that "the prevailing approach to financial decision-making within the government continues to make the Lebanese bear ever more costs in their lives caused by corruption and weapons." "The lack of response from the government and the Finance Ministry, while funds are easily released to benefit certain others, raises pressing questions about some intentions and decisions, which cannot go unchallenged," denounced Samir Geagea's party.
At the same time as the press conference, LF MP Melhem Riachi met with President Joseph Aoun to discuss "the political and socio-economic situation in the country, as well as ongoing regional developments," according to the statement from the National News Agency (NNA).
