 The battle between Lebanese President Emile Lahoud and the forces of March 14 was officially declared Friday, as Maronite Patriarch Nasrallah Butros Sfeir implied he would not oppose a legal step aimed at ousting the President.
| Emile's toast. Probably what's holding things up is the question of who gets to succeed him. I'd guess it'll be a Christian — I think it's a requirement, in fact — but I'd guess it'll be Wally's Christian. But when the process reaches its full blossom there'll be a Nasrallah Christian to oppose him, and probably a Knobby Berri Christian, and possibly an Aoun and/or Geagea Christian. The ghost of Anna Comnena told me she's getting a headache... |
And as the attack on Lahoud continued to gain momentum, Speaker Nabih Berri announced March 2 as a date for the long-awaited Parliamentary dialogue, intended to resolve the country's severe political differences.
| Last time I looked, Damascus still owned Knobby. But his lease may have run out by now, given the way the wind's blowing... |
Speaking to local daily An-Nahar, Sfeir said that despite the fact he opposed toppling Lahoud through "popular street protests," he did not mind resorting to legal procedures in ending Lahoud's mandate. "Those who want to oust Lahoud should use constitutional means. We are with the law. If the law allows a change [of president] so be it," he said.
| Y'got a puppet imposed by Damascus, who occupied you for 30 years. Who's dumb enough to think he's going to finish his term in office. Whose henchmen are in jug for murdering Hariri. I guess you can take your time about it. How's the end of March sound? |
Sfeir had initially resisted the March 14 Forces calls to topple Lahoud, but the patriarch has been recently softening his previous stances, and moving closer to accepting an early end to Lahoud's term.
| I think he met with Emile and smelled the decomposition. And he's come to the conclusion that the Syrians aren't coming back... |
But Sfeir asked politicians demanding that Lahoud be toppled through public consensus to resort to legal and constitutional procedures in their quest instead of resorting to massive public demonstrations. "Toppling the president should not happen this way," he said, adding that the Parliament majority should agree on a new president before ousting Lahoud, and warning that Lebanon was going through a delicate period.
| That's what I said. They'll spend a month or so juggling Christians... |
Sfeir, who was visited by Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun late Friday night as The Daily Star went to press, also regretted the fact that the post of the presidency has become the target of attacks, and said that disputes over the legitimacy of Lahoud are harming the country.
| Emile could fix that easily enough. He can't do much of anything else, though... |
After the meeting, Aoun did not give a statement, but sources close to the FPM said he had discussed the controversial issues of the presidency and the Baabda-Aley elections. "The current state of the presidency does not honor the Lebanese or the man still holding on to the post," Sfeir said.
| That's a hint to Emile. Not very subtle, either... |
"I am against the creation of political vacuum," he said. "There should be an agreement on the identity of the new president before agreeing on toppling of the present president."
| "But he's gonna be toppled, isn't he?" |
In a further effort to round up support from the Patriarch, who is seen as the religious mentor of the presidency, Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea met Sfeir in Bkirki on Friday, saying after he emerged that he was "happy with the discussions" over the presidency. "I don't want to reveal what the patriarch said, but I was happy with the course of the discussion ... which mainly revolved over the most important issues right now: ousting Lahoud," Geagea said. He added that the political and public will was ripe right now to topple Lahoud, and called on any political party supporting the president's stay in power "to raise their finger." |