Hasbani: Presidency, Premiership Battle for Power Behind Delay in Cabinet Formation

Caretaker Deputy Prime Minister, Public Health Minister Ghassan Hasbani considered the obstacles delaying the formation of the new Cabinet denote a "battle of powers" between the Presidency and Premiership, the National News Agency reported on Saturday.

“Although the government formation is an internal matter, but it is affected to a certain extend by foreign developments. The key obstacle in the formation is the conflict over powers between the presidency and premiership. The battle is not over the allocation of portfolios to a particular party,” added Hasbani.

Hasbani stressed on the essential role of the Prime Minister-designate in this respect.

He said the problem today is that a certain political party wants to have a big share in the Cabinet “which undermines the essence and prerogatives of the cabinet formation.”

“The decision now is in the hands of the PM-designate," Saad Hariri, Hasbani went on. “He is dealing with the various parties in an equal manner to reach a homogeneous government that enjoys a genuine partnership, and one that can restore stability to Lebanon and neutralize regional conflicts."