Aoun: Government Formation Won’t Be Resolved with Settling Interior Ministry Dispute

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Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun stressed on Wednesday that Prime Minister-designate Najib Miqati should respect the decisions of the majority that appointed him.

He said in an interview to OTV: “Members who don’t have a political presence in parliament should not take part in government.”

“Whoever is forming the government does not want to hand it over to the new majority and it appears that Miqati and President Michel Suleiman are part of the old majority, especially Suleiman who fears the minority that is no longer in rule,” he noted.

“We have no personal problem with Miqati and he usually abides by protocol, but his statements in WikiLeaks don’t differ than interviews he gave to al-Liwa and al-Mustaqbal,” he said.

“An external factor is influencing Miqati against forming the Cabinet of granting me the Interior Ministry portfolio,” Aoun added.

“If he had internal reasons, then let him reveal them,” he continued.

Addressing Suleiman, the MP said that he violated his intention to remain a neutral figure in political life in Lebanon, adding that he does not believe that the president would approve the formation of a one-sided government.

“Our problem lies with the president and not a minister he may name for the new government,” he stressed.

“I am proposing names capable of handling the Interior Ministry … resolving this problem will not necessarily settle the disputes over other ministries,” stressed the FPM leader.

Addressing the developments in Syria, Aoun said: “The Lebanese government should assume its responsibilities regarding Syria’s accusations that some Lebanese are meddling in its affairs.”

“An extremist team is seeking to take over power in Syria,” he continued.

“Whoever supported the war on Lebanon is threatening to topple the regime in Syria,” the MP noted.

The dispute in Syria is aimed at eliminating the resistance in Lebanon and Syria in order to pave the way for the naturalization of Palestinians and accept the status quo imposed by Israel, he stated.

“Should Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime be toppled, it will be replaced by an extremist one and we had called on Christians in Syria not to surrender,” Aoun said.