Beirut, MINA – Several influential former Prime Ministers (PMs) of Lebanon have chosen a lesser-known diplomat, Mustapha Adib, to head the country’s next government, all of whom confirmed his appointment during the nomination process on Monday.
Fouad Siniora, speaking on behalf of former PMs who met on Sunday said Adib must immediately form a government capable of carrying out long overdue reforms and overseeing the reconstruction of Beirut, following a massive explosion that killed at least 190 people and damaged much of it. The previous capital earlier this month.
The group of four former prime ministers represents the largest number of Sunni Muslim MPs in the Lebanese parliament, including former Prime Minister Saad Hariri’s Future Movement bloc, as quoted by Al Jazeera.
Their support was seen as critical to the prime minister’s success, who according to the sectarian power-sharing pact Lebanon must always be Sunni.
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Former Prime Minister Hassan Diab previously had the backing of only a fraction of the 27 Sunni MPs despite little popular support. His government, which resigned after the August 4 explosion is only six months old.
On Monday morning, President Michel Aoun held binding consultations with lawmakers for a formal motion to choose the next prime minister, who must then form a government, a process that in the past has taken months.
Consultations will begin with three of the four former prime ministers and Hariri’s block of Future Movement, all of whom nominate Adib, Lebanon’s ambassador to Germany.
Most of the other major blocs, including Hezbollah, the Charity Movement, and the Free Patriotic Movement have indicated they will follow suit easily giving Adib a majority. (T/R7/RE1)
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