Beirut: Less than 2 months after he was formally designated Prime Minister, Saad Hariri formed his first cabinet under the tenure of President Michel Aoun, which included a few surprises but recorded a clear March 8 victory.
Hariri identified his government’s task along two fronts: alleviate serious shortcomings (garbage collection, water shortages and uninterrupted electricity cutbacks), along with the adoption of a new electoral law to be ready before the upcoming parliamentary elections slated for May 2017.
He also claimed that the chief goal was to protect Lebanon from the spillover effects of the Syrian conflict.
Although Hariri and Aoun favoured a 24-member cabinet, March 8 officials insisted on a 30-minister line-up, which is what occurred, and that gave the coalition a veto power even without the Free Patriotic Movement (FPM).
The Baabda Palace announcement assembled the entire political spectrum, except for the Phalange Party which turned down the post of state minister.
Phalange chief Sami Gemayel believes that what was offered was aimed at excluding it from the cabinet, according to LBCI television.
Pushing for federalism is integral to Gemayel’s party.
For the first time, five new portfolios were introduced that would tackle issues that have magnified in the past five years.
Ayman Shqeir (Progressive Socialist Party), was designated State Minister for Human Rights, Michel Pharaon (Independent, but aligned with Hariri) was appointed State Minister for Planning Affairs, Enaya Ezz Al Deen (Amal), was empowered to serve as State Minister for Administrative Development, Nicola Tueni (aligned with Aoun), was given the State Minister for Combating Corruption portfolio, and Jean Oghassabian (Future), a male, became State Minister for Women’s Affairs.
It was interesting to note that the Future Movement could not find a woman to assume this new post, though Speaker Nabih Berri insisted that at least one woman should be in the Cabinet.
Ezz Al Deen made history as she became the first woman minister in the history of Lebanon to wear a hijab.
Of the 30 appointees, 15 were first-timers, although the anti-corruption post was the most interesting since the phenomenon was widespread, including many who did not pay electricity.
Most citizens pay yearly municipality fees, though mosquitos rule the summer months over uncollected trash, the disputes over which are political given that leading parties pocket revenues from its collection and use. Aoun vowed to end corruption in Lebanon although the task was far more ominous than generally assumed.
In another sign of a March 8 victory, the Marada Movement was allotted the Public Works and Transportation Ministry, on Speaker Berri’s insistence, represented by Youssef Fenianos instead of former presidential candidate Suleiman Franjieh.
The so-called sovereign ministries remained under the tutelage of their respective former office-holders, with Finance Minister Ali Hasan Khalil, Interior Minister Nouhad Machnouk and Foreign Minister Gebran Bassil all keeping their respective portfolios. The single change occurred at the Ministry of Defence, as the former Beirut Governor Yaqoub Sarraf replaced Samir Moqbel.
While both are Greek Orthodox, Sarraf is a highly controversial personality as he served as a minister during former President Emile Lahoud’s term and is considered to be close to Hezbollah despite being a member of Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement. How the Lebanese Armed Forces (LAF) will absorb the news is not known. Similarly, how will the United States, which remains the LAF’s chief sponsor, react, is also unknown.
Meanwhile, the LF was allotted three ministries in addition to one minister of state, and the Future Movement filled 6 posts, including that of Telecommunications, a cash-cow.
Prime Minister Hariri summarised his new cabinet in positive terms, insisting that, at least “politically, the first mission of this government, in cooperation with the parliament, will be to reach a new electoral law that takes proportional representation and correct representation into consideration, so that the parliamentary polls can be organised on time.”
While the ultimate decision on a new electoral law is parliament’s, not the government’s, there is a need for a political approval which faces important hurdles. Former Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s 2010 government approved a law based on proportional representation and submitted it to parliament, where it lingered. Another dozen laws, including one from Amal, are in various committees as deputies struggle to accept one that satisfies everyone.
Noticeably, compared to other governments which took from 6 to 11 months to form, this cabinet did not take a lot of time to see light.
