MP Elias Hankach on Tuesday criticized the government’s approach to financing public sector salary increases, saying officials are ignoring more effective sources of revenue and instead placing the burden on citizens.

On his X account, Hankach outlined several potential funding options the government could have pursued: $200–300 million from public sector restructuring, $2–4 billion from stronger border control and anti-smuggling measures, $1–2 billion from activating customs, $4–5 billion from cracking down on tax evasion, and $200–300 million from fines on coastal and river properties.

Hankach argued that by ignoring these funding options, the Cabinet is relying on Lebanese households to cover the cost of raising public sector salaries.

“Bottom line,” he wrote, “trying to pay public sector salaries out of Lebanese pockets won’t pass. It’s like they haven’t learned a thing from the mistakes of their predecessors.”