A coordination meeting was held in Saifi between the Kataeb party and “Tajadod” bloc including Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel, Lawmakers Selim Sayegh, Elias Hankach, Nadim Gemayel, Achraf Rifi, Michel Mouawad and Adib Abdel Masih with talks featuring high on the latest developments and namely the presidential elections.

“It is necessary for the Kataeb lawmakers to communicate with whom top priority are sovereignty and reforms in a bid to create a strong barrier against the current adopted approach. Our priority is for the upcoming presidential elections to be a transition between injustice, dependence, bullying and equality,” Gemayel said following the meeting.

“We cannot remain in the same situation. We will not surrender and we will support anyone who has the same vision. We are in touch with all the deputies who want to rebuild the country as we are not supposed to experience this dreadful situation that does not ressemble us,” he noted.

“Lebanon has great competencies and it can rise again quickly. What is important today, rather what is required, is to liberalize Lebanon’s decision and push the competent people that love their country to take over the leadership,” he added.

“We will remain in touch with everyone without any expectation. We do not have partisan considerations nor ambitions at the expense of the country.  What matters to us is Lebanon's recovery,” he concluded.

For his part, Lawmaker Michel Mouawad deemed the meeting between the two blocs as normal, saying that they are both on common ground.

“A set of challenges await the Lebanese, on top of which is the pivotal presidential election, which will shape the future of the country for the next six years, and its effects that might remain for many years forward,” he pointed out.

Mouawad said that the two blocs discussed how to reach a common approach to that entitlement in terms of agreeing on the candidate’s program and specifications, saying that the most important thing is to agree on the roadmap and how to elect a sovereign and reformist president.

“The presidential elections is not the sole challenge, but there are reform challenges. Everyone saw what happened in the Parliament on the issue of capital control and other reform issues that must save the country,” he added.