Kataeb's Deputy-President Salim Sayegh on Tuesday warned that the government's power plan primarily aims to eliminate the Tenders Department and annex it to the Development and Reconstruction Council, deeming this as part of the ruling authority's constant efforts to seize control over the State institutions.

"The government is carrying on with its plan to undermine the independence of public administrations," Sayegh told Al-Markazia news website.

"What we have witnessed is the legalization of squandering, corruption and dubious deals. This means that are actually living now in a State that violates the law."

Sayegh warned that the plan, approved, implies the "de facto" dismissal of Jean Al-Aliyyeh, head of the Tenders Department, given that the role of said body has been significantly undermined.

Turning to the controversial project of high-voltage power lines in Mansourieh, Sayegh affirmed that the Kataeb party will not give up on defending the safety of the area's residents.

"We fail to understand why the government didn't allocate the needed funds to install the power lines underground similarily to other areas," he said.

"In Mansourieh, there are around 44000 residents who pay their taxes and fulfill all their duties as citizens. It is unacceptable to treat them this way," Sayegh stressed.