Kataeb leader Samy Gemayel on Monday called on the Lebanese people to hold accountable every responsible for the current situation the country is experiencing, namely the ruling authority, Hezbollah and the Central Bank Governor through the ballot boxes, deeming May legislative elections as an opportunity for the Lebanese so as to vote for the right and competent people.

“I call on the Lebanese people to take the right decision and vote for the right people. Voting in the upcoming elections is a small sacrifice that we can make in the interest of our country. These elections will pave the way to delegitimize Hezbollah. We, as the Kataeb party won’t be part of a government controlled by Hezbollah and we won’t elect a President who represents it,” Gemayel said in an interview with LBCI TV Channel.

 

“We warned against the collapse in 2016 as our analysis were based on reports by the World Bank, economic indicators, annual deficits and the balance of payments. We warned against the collapse that would be triple: the state, the banking sector and the people. They had a responsibility to stop the state funding. Everyone knew where we will end up except the ruling authority that accused us of “populist” and today we are paying the price,” he pointed out.

Gemayel blamed the political class for its failure in addressing the acute economic situation, the issue of Hezbollah in isolating Lebanon and the Central Bank for its monetary policy.

“The Governorship of the Central Bank is also responsible for this deteriorated situation. We seek an independent judiciary to observe the Central Bank and hold it accountable. Salameh’s term was extended jointly and unanimously. He should have been suspended from his duties as he is prosecuted in Lebanon and abroad. We lost confidence in the Lebanese judiciary due to discretionary as we can be against Riad Salameh and the way Judge Ghada Aoun takes action at the same time,” he added.

“We believe that the investigation in the Beirut Blast was suspended due to the interference in the Lebanese judiciary. There are people who are preventing a judge from taking action, while the entire judicial body has stood by Judge Bitar,” he affirmed.

 

“Mecattaf Trading Company was founded 60 years ago and it has a wide credibility. No resolution has been made and we didn’t understand what happened. We consider that there is discretion in dealing with this case,” he added.

 

“I believe that the Central Bank Governor or any responsible in the public sector should be prosecuted for violating the law and for committing any crime. All money transfers made should be observed,” he said.

 

“We are concerned about Judge Ghada Aoun’s actions as they may be for the purpose of blackmail. What she is doing is right but on the other hand we are concerned about discretionary,” he noted.

 

Gemayel said that the Capital Control bill was off the table, adding that the Kataeb party has worked on a rescue plan that will be presented to the people.

“The settlement concluded in 2016 paved the way for Hezbollah to hold sway over the country through electing his ally Michel Aoun as President of the Republic and it also led to the adoption of an electoral law that gives the majority for Hezbollah,” he added.

 

“Change won’t be achieved after the upcoming elections but there will be a group of people who will be fighting in the Parliament and who are willing to save the country. There should be competent people who can revive the economy and all the sectors. We took a decision to create a political and independent force in the Parliament that may include 20 or 30 deputy which aim is to restore a new political life in Lebanon,” he emphasized.

 

“Back in 2018, the opposition was consisted of 4 deputies including Me, Nadim Gemayel, Elias Hankache and Paula Yacoubian. We hope that this year it will grow,” he said.

 

“The Lebanese forces formed a government with Hezbollah and it was part of the presidential settlement. Today we are trying to forge an alliance outside the ruling authority, we may get a team a together with the Lebanese forces and the Progressive Socialist Party on specific files and we may disagree on others,” he noted.

The Kataeb leader stressed that the Lebanese army’s mission is to maintain security and it does not require a political decision.

 

“The Lebanese army had a major role in Tayyouneh clashes. We believe that the Lebanese army is able to protect the Lebanese people and we should support it,” he affirmed.

 

“As long as Hezbollah holds sway over the country, I won’t run for President,” he said.

"We will fight this battle to save the Lebanese people from this nightmare, and this requires people who are ready and capable to fight and we were able to do in 2018 so with 4 deputies,” he added.

 

Gemayel also called on all party leaders for a public debate before the parliamentary elections so as to develop projects concerning education, economy,industry and money.