Kataeb lawmaker Nadim Gemayel toured the fifth Lebanese festival organized annually by the Pastoral Council of St. Joseph Church in the Riverside area on the outskirts of Los Angeles.

"As much as I am pleased to meet you and talk to you, I am saddened as Lebanon is losing its people who are emigrating due the reckless policy that brought the country to this deteriorated situation," Gemayel said.
 
“It is true that the phase of war fought by Bachir and resistance fighters aimed to prevent the occupation of Lebanon and its control. However, the Lebanese did not lose their lifetime savings in banks,” he indicated.

“It is true that the Lebanese pound started losing its value against the dollar since the early 1980s, but not as it is happening today, where residents struggle to afford healthcare, education, and basic necessities. But here I stand with you today in this festival filled with the love of expatriates for their homeland, to tell you that you are the strength of Lebanon and its positive energy. Just as the resilient Lebanese managed to overcome all obstacles in the past, they will overcome them again, thanks to the Lebanese scattered all around the world, their invaluable treasure that never runs dry,” Gemayel went on saying.

"My dear ones, Lebanon is facing two dilemmas: the dilemma of changing the country’s identity with Lebanese hands but under external guardianship and the old-new dilemma of the Syrian displacement conspiracy which Lebanon cannot bear. Difficult days pass over Lebanon,” he explained.

“We will not blame you for choosing emigration, but work with us, even from afar, to restore Lebanon for which Bachir and thousands of resistance fighters and activists sacrificed their lives,” Gemayel concluded.