Lebanese MP Butros Harb has urged the government to respect citizens’ demands and lambasted recent crackdowns on right-wing demonstrators.
Speaking at his home in Tannourine to supporters applauding his budget debate address, the MP said political life had its ups and downs.
“What the opposition says is not meant to please the government. What we said in Parliament was intended to direct the government’s attention to its faults, because unless these faults are corrected, the country could be at risk,” Harb was quoted by the Daily Star as saying.
He called for restoring the country’s sovereignty and public liberties to help people regain trust in their government.
“What we said in Parliament reflected the pain that people feel, their hunger and their yearning for a country unlike what Lebanon is these days,” Harb said.
The MP said people were leaving the country in large numbers, “and anyone who does not leave is being persecuted as if it is necessary for everyone to follow the footsteps of those who left.”
Harb urged citizens to maintain hope and stay in the country, but he expressed fear that the “law of the jungle” would prevail.
Warning of a “social explosion,” Harb said solutions to social and economic issues must be found “before it is too late.” He called for “a change in the mentality of those in charge” but denied that he was seeking a ministerial position. (Albawaba.com)
