NNA – Secretary of the “Strong Lebanon” Parliamentary Bloc, MP Ibrahim Kanaan, stressed today that “the return to building on an internal Lebanese foundation that allows for salvation is the prelude to the solution for an effective government whose priority is to deal with the financial, economic and social crises, which would alter the scene of despair, disgust and frustration that the Lebanese are rightfully feeling, as a result of their perception that the paths for a near solution are blocked.”
Speaking to “Voice of All Lebanon” Radio Channel this morning, Kanaan considered that “the Middle East is an American-Chinese-Iranian-Saudi battlefield, and continuing to wait for the outcome of the countries’ conflict or their initiatives in order to form a government and deal with the monetary financial crisis, rather complicates matters further.”
He emphasized herein that the Lebanese must rely on themselves in finding suitable ways to get out of the current deadlock, adding that the solution lies in agreeing on the government’s mission, not just its form, away from fearing the other’s intentions which would render each side entrenched behind its positions. He also stressed that confidence must be restored through agreeing on the content of the next phase.
“We are living an exceptional circumstance that needs decisions, and the failure of the caretaker government to convene in order to decide on the rationalization of subsidy, the budget, and other basic dossiers, renders it responsible for the downward sliding path and its consequences, since setting or raising subsidy is historically its duty,” Kanaan asserted.
He went on to question that “the Lebanese want to know the fate of their money, and the minimum step in this regard would be the forensic audit, so why do some people oppose it?”
“Restoring the confidence of the Lebanese in the banks begins with restoring the rights of depositors and reassuring them with a plan to know the fate of their lifetime savings, and the banks must seek to reassure people and end discretionary dealings with them,” Kanaan corroborated. He deemed that the depositors are the greatest losers in the event of banks closing or declaring bankruptcy, while the greatest winners are the banks themselves since their money is based abroad.
Finally, the MP disclosed that he is currently working on completing his report on Capital Control so that the Parliament can play its role in a way that preserves the rights of depositors and ends the discretionary dealing of banks.
“Banks have to reassure people regarding their deposited funds, and Capital Control should be for a specific period so as not to strike the free economic system of Lebanon,” maintained Kanaan, adding that “this step must imperatively be accompanied by an economic rescue plan, so that Capital Control does not turn into a permanent measure and a threat to Lebanon, since the solution is to restructure the banks and public debt.”
Source: National News Agency-Lebanon