Four keys to understanding why Lebanon has been without a head of state for three months

Lebanon today marks three months without head of state Considering the impossibility of various parliamentary blocs find candidate consensus while economic crisis continues to deteriorate by leaps and bounds and Lebanese pound is in free fall again.

Legislative Mediterranean country has already held eleven presidential votes without any novice achieve the absolute majority necessary for appointment, making it clear that the only way out of the impasse is a minimum agreement between various political forces.

These are some of the keys to understanding the current political scenario in nation cedars and the consequences of a long vacuum of power:

1. Lack of consensus

According to the Constitution of the country, Camera i had to choose head of state within two months prior to the departure of the last President, Michel Aoun, whose term of office was last October 31 never found a successor.

Since then, the head of parliament, Nabi Berrycontinued to convene successive meetings for this purpose, but none of them were crowned with success, despite the fact that on the second attempt law reduces the minimum required support to an absolute majority of 65 votes.

This is the third time that a vacuum has formed at the head of state after the assassination of an ex-premier. Rafik Hariri in 2005 and the subsequent creation of two great opposing coalitions: the pro-Syrian March 8 Alliance and the anti-Syrian March 14 Alliance.

Presidential palace It had already been uninhabited from the end of the Émile Lahoud commission in November 2007 until the appointment of Michel Suleiman in May 2008, and then again from his departure in 2014 until Aoun’s appointment in 2016.

2. Opposition makes it hard to choose

With every attempt to choose a successor aunthe candidate with the most votes was Michelle Moawadson of an assassinated former president Rene Moawad and who, despite the support of important Christian groups such as Lebanese forcesusually about twenty majority ballots remain.

moawad contradicts a powerful group Shiite Hezbollahwho had already warned against appointing an anti-Resistance president and who had always voted unmarried until now, like his comrades in the March 8th Alliance.

Although since last year no bloc has had a majority in the fragmented Legislative The Lebanese Alliance on March 8 has enough seats to make it impossible for a rival candidate to be elected unless nearly all of the remaining forces join with each other.

At present, the defenders moawad they have failed to attract more supporters and their appointment seems unlikely while they continue to sound like possible candidates Suleiman Frangiegrandson of the former president of the same name, or the current commander in chief of the army, Joseph Aun.

3. Divided government

The polarization of the Lebanese political ecosystem is also affecting Governmentwhich has been on a temporary basis since June last year, since it was not possible to form a new one due to difficulties in finding a portfolio allocation that satisfies all requirements Matches And religious groups.

cabinet assumed presidential powers before leadership vacuum Statewhat is opposed by the formation of Aoun, the Free Patriotic Movement, believing that it blurs the figure of the President of the Republic reserved for the Christian.

Over the past three months, two Councils of Ministers extraordinary meetings to consider exceptionally urgent matters, and the third is scheduled for the coming days, meetings attended by ministers Hezbollah.

This issue has caused strife even between the two main members of the March 8 Alliance: the Free Patriotic Movement and Hezbollah.

4 Lebanese pound in free fall

In this context, the economic crisis that erupted in 2019 deepened, and in recent weeks Lebanese pound it topped 63,000 units per dollar on the black market, a historical record for the currency, which has lost over 95% of its value in just over three years.

With only a government with limited capacity running the country, there has been little progress on reforms required by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and a potential $3 billion bailout for Lebanon remains in limbo.

The country will not be able to have a new executive with full powers unless a head of state is first appointed.

(As reported by EFE)