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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran | |
| Knobby: I will show up at poll and want all MPS to attend | |
| 2007-09-23 | |
Lebanon's parliamentary speaker Nabih Berri said in remarks quoted on Saturday that next week's controversial presidential election would be postponed if MPs did not turn up in sufficient numbers. Berri, a member of the pro-Syrian opposition, told the most senior MP, Ghassan Tueni, that he personally would attend Tuesday's session in parliament, but added:
Berri, who was quoted in An-Nahar newspaper, has been pushing for the two sides to find a consensus candidate to replace the outgoing, pro-Syrian, President Emile Lahoud whose term expires on November 24. Both domestically and internationally, supporters of the anti-Syrian majority have demanded that MPs proceed to elect a new president, with pressure to do so boosted following the latest killing of an MP opposed to Damascus. Under the constitution, MPs elect the president -- traditionally a Maronite Christian -- by a majority of two-thirds of parliament's 128 seats in a first round or a simple majority afterwards if a second round is required. The pro-Syrian opposition, backed by Damascus and Tehran, and spearheaded by Hezbollah, interprets the rule as saying a quorum of two-thirds of MPs is needed, enabling it to prevent the election of a candidate it rejects, as the anti-Syrian camp has only a simple majority. Hezbollah has several times threatened to torpedo a quorum, pulling out MPs in its camp from the vote. | |
| Posted by:Fred |