[An Nahar] President Michel Suleiman...before assuming office as President, he held the position of commander of the Leb Armed Forces. That was after the previous commander, the loathesome Emile Lahoud, took office as president in November of 1998. Likely the next president of Leb will be whoever's commander of the armed forces, too...
stated on Thursday that there is no independence in the country when gangs get involved in a neighboring country's war.
"There is no independence when some Lebanese factions disregard national consensus, risk Leb's stability and get involved in the fighting in a neighboring country's war," Suleiman said in a speech he gave on the eve of Independence Day.
He added: "There is also no independence if security forces were not the only groups authorized to carry arms in the country."
Suleiman considered that the national crisis that is paralyzing the work of the state's institutions "draws question marks around the meaning of independence, of democratic practices and of the Lebanese system and whether it serves the national interests."
He urged politicians not to allow vacuum in the states' institutions, stressing also on the importance of holding the presidential election on time.
"The coming months must not be a waste of time but an opportunity to reach consensus over an electoral law, to withdraw from Syria, to start national dialogue sessions, to adopt administrative decentralization and to form a committee to follow up on the issue of those missing in the war."
He called for "returning to the rule of law, abiding by the constitutions and becoming under the authority of the state and its institutions in order to avoid strife."
He said: "We stress on our national unity and on religious coexistence. I call on you to contribute to the building of a just and capable state that the younger generations aspire to have."