Geagea Says al-Rahi Prefers Strong Presidential Candidate, Doesn't Veto Anyone
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea has said that Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi does not put a veto on any candidate for the presidency.
In terse remarks to al-Liwaa newspaper published on Friday, Geagea said that his ties with Bkirki were excellent and that he was in continuous contact with al-Rahi.
“There are ongoing contacts even if the security circumstances don’t allow me to visit the seat of the Maronite church at this stage,” he said.
“Al-Rahi does not put a veto on any candidate for the presidency,” Geagea told al-Liwaa, which said that the patriarch had intensified his contacts with Maronite leaders either directly or through envoys ahead of next year's elections.
“He doesn't have a specific candidate but he prefers a strong Christian president and hopes for the presidential elections to be held on time to avoid a vacuum,” Geagea said.
President Michel Suleiman's six-year term ends in May 2014.
Al-Liwaa said that al-Rahi was keen on staying at an equal distance from all possible candidates and mainly Free Patriotic Movement leader MP Michel Aoun, Marada Movement chief MP Suleiman Franjieh, the head of the Phalange party, Amin Gemayel, and Geagea.
None of them however has announced his candidacy yet.
According to Lebanon's power-sharing system, the president must be a Maronite.
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