Geagea: We Seek President who Won't Conspire against Constitution
Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea accused on Wednesday the March 8 camp of obstructing quorum during the presidential polls, urging Speaker Nabih Berri to exert the sufficient pressure to persuade all lawmakers to attend elections sessions.
He said during a press conference at his Maarab residence: “We seek a president who won't conspire against the constitution.”
He added that the Free Patriotic Movement is obstructing the elections, noting: “My nomination bolsters FPM leader MP Michel Aoun's chances of being voted president.”
Commenting on recent March 8 claims that he is not a “constitutional” presidential candidate, Geagea said: “If I am rejected by half the Christian population, Aoun is rejected by the other half.”
“Surveys show that I enjoy the backing of the majority of Sunnis, while Aoun enjoys the support of the majority of Shiites. My support among Sunnis however exceeds his among Shiites,” he remarked.
Addressing Hizbullah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's recent speech during which he stated that the resistance protects the Lebanese state, Geagea said: “Such remarks are unacceptable.”
“Hizbullah's current existence weakens that state and creates despair among the people,” he added.
“We want a president who will not conspire against the constitution or stab the state in the back,” he declared in response to Narsallah's demand for a president who “won't stab the resistance in the back.”
“We want a president who will demonstrate his loyalty to the Lebanese people,” continued the LF chief.
On Nasrallah's claims that he is a confrontational presidential candidate, Geagea responded: “Why am I considered confrontational? Am I not a Maronite? Do I not represent the majority of Christians? Do I not have a presidential program?”
Nasrallah accused on Sunday the March 14 alliance of fielding a “confrontational candidate” – Geagea -- to block the election of a "serious nominee” and seek the extension of former President Michel Suleiman's term.
Geagea's nomination was officially endorsed by the March 14 camp, while Aoun, an ally of Hizbullah, had stressed that he would only run in the race as a “consensual candidate.”
“The other camp's real plan was not at all the election of a president before May 25, but rather the extension of the president's term. Let no one say that we had obstructed the election,” said Nasrallah.
The next presidential elections session is scheduled for June 9.
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