| Hariri’s absence provokes
constitutional debate Zeina Abu Rizk
Daily Star staff
Parliament’s question-and-answer session on Monday
turned into a constitutional debate over the validity of the meeting in the absence of
Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, provoking a debate over the deputy prime minister’s
prerogatives and the need for Cabinet by-laws to avoid such ambiguous situations.
It was only after a two-hour discussion on this, which saw the rise of confessional
sensitivities, that Parliament finally proceeded with its agenda by deciding that the
session was legitimate and that the absence of Hariri, on an official visit to China,
could not paralyze its work.
Ending months of controversy over the issue of air pollution generated by diesel engines,
Parliament gave the government a two-month deadline to implement a law issued last August,
which phases out the use of diesel fuel.
The government announced the deadlines for taxis and vans to stop using diesel engines,
June 15 and July 15 respectively, pledging to compensate owners of such vehicles and
facilitate the purchase of gasoline engines.
Finance Minister Fouad Siniora asserted that his ministry would not hinder the law,
implying that he endorsed the compensation and other privileges that owners of diesel
engines would enjoy. His remarks were registered in the minutes, with Parliament pledging
to follow up the various measures.
But the government did not specify the value of the compensation payments.
Despite its importance, the pollution issue was overshadowed by the constitutional debate
that preceded it. Government sources expected part of the questions raised in Parliament
on Monday, in particular the deputy premier’s prerogatives and the need for Cabinet
by-laws, to be brought up again in the next Cabinet session.
These questions have been raised in the past but frozen due to their confessional and
political ramifications, since Hariri
considers these suggestions as attempts to restrict his powers. Raising such issues once
again would constitute another chapter in the dispute between him and President Emile
Lahoud.
In Parliament, the issue at hand involved the Orthodox, Sunni and Shiite communities.
Speaker Nabih Berri, a Shiite, insisted that the absence of the Sunni prime minister
should not hinder Parliament’s work, especially in legislative and
question-and-answer sessions.
“The holding of plenary meetings cannot depend on the premier’s presence,
because this would give the prime minister the opportunity to evade subjects he
doesn’t wish to discuss” by staying away from Nijmeh Square, the speaker argued.
To MPs who argued that the deputy speaker, an Orthodox, could replace Hariri in such
meetings, Tripoli MP Omar Karami a Sunni and a former prime minister protested that
the prime minister was the sole representative of the government and “the only one to
speak on its behalf.”
Baalbek-Hermel MP Hussein Husseini revealed that during the Taif Accord discussions, it
was agreed that the deputy premier would replace the premier when the latter is absent,
except during crucial issues such as the government’s resignation, a vote of
confidence in the government or the presentation of the government’s policy
statement.
“As for the deputy premier’s prerogatives, they were to be specified in the
Cabinet’s by-laws, but such a text has not yet been issued,” Husseini added.
Since a question-and-answer session could at any moment lead to a vote of confidence in a
minister or the government, such a session was unconstitutional in the absence of the
prime minister, he argued.
Batroun MP Butros Harb urged determining the deputy premier’s duties, recalling an
incident during the term of former Prime Minister Salim Hoss when he refused to sign a
death sentence decree. Hoss suggested that during his absence from the country, his
deputy, Michel Murr, would sign instead. But this provoked a political storm, which only
abated when Hoss’ suggestion was dropped.
For his part, Murr, now an MP for Metn, said Taif envisioned the deputy premier enjoying
the same prerogatives as the deputy speaker, meaning that he should be able to replace the
prime minister, except in cases such as the government’s resignation.
Murr argued that the exception was aimed at avoiding situations in which the deputy
premier is on good terms with the president, when “they could both reach an agreement
to have the government resign in the absence of the prime minister.”
Berri commented jokingly, “especially nowadays,” referring to good ties between
President Emile Lahoud and Fares.
For his part, Berri said that he knew Hariri would miss the session but did not change the
date.
Berri’s decision to continue prompted Husseini to leave on the basis that the meeting
was unconstitutional, while Zahle MP Nicolas Fattoush protested that the deputy premier
enjoyed prerogatives not stipulated by the constitution.
As for the pollution issue, Beirut MP Mohammed Qabbani, a member of Hariri’s
parliamentary bloc, confronted Interior Minister Elias Murr, one of Lahoud’s closest
allies, accusing him of failing to implement the law and staying away from previous
parliamentary committee sessions on the matter.
Murr said decrees were issued last week allowing the government to buy back 10,000 license
plates, while a road worthiness system will be set up once a tender is launched on May 28.
Beirut MP Atef Majdalani said hospital fees for the treatment of air pollution-related
health problems stood at about $130 million, with the government footing most of the
bill.
Ending the debate, Berri said that Parliament would follow up the issue, which he
described as “a matter of life and death.”
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