Lebanese right-wing Christian leader MP Michel Aoun said Monday that some parties do not want him to take control over the justice ministry portfolio out of fear they would be targeted when opening up corruption files, An Naharreported Tuesday. Aoun said the same parties do not want the Free Patriotic Movement to work in agreement with the leader of the Future Bloc in parliament, Saad al-Hariri in a national unity cabinet. "The cabinet blew up before it was formed," Aoun said at a press conference. The former army commander indirectly accused Druze leader and ally of Hariri, MP Walid Jumblat of foiling the agreement with Saad. "I will not name him, he attacked me openly. He who feels is targeted will reply to me...," Aoun added.

Aoun opted to stay out of the projected government as a result of a dispute over who should hold the justice ministry portfolio. Saad Hariri insisted on keeping the justice ministry under the control of his movement in view of its vital role in investigating the assassination of his father former Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri in Beirut on February 14. General Aoun, however, sought to take control of the same ministry in order to pursue his drive to combat state corruption. "We chose the justice ministry since it is not a sovereignty or service portfolio. We demanded this particular ministry in a bid to contribute to restoring the judiciary's independence and transparency. In this way we will be contributing to reforming the state. We demanded other portfolios that suit the size of our bloc in parliament because we wanted to enjoy a true partnership in the government," Aoun was quoted as saying.

Aoun explained that he and Saad possess a common ground with respect to their reform projects. "At first, there was no objection to give us the justice ministry portfolio. We asked them (Future Movement) what, in their point of view, were the most important portfolios. They replied: the interior, finance, defense and foreign affairs," Aoun said. He went on to say, "Those attacking us have judicial files that they fear we will tackle."

According to Aoun, Saad's excuse that he wants the justice ministry to be able to follow-up on the probe into his father's murder is not justifiable. "There is a possibility to directly observe the process of the investigation through the people concerned or through lawyers. I think the dispute is far beyond that excuse. It is related to the largest bloc [in parliament]," Aoun said. "MP Saad Hariri would love to cooperate with us because he knows that that judiciary is wide," he added. "There is no need for the attack because the judiciary has been marginalized for 15 years. In the past, nobody wanted the ministry. It was forgotten," Aoun said. "If the justice ministry had any relation to the investigation we could have understood that. But it doesn't," he went on to say, according to An Nahar. (MER)