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BEIRUT:
Free Patriotic Movement leader Michel Aoun
said the Lebanese are unanimous in their
certainty "thieves are holding the reins of
[political] power," stressing neither the
political system nor the public's mentality
can be changed without a purging of the
country's leadership.
The former army commander's comments came
during a news conference at Le Royal Hotel in
Dbayyeh in which he presented a reform program
for a Lebanon newly liberated from Syrian
tutelage and called for "liberating
institutions from the grip of the security
regime."
On hand for the conference were Metn MP
Ghassan Mokheiber, former legislator Marwan
Abu Fadel, former Bar Association president
Shakib Qortbawi and Brigadier Generals Issam
Abu Jamra and Edgar Maalouf.
Aoun said: "We ask those who nowadays are
speaking of the institutions: 'Under whose
reign were these institutions established?'"
He continued: "I haven't been loyal to Syria,
nor to its occupation of Lebanon, but they
were all regular pilgrims to the [Syrian]
intelligence officer. So let them stop posing
as heroes, be they from the loyalist or
opposition camps because they all shared in
the intelligence system in past years."
Aoun said when a representative is appointed
to public office, they should not immediately
seek the destruction of political rivals; a
move which only results in conflicts after
elections.
The FPM leader further called for
investigations into a statement made by former
Securite Generale director general Jamil
Sayyed, in which the latter accused government
officials of stealing and squandering public
funds.
Aoun expressed surprise at "the complete
absence" of efforts to tackle the issue of
Palestinian refugees, calling for more
efficient foreign diplomacy to "remove the
dangers of settling Palestinians in Lebanon."
The former general also defended the military,
saying "only the army can protect the country
and the people."
He added: "It is important not to politicize
this power," highlighting the necessity of
restructuring security bodies and clearly
defining their roles.
According to Aoun, "If we claim the security
bodies should not interfere with politics,
political parties should not interfere with
security as well."
He added: "The army should not be used to
restrain freedom of expression; political grip
should be removed from this institution."
Aoun continued to slam the former security
regime for allowing a series of political
assassinations, saying no one should be killed
in a state under the rule of law.
By
Karine Raad
Daily Star staff
Monday, May 30, 2005 |
