Cabinet to reconvene tomorrow to discuss ranks and salaries issue

President Michel Sleiman stressed Lebanon’s commitment to impartial positions, mainly on Syria. However he said that the humanitarian issue is to be followed-up.       

At the beginning of the cabinet session held in Baabda to discuss an agenda comprised of 80 items, mainly the ranks and salaries system, Sleiman said that during his meetings with Iranian officials in Tehran, he set the pillars of future relations as both parties agreed that “the crisis in Syria cannot be solved save through dialogue between all parties".      

On another note, the cabinet renewed the contract of Middle East Airlines for 20 years and approved the appointment of Nizar Khalil as head of the Presidential Palace’s Technical Affairs Division and Adnan Nassar as head of the Palace’s General Secretariat Division.           

Prior to the session, President Sleiman and PM Najib Mikati held a closed meeting to discuss the general situation in the country.           

In a call with Nharkom Said on LBCI Wednesday, the head of the Private Schools Teachers Association Nehme Mahfoud warned of a general strike to paralyze the entire country on Thursday should the system remain unapproved.             

“We are not strike enthusiasts; on the contrary, we hope for the best for our students throughout this academic year – however, our rights must be met as of July 1.”     

Within this framework, sources revealed to LBCI that the Kataeb forces refrain from participating in any meeting called forth by the Secretariat of March 14, noting that MP Nadim Gemayel's participation in the meeting holds a personal context.

The same sources mentioned that the relation with the Lebanese Forces and the Kataeb remain good regardless of the latest events.

Sleiman in the cabinet's meeting mentioned that Lebanon's chairing of the Council of Arab Foreign Ministers must portray adherance to the dissociation policy and a commitment to neutrality.

For his part, Mikati said: "we have social duties towards the Lebanese people and responsibilities regarding keeping the nation's peace and its economy in light of difficult situations facing the country".

Abou Faour mentioned that a meeting between PM Najib Mikati, the Finance Minister, and a number of advisers will be held tomorrow to raise the issue of ranks and salaries to the Cabinet in order to take appropriate measures.