The government fears Salameh's dismissal, shifts responsibility to judiciary

Lebanon Economy
2023-05-23 | 01:15
High views
Share
LBCI
Share
LBCI
Whatsapp
facebook
Twitter
Messenger
telegram
telegram
print
The government fears Salameh's dismissal, shifts responsibility to judiciary
Whatsapp
facebook
Twitter
Messenger
telegram
telegram
print
6min
The government fears Salameh's dismissal, shifts responsibility to judiciary

Governor of the Central Bank, Riad Salameh, will remain in his position until the end of his term. 

This is the conclusion reached during the governmental consultation meeting held yesterday at the Grand Serail, chaired by Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati.

Political communications within the majority ministerial group forming the government have indicated a quasi-conviction that any governmental decision to dismiss Salameh would lack a legal basis, as it would allow the governor to reject its implementation and challenge it before the Council of State, based on the immunity provided to him by the Monetary and Credit Law. 

Additionally, according to the expectations of the Caretaker Prime Minister and some of his ministers, Salameh is not expected to respond to any "plea" for his resignation, as he considers it an admission of the charges leveled against him.
 
Under the guise of not taking risks by proposing Salameh's dismissal in a government session without ensuring the consent of two-thirds of the ministers, which would make the government officially appear to cover the governor, Mikati preferred not to embark on such an "adventure" and "let the judiciary take its course." 

While none of the ministers expressed serious objections to Mikati's statement, and some of them pointed out that the remaining term does not exceed 40 days, excluding Saturdays and holidays, Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh al-Shami insisted on the necessity of removing the governor, even if it meant one day remaining in his term. 

This as Caretaker Minister of Finance Youssef Khalil presented an analysis that may be the longest since assuming his position, considering that "the issue of dismissal is difficult and requires a lot of study, preparations, and procedures to appoint a new governor, while the remaining time does not exceed two months, so it is easier to wait." 

In response to a question from Caretaker Minister of Agriculture Abbas Hajj Hassan about the repercussions of issuing the French arrest warrant, Khalil replied, "There are no actual repercussions, and all correspondent banks deal with Lebanon as usual."
As for Caretaker Minister of Education, Abbas Halabi, he expressed objection to the dismissal of the governor and cited the words of "a journalist," stating that the state is "chasing" after 300 million dollars while politicians have stolen billions without being held accountable! 
Meanwhile, Caretaker Minister of Public Works Ali Hammoud saw it best to resort to the judiciary. Caretaker Minister of Justice Henry Khoury agreed, pointing out that "according to the law, misconduct by Salameh must be proven to dismiss him, as he has the ability to appeal the decision, which requires a judicial ruling."

However, they wished for Salameh to step down out of fear of the increasing number of lawsuits against him in several European countries and the serious repercussions that would have on Lebanon. 
After al-Shami insisted on taking action against Salameh, Mikati reiterated the lack of a two-thirds majority, addressing the ministers by saying, "There is no majority. According to the law, the Council of Ministers does not have the authority to dismiss him, and if it happens, it may lead us to another problem related to appointing a replacement for him, given the objections to the authority of the caretaker government to do so."

Therefore, the session was adjourned, and it was decided that the Council of Ministers would hold a meeting next Friday to discuss an agenda of 50 items, with the governor's dismissal not included. 
A ministerial source stated that the participants in the meeting noticed "a kind of consensus between the Caretaker Prime Minister and representatives of Hezbollah, the Amal Movement, the Progressive Socialist Party, and the Marada Movement not to address the Salameh file and leave the matter until after the end of his term."

Later, in order to prevent any misinterpretation of what was discussed during the consultation meeting, the media office of the Caretaker Minister of Justice issued a statement confirming that "he completely rejected placing the ball in the court of the Lebanese judiciary after the issuance of the arrest warrant by the French judiciary. He demanded dealing with Salameh's file based on this warrant to establish the necessary actions, specifically demanding Salameh's resignation. The statement also emphasized that the Lebanese judiciary will fully carry out its duties as required in this stage."

Judicially, Judge Ghassan Oueidat, the public prosecutor, has scheduled a hearing session for Salameh tomorrow after issuing the French arrest warrant, and he has assigned Judge Imad Qabalan to carry out this task. 
It is expected that Salameh will be allowed to remain under a residence document with the confiscation of his passport before Oueidat contacts the French judiciary requesting the case's return for further study.

In parallel, the investigating judge, Charbel Abou Samra, informed the governor's brother, Raja Salameh, and his advisor, Marian El-Howayek, of the dates of their sessions in France, scheduled for May 31st and June 10th, respectively.
 
 
 

Lebanon News

Lebanon Economy

Press Highlights

government

fears

Salameh's

dismissal,

shifts

responsibility

judiciary

LBCI Next
Lebanon's Economy Ministry, WFP sign agreement to enhance price transparency and consumer protection
Download now the LBCI mobile app
To see the latest news, the latest daily programs in Lebanon and the world
Google Play
App Store
We use
cookies
We use cookies to make
your experience on this
website better.
Accept
Learn More