During his Sunday mass sermon delivered from the St. Maroun Church in Rome, Rai insisted that “the agency on behalf of the people is not owned” by lawmakers who are acting as they please, calling on parliament to speed up the election of a president.
The patriarch called for presidential elections to precede the parliamentary vote, stressing that the said move “would put an end to the series of constitutional violations.”
Lebanon has been without a president since former President Michel Sleiman's term ended on May 25.
Parliament, which is tasked with choosing a successor, has failed to elect a president amid a boycott of election sessions by March 8 lawmakers.