Reasons behind Cabinet session cancellation

Initially, it was not scheduled to discuss the extension of the Lebanese army commander or military council appointments outside the agenda of the Cabinet session, which was supposed to be held on Tuesday.

There were 16 items listed on the session's agenda, most of which were related to the telecommunications sector.

However, the session did not occur due to the lack of a quorum, with Deputy Prime Minister Saadeh Al-Shami, Economy Minister Amin Salam, Minister of Information Ziad Makari, and Education Minister Abbas Al-Halabi absent.

Minister of Labor Moustafa Bayram arrived late after the session was postponed.

So, what caused the session to be canceled?

Sources close to the Prime Minister confirmed to LBCI that the failure to secure a quorum in the session has no relation to the extension of the army commander or military council appointments, directly or indirectly. The only reason is the delayed arrival of some ministers.

However, LBCI sources confirmed that the second item on the agenda, which is the report of the Minister of Telecommunications, is the reason behind the session not taking place.

However, this report is related to the bid to privatize postal services and products and was previously rejected by the Audit Bureau and the Public Procurement Authority for not meeting legal requirements.

This item was expected to be discussed for a decision after the Cabinet failed to do so in its previous session.

However, the Ministry of Telecommunications has prepared three bids during the current minister's tenure, all of which were rejected for specific reasons each time. According to observers, the tendency was to cancel the contract and launch a new bid for the fourth time.