Appointment Standoff: Marada Movement's Rejection Raises Questions

After the extension granted to the army commander for a year, a new deadlock looms over the caretaker government, this time excluding the parliament. The appointment of a Chief of Staff and a military council, a file that seems to be a new political showdown.

The expected appointment, initially slated for the incomplete Friday session, shows no signs of progress for the Tuesday session. Government sources confirmed to LBCI that the Cabinet will not address the appointment file on Tuesday, keeping it off the agenda.

Sleiman Frangieh, the head of the Marada Movement, rejected the appointments requested by former deputy Walid Jumblatt, a move reportedly driven by settling presidential scores. Publicly, the Marada Movement claims the rejection is based on the principle of appointments in the president's absence. MP Tony Frangieh explicitly expressed this stance on the day of the extension session when the crisis became public.

Caretaker Information Minister Ziad Makkari, representing the Marada Movement along with Caretaker Telecommunications Minister Johnny Qorm, confirmed during a phone call with LBCI their attendance at the Tuesday session, indicating that the Marada Movement holds the keys to disrupt the session if its ministers are absent.

Is the reason behind the rejection of the Marada Movement to appoint a Chief of Staff related to powers, or is it a political pressure tactic, possibly for future presidential calculations?