Hariri pays tribute to army, emphasizes government's achievements

The President of the Council of Ministers Saad Hariri delivered a word at the beginning of the general debate session in Parliament today, in which he said: "This government's record is full of work, achievements and difficulties that have been confirmed in the past eight months. However, the achievement that the Lebanese army is writing with the blood of its heroes is the most valuable achievement for all of us. It reflects the decision of the Lebanese state and government to confront the terrorist organizations and expel their elements from Lebanon. I pay tribute to the Lebanese army command, officers and soldiers and I bow before the martyrdom of the heroes in the battles and the sacrifices of the families of the abducted soldiers, with whom we eagerly wait to know their fate and bring them back to the country.

Stability on security levels is the result of political stability. This government has worked very hard on both and the cooperation between security services was crucial in this regard. What the Minister of the Interior revealed yesterday concerning the role of the Information branch in the Internal security forces in thwarting a terrorist plot targeting an Arab civil aircraft in Australia is a positive point added to the record of the agencies responsible of the protection of Lebanon and the Lebanese.

The record of the government before the parliament requires to talk figures and facts. Since the formation of the government on December 18th 2016, the Council of Ministers held 38 meetings and issued 1268 decisions and 518 decrees and transferred 32 draft laws to Parliament.
The most prominent topics included in the decisions of the Council of Ministers can be summarized by the following:

1 - Activating contacts with brotherly and friendly countries. I made nine official visits to those countries aimed at correcting our relations and protecting Lebanon in light of the regional risks.
2- Working on improving road networks.
3- Adopting the budget for 2017 and referring it to Parliament.
4 - Adopting an electoral law issued on 17-06-2017.
5 - Extending the contracts of the two cellular networks, while waiting for the launch of a new tender. Launching fiber optic Internet services for companies and individuals, reducing tariffs and fees, and awarding works for expansion of telephone networks by fiber optic and copper cables in all regions.
6 - Re-studying the water project and working on water projects in Bcharre, sewage projects in the coast of Keserwan, the establishment of a network of sewage and drinking water in Baalbeck and neighboring villages and funding the implementation of the lake Wadi Qanobin dam in Bcharre.
7 - Working on the production of wind power and the development of energy production from Zahrani and works in Deir Ammar.
8 - Issuing the Decree on Petroleum Activities was issued in application to Law No. 132-2010 and forming a ministerial committee to study the construction of a natural gas storage station.
9 - Amending the Traffic Law.
10 - Approving the ratification of Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal, and working on the treatment of waste through the formation of ministerial committees to study the file of thermal disintegration and transforming waste into energy.
11- Filling many vacancies of First category posts which included 21 posts.
12 - Approving diplomatic appointments.
13 - Approving agreements and protocols of economic and cultural cooperation with many countries.
14 - Issuing licenses to establish universities or introduce of branches and sections in existing universities.
15 - Renewing the licenses for 22 television stations.
16 - Returning the Lebanese nationality to 26 Lebanese who had given it up
17. Forming 12 ministerial committees and activating the work of 10 others committees in charge of following up services in all sectors.
18. Discussing 11 draft laws and taking necessary action.

These are concrete facts in the government's record, which is betting on the continuation of political stability so that it can solve many issues and allow the control authorities to fight corruption in the administration in cooperation with the legislative authority. Our government has answered seven Parliamentary questions, in addition to two interrogations and five parliamentary recommendations. The cooperation helped to solve many issues that had been stuck and deferred for many years, including the law of parliamentary elections and the law for ranks and salaries. Today we reaffirm that we will work to hold elections in accordance with the new law and ensure all security and technical requirements for fair and democratic elections

Source: NNA