Lebanese PM-designate urged to quit if cabinet not formed

Beirut, March 18 Lebanese President Michel Aoun has urged Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri to step down if he is not capable of forming a cabinet immediately.

"I ask the Prime Minister-designate to immediately form a cabinet capable of saving Lebanon from further collapse or step down and pave the way for other candidates to form a government," the President said in a televised address on Wednesday.

Hariri was assigned to form a new cabinet on October 22, 2020, but he failed due to disagreements over distribution of key ministerial portfolios.

Lebanon has witnessed a political deadlock since the resignation of Hassan Diab's government in the wake of the Port of Beirut blasts on August 4, 2020, which claimed the lives of 190 people, injured at least 6,000 others and left some 300,000 homeless..

Over a month later, former Prime Minister-designate Mustafa Adib announced of his failure to form a new government.

Hariri was named the country's new premier in October 2020 to form a cabinet, a year after the eruption of nationwide anti-government protests that led to his resignation.

The Beirut blasts and the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic have exacerbated the country's economic situation, driving thousands of companies out of business while leaving thousands of people unemployed.

Figures released by the World Bank showed that over 50 per cent of the Lebanese people have become "poor".

This year, the Central Bank of Lebanon also tightened regulations against the country's banks, which compelled some of them to close branches and lay off employees to stay afloat.

The national currency has slipped to a new low of 10,000 Lebanese pounds per $1.

( With inputs from IANS )