Lebanon’s most unpopular politician calls for electing president by popular vote

Free Patriotic Movement chief MP Gebran Bassil , who is considered Lebanon’s most despised and unpopular politician and presidential hopeful suggested on Saturday that the Lebanese should elect their president in a popular vote .

“It is permissible for us here to seriously think of electing the president of the republic directly by the people in two electoral rounds, in order to preserve the post’s special status, symbolism and its representation of all Lebanese,” Bassil said during an FPM seminar

Bassil who also disrupted the formation of all the cabinets added:

“We in the FPM believe in Lebanon’s unity and that living together must remain the choice of the Lebanese and not only their fate,” and added

“We are convinced that the state’s failure is caused by the bad system and that the solutions for its crisis lie in reforming it and not in tearing up the social contract between us,” Bassil whose alliance with Hezbollah is blamed for the collapse of Lebanon and its economy went on to say.

Bassil warned all Lebanese that failure to agree on a viable system would “give foreign forces an excuse to impose on us what would satisfy them rather than satisfy us.”

Lebanon is now considered a colony of Iran thanks to the alliance between Bassil’s father in-law , president Michel Aoun and the Iranian backed heavily armed Hezbollah militia

During the October 2019 uprising , young and old marched and chanted against various politicians, but Lebanon’s controversial MP Gebran Bassil, appeared to be bearing the brunt of criticism.

President Aoun’s son-in-law was particularly slammed by protesters, who even came up with a special chant against him. The chant: Hela hela hela hoo, Gebran Bassil (expletive) immo, has become a nationwide jingle, heard among protesters as well as on the radio.

According to the constitution the president in Lebanon should be a Christian Maronite and should be elected by the parliament , similarly the Speaker who should be a Shiite should be elected by the parliament and the Prime minister who should be a Sunni Moslem is selected by a parliament majority through consultations and designated by the president as the PM to form a cabinet