NNA - Following his meeting on Wednesday with Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros al-Rahi, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam affirmed that “Bkerke is a major national reference for all of us.” 

On emerging, Salam stated, “I briefed His Beatitude on the work of the government, and we are proud of our achievements, particularly the appointments mechanism and the expedited efforts on draft reform laws. The government is currently focused on the draft law for banking sector reform.”

“I’ve informed the Patriarch of the discussion that took place with Ortagus and emphasized that the government is committed to holding the municipal elections on time. The elections in the capital, Beirut, must reflect Lebanon’s image in terms of parity and diversity. If there are concerns about maintaining balance in the Beirut Municipality, there are several ideas I discussed with Speaker Berri, including the option of adopting closed lists," Salam added.

=======R.H.