Latest news with #Bassil
Tayyar.org
6 days ago
- Politics
- Tayyar.org
Bassil: Proceed With the File I Submitted on Over $1 Billion in Waste in the Telecommunications Sector
During a parliamentary session held to hear testimony from three former telecommunications ministers and to examine the request to lift MP George Bouchekian's immunity, Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) president MP Gebran Bassil denounced the politicization of the investigation. He criticized the narrative presented at the Kasabian building regarding alleged sponsorship deals and claims of savings for the state. Bassil emphasized: 'We're debating files involving $9 or $10 million in alleged waste, while there's a case involving over $1.5 billion in losses. The termination of telecommunications contracts alone cost the Lebanese state $720 million in damages, $88 million in lost tax revenue, and $96 million in compensation paid to FTML.' He continued, 'When I served as Minister of Telecommunications, I submitted this case to the Court of Audit, the Public Prosecutor, and the Financial Prosecutor, documenting the embezzlement of over $1 billion. We provided detailed evidence, including cabinet decisions and their violations, contracts and their breaches, and audit reports from KPMG and others. I also called for a full audit of the matter.' Bassil asserted that the corruption in this case was evident. 'While I was in office, they tried to exempt companies from paying $59 million in VAT. I objected — and that was the thread that led me deeper into the file. What we're looking at is theft of more than $1 billion, with clear violations of cabinet decisions, Court of Audit rulings, and prosecutorial findings.' He concluded by urging the legislature to act: 'I hope this case proceeds on its rightful path, and that Parliament issues a formal recommendation to thoroughly investigate and study the file.'
L'Orient-Le Jour
23-07-2025
- Business
- L'Orient-Le Jour
Bassil slams Salam Government and 'incapable,' unveils FPM candidates for Metn elections
BEIRUT — Free Patriotic Movement (FPM) leader Gebran Bassil criticized Prime Minister Nawaf Salam's government — in which the FPM is not represented — accusing it of being 'incapable of achieving anything,' and announced three potential FPM candidates for next spring's parliamentary elections. Speaking at a party dinner in the Metn region on Tuesday night, Bassil said, 'This government is incapable of achieving anything. They can't do anything about the issue of weapons [outside the framework of the state], despite external support. They are either accomplices or incapable.' Bassil's criticism came shortly after a general policy debate session in which he had called for a confidence vote in the government — a motion that largely favored Salam's Cabinet. He also accused the cabinet of having no concrete plan to return depositors' funds frozen in the banking system. 'The government of Hassan Diab [January 2020–September 2021] had put in place the Lazard plan, which fell through. But what is the plan of the current government? If the laws we have proposed are not discussed, it means they know that no funds will be returned to depositors,' he said. Work on a draft bill addressing the 'financial gap' and the return of deposits is expected to drag on for several more months, despite the government's stated aim to present a proposal within 30 days. The delay has been largely attributed to disagreements between Finance Minister Yassine Jaber and Banque du Liban (BDL, central bank) Governor Karim Souhaid. In May 2025, a government source told this publication that Lebanon was preparing to renew its contract with the international financial advisory firm Lazard. The company had designed an economic and financial recovery plan for the Diab government in 2020, a few months after the country's financial collapse began. That plan, however, became highly contentious — particularly with the Association of Banks in Lebanon (ABL), which categorically rejected it. Its abandonment ultimately derailed the first round of negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) later that year. LF partly 'responsible for the government's failure' Bassil also took aim at the Lebanese Forces (LF), led by his longtime rival Samir Geagea, accusing the party of sharing 'responsibility for the executive's failure' and becoming 'Hezbollah's partners' by participating in a government that includes Hezbollah. 'Whoever wants to resign, let them resign today and not deceive the people,' he added, referencing recent statements by LF officials who said they were ready to quit the Cabinet if it failed to set a timetable for Hezbollah's disarmament. The LF has repeatedly accused the authorities of prioritizing dialogue over confrontation on the issue of arms monopoly. The Batroun MP argued that 'sovereigntists' such as the LF and its allies, who call for a state monopoly on weapons, should also demand 'Israel's withdrawal from our occupied territories and an end to its attacks' on Lebanon. 'A cease-fire has been declared, but it has not been respected,' he said, criticizing the continued Israeli occupation of five positions on Lebanese soil and near-daily strikes on southern Lebanon and the Bekaa. Three FPM candidates in the Metn Bassil also lamented what he described as repeated betrayals of his movement. 'No political movement has been betrayed as we have,' he said during his speech in Metn, a district that was once a stronghold of former FPM MPs Ibrahim Kanaan — who left the FPM in August 2024 after numerous disagreements with Bassil — and Elias Bou Saab, who was dismissed in June 2024. Only Kanaan and Bou Saab had been elected from the FPM list in this district. Against this backdrop, the Batroun MP announced three potential FPM candidates for Metn in the parliamentary elections scheduled for next spring, according to the party's internal selection process: Eddy Maalouf, an unsuccessful candidate in 2022, Hicham Kanj, and Mansour Fadel. Bassil also addressed developments in post-Assad Syria, emphasizing that his party was 'the first not to applaud the arrival of the Jolani regime,' referring to Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, known by his wartime name Jolani. Sharaa, who led a coalition of rebel and jihadist factions, overthrew Bashar al-Assad's regime on Dec. 8, 2024. 'I understand that Lebanese are pleased with Assad's downfall, but I do not understand how some rejoice over the arrival of the Jolani regime, which considers anyone who does not adhere to its doctrine — Sunni, Shiite or Druze — as an infidel whose murder is permitted,' he said. The early months of the new Syrian regime have been marked by killings and clashes in minority-populated areas, including along the Alawite-dominated coast in March and, most recently, in the Druze-majority Sweida region last week. 'These events cannot happen on our border with Syria without affecting us,' Bassil warned. Hezbollah, the FPM's former political ally, has regularly voiced concerns about rising tensions with the new regime in Damascus and the potential resurgence of terrorist cells — a stance its critics say is used to justify maintaining its arsenal. Since last December, sporadic skirmishes have erupted along the border, particularly between Syrian government forces and 'clan' fighters within the Shiite community, though they have largely remained contained.
Tayyar.org
18-07-2025
- Politics
- Tayyar.org
Bassil: We are the only bloc that did not grant confidence, and we will continue our positive yet effective opposition
The president of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gebran Bassil, stated in a speech following the parliamentary session to hold the government accountable that, 'We previously submitted ten questions to the government, and according to the rules of procedure, it must respond within fifteen days.' He added: 'When we were ministers and received questions from deputies, we would rush to respond. This current disregard for Parliament and its members allows us to turn these questions into formal interrogations—and that is exactly what we will do, starting tomorrow.' Bassil emphasized that 'the issue extends beyond this. It concerns when a session will be set to answer questions that are clear, scientific, and objective. As expected, we received no answers today—neither from the government nor from the Prime Minister's speech, which was full of fallacies. Among them was the claim that this is the first return plan presented by the government, which is untrue, as there was a prior plan that demonstrated far greater seriousness under more difficult circumstances.' He continued: 'The Prime Minister spoke of plans we have yet to see. Any such plan should be written and officially approved by the government.' Bassil explained: 'We were not satisfied with the government's answers. From the outset, we chose to be a positive opposition to identify flaws and correct them.' He added that, 'After nearly five months, the Lebanese people can clearly see the lack of serious government action apart from appointments made without any real adherence to proper mechanisms, and in a discretionary, vindictive manner that reflects political retaliation.' He declared: 'That is why we proposed a vote of confidence in the government, fully aware that we are the only parliamentary bloc that would withhold confidence. We insisted on this step because the government's parliamentary votes do not reflect the reality on the ground, and over time, popular confidence will decline which is what matters most.' Bassil continued: 'We took this step to expose the hypocrisy of those who publicly criticize the government's policies but in practice support them, making them complicit in those decisions and responsible for the outcomes.' He stressed that 'many of those who claimed to oppose the government's actions have reaffirmed their confidence in it. This exposes a pattern of using media rhetoric to gain popularity, while privately benefiting from or endorsing the government's policies.' He also noted: 'A minister who remains in the government without knowing the content of the American proposal or the response to it, yet still reaffirms confidence in the government, is clearly indifferent and willingly uninformed about crucial developments.' Bassil concluded: 'We will continue our role as a positive yet effective opposition, aiming to shed light on misconduct, negligence, and the absence of planning. We will continue to ask more questions exposing these issues to public opinion and pressuring the government to improve its performance. It is not in Lebanon's interest, nor the Lebanese people's, to accept this level of dysfunction from the government and the ruling authority as a whole. This failure will ultimately affect everyone.'
Nahar Net
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Nahar Net
Bassil meets Aoun, says Hezbollah disarmament should not be a free ride
by Naharnet Newsdesk 4 hours Free Patriotic Movement leader Jebran Bassil said Friday there should be a quid pro quo for Hezbollah's disarmament after he met President Joseph Aoun in Baabda. According to Bassil, it goes without saying that Israel must in return withdraw from occupied Lebanese territories, halt its attacks and its exploitation of Lebanese natural resources - including water, oil, and gas. "Everyone should feel that these weapons are not being given away for nothing in return," Bassil said. An old but no longer ally of Hezbollah, Bassil had in the past supported Lebanon's defense but criticized Hezbollah for dragging the crisis-hit country into a war with Israel in support of Hamas and Gaza. Bassil said he hopes Hezbollah "would seize the opportunity" and would not feel defeated. "We should all feel that we have won what's in Lebanon's interest and that no party has been defeated."
Nahar Net
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Nahar Net
Bassil meets Aoun, says Hezbollah disarmament should not be a free ride
by Naharnet Newsdesk 04 July 2025, 13:49 Free Patriotic Movement leader Jebran Bassil said Friday there should be a quid pro quo for Hezbollah's disarmament after he met President Joseph Aoun in Baabda. According to Bassil, it goes without saying that Israel must in return withdraw from occupied Lebanese territories, halt its attacks and its exploitation of Lebanese natural resources - including water, oil, and gas. "Everyone should feel that these weapons are not being given away for nothing in return," Bassil said. An old but no longer ally of Hezbollah, Bassil had in the past supported Lebanon's defense but criticized Hezbollah for dragging the crisis-hit country into a war with Israel in support of Hamas and Gaza. Bassil said he hopes Hezbollah "would seize the opportunity" and would not feel defeated. "We should all feel that we have won what's in Lebanon's interest and that no party has been defeated."
