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Beirut, Lebanon- With Prime Minister Najib Mikati’s new cabinet winning a vote of confidence in the parliament, many Lebanese temporarily hope that the years-long crisis that has engulfed their country may finally reach a turning point.
At the same time, some people worry that this new cabinet — full of familiar faces — is just that more and more Lebanese want to see the end of the status quo continue again.
In an interview with Al Jazeera, people expressed their feelings about Mikati’s new government and his plan to solve the country’s many difficulties 13 months after the political deadlock.
Jihad Jaber, the owner of a clothing store in Hamra, Beirut, said: “We hope this is good for the country because people are tired.”
“We see that they seem willing to work, which is different from the previous cabinet. We will have to wait and see. As citizens, we ask them to resolve these crises, from fuel shortages to poor quality of life, and the decline in the dollar exchange rate. We want to live a good life. “
Spiral financial crisis
According to data recently released by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), nearly 75% of the Lebanese population currently lives in poverty. Even basic facilities such as electricity and water are in short supply, and residents queue for hours outside gas stations, hoping to buy fuel for their cars and generators.
This difficult situation was caused by the spiral financial crisis, and most Lebanese froze their dollar bank accounts to save dollar stocks.
Food and service prices have risen across the board. Although the formation of a new government has triggered the recovery of the severely devalued Lebanese pound, those who have left the country and hope to have better prospects abroad seem reluctant to return.
“If I feel that the new government will work for the benefit of citizens, I will be the first to return to this country,” said Nada El Daouk, an education entrepreneur who currently lives between Turkey and Qatar. “[They] Efforts should be made to release our funds and deposits in the bank.
“The Lebanese people need to feel that they live in a country that provides them with basic needs and human rights,” she added. “The new cabinet lineup doesn’t look very professional. I didn’t see [they have] Evidence to overcome the current political and economic situation. “
The “brain drain” caused by the exodus of Lebanese professionals and experts has been strongly affected in all sectors, but it is most obvious in the medical field.
Hundreds of doctors and other medical experts have left the country, exacerbating the rapidly expanding medical crisis brought about by the global COVID-19 pandemic and the rising cost of imported goods such as medicines and equipment.
‘Promote personal interests’
Lebanese students who saw their future in Lebanon in the past increasingly find that their families encourage them to leave as the situation has deteriorated. The rise in tuition fees and the collapse of the job market have left Lebanese youth with little expectation to stay, which has aroused dissatisfaction with the aging and seemingly stagnant ruling class.
“In this government, we are the president of the Bank of Libya and many people who have held positions that are not on the side of the people in the past,” said Amar Sleiman, a medical student at Balamand University. “[They] It is just to promote the personal gains of big savers, politicians and the rich at the expense of everyone else.
“As for the young people, to be honest, I don’t think anyone cares about them now,” she continued. “People’s only plan for young people is to let them travel to earn money for their families. I personally think that this government, if it has any influence, from its form and the people in it, it will have a negative impact on our lives. Influence.”
Mikati is a billionaire in the telecommunications industry and one of the wealthiest businessmen in Lebanon. He served as prime minister twice before and was investigated for corruption before. This has led some to see him as a manifestation of the obvious nepotism that plagues Lebanese politics.
Although the international community has asked Lebanon to form a technocratic government composed of experts, the new cabinet is still sectically balanced. There are 12 Christians and 12 Muslims, and several new ministers with very few backgrounds have indicated that they will obtain in the following areas They succeeded in their new positions, such as George Qordahi, a famous TV personality who was appointed as Minister of Information, and Abbas al-Hajj Hassan, a former reporter who is now Minister of Agriculture.
The appointment of only one female cabinet member-Minister of Administrative Development Najla Riachi-has also been widely condemned.
Nevertheless, some new appointments were praised. For example, Firas Abiad, the Minister of Health, is a gastrointestinal surgeon and the chairman of the board of the state-run Rafik Hariri University Hospital. He is becoming the Lebanese response to COVID The public image of -19 rose to fame.
At the same time, Environment Minister Nasser Yassin is the current director of the Crisis Observatory of the American University of Beirut.
It remains to be seen whether the new cabinet will fulfill its promise to save Lebanon. Mikati has previously stated that he will seek to restart negotiations with the International Monetary Fund after the formation of his government, hoping to alleviate Lebanon’s financial problems. He also promised to hold next year’s elections on time.
“I have positive [feelings],” said Chadi Mattar, a physical education teacher from Naameh. “If they are responsible, it will be good for the country. Maybe this can be a change.I’m not 100% [convinced], But it may be 60%. It’s better than nothing. “
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