Lebanon’s Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rahi called Saturday on the Lebanese to abandon their foreign allegiances and affiliations and elect a new “patriotic” parliament capable of protecting the country’s sovereignty and independence.
In his Eater message, Rahi said the upcoming parliamentary and presidential elections are an opportunity for change in Lebanon.
He said that Lebanon’s fate depends on the quality of the majority group in the new parliament. “Lebanon needs a national, sovereign, independent and pursued parliamentary majority,” he said.
“If the people do not realize the danger of the current stage and choose the forces capable of defending Lebanon's entity and identity, then these people themselves, not the political system, bear the responsibility for the great collapse,” the Patriarch said.
He warned against the danger of electorally misleading people, noting that it would increase Lebanon’s isolation and collapse.
Rahi said the country needs a parliamentary majority that believes in “sovereignty and independence" and in “the Lebanese Army as the sole authority for arms and security.”
Also, the Patriarch commended the return of Gulf states’ ambassadors to Lebanon.
“As much as we welcomed the return of our Arab friends to Lebanon, we hope that the Lebanese themselves will abandon their foreign loyalties and their affiliation with projects strange to our history and heritage,” he said.
The Patriarch stressed that the Lebanese were the pioneers of political and intellectual renaissance in the Levant and they were distinguished by their striving for science and knowledge, their commitment to progress and peace and their interaction with the East and the West.
He called for eliminating “the hybrid identities that sneaked into our Lebanese identity throughout history.”
