NNA ndash; MP Ibrahim Mneimneh, on Thursday, expressed surprise regarding the absence of any item on the governmentrsquo;s meeting agenda for tomorrow related to the fate of the central bankrsquo;s governorship, particularly in light of the international arrest warrants and the Interpol red notice against Governor Riad Salameh.
He said: ldquo;This step, which has ignored the warnings of Deputy Prime Minister Saade Al-Shami against BDL Governor remaining in his position, reaffirms that the political system is still yielding to the intransigence of the governor who insists on completing his term until July, perhaps out of fear of Salamehrsquo;s secrets and mysteries in his black box.rdquo;
He continued: ldquo;The fact that Salameh remains in his position poses an imminent threat to the relationship of the Lebanese financial system with correspondent banks, something we have begun to witness now…The governor also has the power to dispose of the remaining reserves, through his suspicious and mysterious platform, while we know that the governor has recently shipped large quantities of this reserve in the form of cash banknotes to Beirut…On top of that, the governor still holds in his hand the key to creating cash in local currency, and using it to buy dollars from the parallel market, with completely non-transparent mechanisms…rdquo;
The MP questioned the logic behind the governmentrsquo;s insistence on ldquo;leaving these critical powers in the hands of an international wanted man who today only cares about securing his future after leaving office?rdquo;
ldquo;Does the government know of any deals that this man could conclude, at the expense of public money, to secure this future?rdquo; Mneimneh wondered, adding, ldquo;If tomorrow#39;s session is devoted to urgent matters, is there anything more urgent and more serious than today#39;s governorship situation?rdquo;
Mneimneh deemed that anyone who covers for Salameh today will share a historic responsibility for what will happen in the Banque du Liban in the coming weeks, in the event that the governor remains in office until the end of his term.
He added: ldquo;We also categorically reject all the excuses of the governorrsquo;s protectors, who falsely claim that the government does not have the power to dismiss the suspect from office, and content themselves with a lsquo;playrsquo; of hoping for the governorrsquo;s voluntary resignation, instead of applying Articles 19 and 20 of the Monetary and Credit Law and dismissing the governor.rdquo;
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==========R.Sh.