NNA – Caretaker Prime Minister, Najib Mikati, on Tuesday chaired a cabinet session at the Grand Serail during which the draft state budget for the year 2024 has been approved.nbsp;
In the wake of the session, Mikati said, ldquo;Today, wersquo;ve approved the 2024 state budget, and I would like to say that this is the first budget to be approved within its constitutional dates since 2002; this is a great achievement.rdquo;nbsp;
Moreover, Mikati deemed the approved budget ldquo;acceptablerdquo;, noting that it has received complete consensus by the Council of Ministers and will be referred to the House of Parliament towards the end of the week.nbsp;
ldquo;We must follow up with Parliament to approve all the reform draft laws and proposals, the most important of which is the bank restructuring project; it must be approved in order to recapitalize banks and restore the work of the banking sector in a normal way,rdquo; Mikati said.nbsp;
Touching on the displaced Syriansrsquo; dossier, Mikati said, ldquo;This matter is so dangerous that it requires of us [Lebanese] to join ranks to confront it.rdquo;
ldquo;I call for holding a joint workshop with the House of Parliament to discuss economic and refugee affairs. We do not claim the ability to do everything on our own, and we look forward to holding hands. Lebanon cannot be saved amid this difficult and sensitive stage except through joint efforts,rdquo; Mikati explained.nbsp;
However, Mikati said that dealing with the aforementioned issues in no way meant undermining the election of a new president of the republic, which he deemed ldquo;a priorityrdquo;.nbsp;
In response to a question about canceling the collection of some state fees in US dollars, Mikati said, ldquo;We held a meeting yesterday with the International Monetary Fund, which advised that imports remain in Lebanese pounds.rdquo;
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==========R.H.