Rahi praises President Aoun's first mandate

Maronite Patriarch Cardinal Beshara Boutros Rahi hailed Monday the first mandate of President Michel Aoun saying, "Thank God for the first year of your mandate, and for what has been achieved, thanks to your wisdom and the right decisions you've been taking, especially the decisions that were deferred in the past years."

"The Lebanese eagerly await the joy of brotherhood and unity, and they look forward to you, Mr. President, for you are the symbol of their unity under the Constitution (Article 49), in order to achieve this internal unity between all parties and political components," Rahi said during Christmas Mass service in Bkriki this morning, in presence of President of the Republic Michel Aoun and First Lady, Nadia Aoun.

"To achieve national unity, all political forces must unite in accordance with the democratic system and the concept of opposition and its practice, so as to preserve the supreme national interests on the basis of the Charter and the Constitution," Rahi went on to say.

In his sermon, the Patriarch also tackled the concept of exercising unilateral practices in power and the attempt to exclude one component of the State versus another, in addition to the restriction of public freedoms which are recognized by the Constitution.

"Diversity and freedom are twins in Lebanon and constitute the joy of the Lebanese," the Cardinal stressed.

He called on the President to ensure political stability and economic advancement in the country, alongside the creation of new job opportunities for the Lebanese youth.

Rahi concluded his sermon by saying, "We wish for the return of the Syrian and the Iraqi refugees to their countries...in a bid to ease the burdens on the Lebanese people, both economically and developmentally

Source: NNA