Hariri returns to Beirut to re-evaluate cabinet lineup.

Byline: Elias Sakr

Summary: <p>Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri was "re-evaluating" the government formation process away from the media, a source close to the Future Movement told The Daily Star on Monday. Hariri returned to Lebanon early Monday morning ending a one-week vacation in the of south France during which discussions regarding the cabinet's formation were frozen.

BEIRUT: Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri was "re-evaluating" the government formation process away from the media, a source close to the Future Movement told The Daily Star on Monday. Hariri returned to Lebanon early Monday morning ending a one-week vacation in the of south France during which discussions regarding the cabinet's formation were frozen.

Hariri left Beirut after his ally Progressive Socialist Party leader MP Walid Jumblatt withdrew from the March 14 coalition. Despite his departure from the March 14 Forces, Jumblatt had reiterated on several occasions his continued alliance and support for Hariri's tasks and role as premier.

When asked whether Hariri was to resume his deliberations on the distribution of ministerial portfolios among parties based on the 15-10-5 previously agreed upon formula, the Future source refrained from commenting on the issue, saying instead that Hariri "was re-evaluating the situation away from the media."

The 15-10-5 make-up grants the majority 15 ministers, the opposition 10 and President Michel Sleiman five seats, which guarantees him the tipping vote while both March 14 and the opposition would respectively be denied the absolute majority or veto power.

On Monday, Jumblatt confirmed news reports saying he held a phone conversation with Hariri Sunday evening prior to the latter's flight to Beirut.

Jumblatt added that contacts were under way to hold a meeting with Hariri.

Tackling the cabinet formation process, Jumblatt stressed the necessity to "promptly form a national unity government given the recent Israeli threats to Lebanon."

He underscored that a national unity cabinet would end the political divide, and "would set the foundations to a new political era of national consensus guaranteeing the government's adoption of a united policy concerning future challenges."

"The consensus president is the guarantee to all [governmental] decisions given his role as a national reference capable of solving [controversial] issues," Jumblatt said.

Regarding the timing of his visit to Syria, Jumblatt said: "I am the only one entitled to decide on the trip's schedule, nature and circumstances."

He added that his party would refrain from exchanging controversial rhetoric with other political parties in the upcoming phase and would rather focus on its internal reforms.

Meanwhile, opposition figures advised for the second consecutive day against the reconsideration of the 15-10-5 structure, a step they said could delay the formation process.

Hizbullah's Loyalty to the Resistance bloc head MP Mohammad Raad said on Monday the recent political "turbulence," a reference to Jumblatt's realignment, should not influence the agreement on the national-unity cabinet's political framework but rather enforce it.

"Let sides who wanted the parliamentary majority in Lebanon to govern [single handedly] show us where the majority is today, this theory collapsed which means Lebanon can only be governed through consensus," Raad said.

Speaking during a Hizbullah-sponsored graduation event in the southern town of Nabatieh, Raad urged Hariri to quickly form the cabinet given efforts by the opposition to facilitate the premier's task. Raad stressed that the government's formation should be based on the 15-10-5 formula, saying that otherwise the process would be delayed.

Raad added that suggestions to form a technocrat government "were unrealistic," in reference to weekend calls by Phalange Party leader Amin Gemayel.

Echoing Raad, Hizbullah's Second in Command Sheikh Naim Qassem reiterated during a political rally in south Lebanon on Monday that the 15-10-5 formula guaranteed real partnership in the government and reflected the current power balance among Lebanese parties.

Meanwhile, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri's press office denied an alleged statement by the speaker that any reconsideration of the 15-10-5 formula would have drastic repercussions.

Earlier on Monday, the state-run National News Agency quoted sources close to Berri as saying the speaker warned against amending the accord on the 15-10-5 formula.

Last week, several March 14 Forces groups, including the Phalange Party and the Lebanese Forces, called on Hariri to reconsider the 15-10-5 formula after Jumblatt's change in stance.

While the LF suggested a technocrat cabinet, the Phalange proposed a government composed of political leaders.

The Phalange political bureau issued a statement on Monday accusing the opposition of hampering the cabinet's formation.

The statement, which stressed the party's commitment to its principles, indirectly slammed Jumblatt's realignment. "Some are not embarrassed of shifting positions and overlooking previous engagements," the Phalange Party statement said.

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