Maronite Patriarch Bechara al-Rahi announced during his weekly Sunday Mass sermon that “Syrian refugees have become an increasing threat to our land” and called on government officials to take action on the matter.
” Officials are favoring their own personal and sectarian interests, and are demolishing government institutions in the process,” he stated.
“This obstruction begins with officials’ failure in electing a president who can inspire domestic and international confidence, depriving the parliament of its legislative power, denying the government its full authority, hindering official appointments, and enabling corruption in administrations,” he clarified.
In addition, he called on the government to “open markets to agricultural production, improve the livelihoods of farmers and producers, enhance the efficiency of agricultural production chains and their competitiveness, and improve their adaptation to climate change.”
Al-Rahi assured the people that “the Patriarchate, Archdioceses, and Monasteries are in constant coordination with the Director General of the Ministry of Agriculture, as well as with universities, associations, unions, and cooperatives to keep farmers on their lands, reduce displacement and migration, prevent land sales, and create job opportunities for the youth.”
He ended his statement by calling on marketers to “market Lebanese agricultural products,” and by directing an appeal to international organizations and donors to “convert the current food system into a more sustainable one.”
