Caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati held a meeting on Thursday evening with the four vice-governors of Banque du Liban (BDL), Wassim Mansouri, Bachir Yakzan, Salim Chahine, and Alexandre Moradian, to discuss the steps following the end of current Governor Riad Salameh’s mandate next Monday.
During the meeting, which was reportedly held in a positive atmosphere, Mikati emphasized that “the current phase requires everyone’s cooperation to maintain relative financial and monetary stability,” noting “that a national responsibility rests on us all in case a new Central Bank governor is not appointed.”
He said, “The prohibitions expressed by the vice-governors in the statement issued a few days ago are legitimate, and the plan they have developed is in line with the government’s plan.”
Mikati also added, “The government will cooperate with the parliament to adopt the necessary legislation for the proper functioning of institutions in this delicate phase of Lebanon’s history and in accordance with the Currency and Credit Code.”
In turn, the vice-governors also stressed that they are fulfilling their national duty in accordance with legal principles. They added that they issued the statement “to urge everyone to ensure the legal and executive conditions to maintain a bit of stability, which must be preserved today.” Additionally, they welcomed the positive response of the political forces to their demands at the governmental, parliamentary, and legal levels.
It is important to note that the Council of Ministers that Mikati had convened on Thursday morning in order to appoint a successor to Riad Salameh did not meet for lack of quorum. The caretaker PM then held a “consultative meeting” with the ministers present.
Expressing regret over the situation, Mikati stated that “Today we had a chance to temporarily remedy a file related to the monetary and financial situation, and I am sad to announce that certain ministers have prioritized their ‘political calculations’ over stability in the country,” emphasizing that they should, therefore, “take responsibility for this decision.”
According to informed sources, the four vice-governors who intended to resign had changed their minds after realizing that their resignation would destabilize the financial situation and after learning that the parliament would accept their request to enact a law allowing them to spend 200 million dollars per month over a three-month period, an amount that the government must repay within a year. This amount must be used to pay the salaries of civil servants and cover essential expenses.
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