The president of the Independence Movement, Michel Moawad, emphasized on the importance of a real national partnership, “the first step towards building the State for which we have worked hard and still are… by word and by action.”

He added: “The State that we look for is the State that puts an end to the culture of winners and losers, and serves all the citizens in an equal way; the State that is the sole holder of arms, with no partner in its National Defence and security duties, and in imposing its rule on the 10452 km2 of the territories; the State that safeguards sovereignty, protects freedoms, and applies Law on all, in an equal way; the State that follows the paths of Reform and of fighting corruption, favouritism and clientelism.”

Moawad explained that based on “these fundamental principles and all that we believe in, the Independence Movement has joined hands with the Free Patriotic Movement for the coming elections”. He emphasized that the agreement between the two parties in their joint program, included giving priority for the Zgharta-Zawiyat needs to bring back political balance to it, protecting diversity and freedom, and asserting the importance of development and partnership between Zgharta and Al Zawiyat.”

These words were part of the speech that Moawad had prepared for the event that was held at the ‘Forum of Beirut’ to announce the Electoral list resulting from the alliance between the Independence Movement, the Free Patriotic Movement and other allies, for the coming elections. Noting that, due to delays to start the event and considerations related to the time limitation for the TV live coverage, all the candidates were asked to shorten their speeches.

Moawad’s full speech

“I, Michel René Moawad, along with my comrades in the Independence Movement, believe in a proper national partnership in Lebanon. We believe that this constitutes a first step towards building the State for which we have worked hard and still are… by word and by action.

“The State that we seek is the State that puts an end to the culture of winners and losers, and serves all citizens in an equal way.

“The State that is the sole holder of arms, with no partner in its National Defence duties, in imposing security, protecting Lebanon’s borders, and  enforcing its rule on the 10452 km2 of the territories;

“The State that safeguards sovereignty, protects freedoms, and applies Law on all individuals and parties in an equal way;

“The State that follows the paths of Reform and of fighting corruption, favouritism and clientelism, and has the courage to impose radical measures to remediate the economic and financial crisis, before we reach total bankruptcy and everything collapses;

“The State that cares for all Lebanese, offering proper infrastructure, providing education, healthcare and hospitalization services, and creating job opportunities to raise the economic growth; instead of being a State that merely divides its budget on salaries, wages, and paying back debts;

“The State that builds a proper partnership between residing Lebanese and the diaspora, and implements an extended decentralization and a nationwide balanced development that serves all the regions equally; allowing the citizens of the extreme North of the country and of the extreme South to receive the exact same services provided in the capital Beirut.

“Based on these fundamental principles and all that we believe in, the Independence Movement has joined hands with the Free Patriotic Movement for the coming elections. We might not be agreeing on all matters, but for sure we agree on the principle of diversity to support the present Presidential Mandate and make it stronger. Lebanon cannot be a strong Nation, without having a strong State; and a strong State cannot be, without a strong Mandate.

“We also agreed in our programs, vision and aspirations on giving a priority for the Zgharta-Zawiyat region to bring back political balance to it, to protect diversity and freedom, and to assert the importance of development and partnership between Zgharta and the Al Zawiyat villages. This will stop our region from being a mere element used for political compromises and deals, and allow it to be again an efficient partner, participating in national decisions. We want Zgharta-Zawiyat to be strong, part of a strong State.”