At least 700 Lebanese expatriates have registered their wish with the Foreign Ministry to return, newspaper Al-Anbaa reported Monday.
The newspaper reported that 200 expats in Nigeria, 200 in Angola, 150 in Mozambique and a further 150 in South Africa had registered their desire to return as of Sunday evening.
Foreign Minister Nassif Hitti said in a televised interview Sunday evening that the government “wants to evacuate expatriates [urgently]. There are many Lebanese who registered their names. We emphasize the importance of transferring funds especially in these extraordinary circumstances.”
Hitti confirmed that he was working to guarantee that banks allow money to be sent to students and other Lebanese living in foreign countries. A statement by the Association of Banks in Lebanon said Sunday that the institution is committed to transferring appropriate funds to the students studying abroad from the bank accounts of their parents.
Public outcry over the inability of Lebanese expatriates to return to Lebanon while the country is on coronavirus lockdown with its air and sea ports closed pushed Prime Minister Hassan Diab to schedule an extraordinary Cabinet session on the matter. Cabinet is expected to discuss mechanisms for their return at the Tuesday session.
Al-Anbaa Monday quoted a Development and Liberation bloc source as saying that the decision to allow expats to return has effectively been taken and that their return had “become close.”
The source, however, cited Parliament Speaker Berri cautioning “not to count your chickens until your eggs have hatched.” The source added that “the government could have taken this decision without all the fuss around it which has led to nothing.”
The issue of appointments of the Central Bank, including the appointment of four deputy governors, is not expected to be discussed at Tuesday’s extraordinary session.
Local newspaper Al-Joumhouria quoted Monday a source within the Lebanese Forces, which is not participating in Diab’s government, as saying that “the differences around the appointments show that the team behind the government’s formation does not care about the financial meltdown that’s happening, which requires a complete change of approach.”
The source added that the situation confirms the necessity of forming a new government of independent specialists that will not be influenced by sectarian quotas and clientelism.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
