Jumblatt: I Almost Need Permission to Run in Chouf

The electoral picture in the Chouf district, south-east of Beirut, seems to be vague and ambiguous, two months ahead of the parliamentary elections...

Indeed, in the stronghold of the head of the Democratic Gathering MP Walid Jumblatt, the latter doesn't seem to be comfortable given that all "allies" want him to preserve a seat for them.

Thus, there are eight seats in this district, four of which are for Christians: three for Maronites and one for Catholics. Yet, the Catholic candidate, Nehmeh Tohmet, is the only one who has gained consensus from the March 14 bloc.

However, there are four March 14 "confident" candidates for the three Maronite seats: MPs George Adwan and Elie Aoun, former MP Ghattas Khoury and the National Liberal Party chief Dory Chamoun.

While Chamoun and Aoun's seats seem to be guaranteed, a battle has erupted between Adwan and Khoury over the fourth with neither candidate willing to ‘sacrifice' for the interest of the bloc's "unity."

For instance, when Khoury's candidacy was ruled out, as was the case in the 2005 elections, the former Future Movement MP decided to individually launch his electoral campaign in a move many observers see as an attempt to "impose" his candidacy on Jumblatt. "Isn't it my right to dream of being a candidate in my own district?" Khoury wondered, stressing his candidacy wasn't aimed at challenging anyone.

Khoury's step infuriated Jumblatt who has been openly criticizing his March 14 allies. The PSP leader, however, refused to comment on Khoury's move, saying that "the day will come when I will speak about it."

Yet, Jumblatt expressed regret over having to exclude, for the first time, the deep-rooted Boustani family from the Chouf electoral list. In this context, Jumblatt justified his move and told the Lebanese daily As-Safir that it was due to the "alliance's necessities."

The PSP leader also made angry comments about his stature in Chouf saying that he feels that he almost needs permission to run in the district.