Maronite Patriarch Beshara Rai warned Sunday a presidential vacuum would run contrary to the 1943 National Pact and eliminate the role of Christians in the country’s power-sharing system.

Rai’s stern warning comes as Parliament is scheduled to meet again in a fourth attempt in less than a month to elect a president amid growing signs that Thursday’s session is also destined to fail in the absence of a local and regional accord on a candidate acceptable to the March 8 and March 14 parties.

It also comes as Hezbollah and the Lebanese Forces engaged in fiery rhetoric, blaming each other for the delay in electing a new president as Lebanon edged closer to a power vacuum in the absence of a deal over a compromise candidate. Rai renewed his call on Parliament to elect a president on time in order to avert a vacuum in the country’s top Christian post. [Link]