Maronite Patriarch Beshara al-Rahi urged on Wednesday the March 8 and 14 alliances to make “brave initiatives” to resolve the country's crises, saying the failure to elect a president is a violation of the Constitution.

At the start of the synod of Maronite bishops in Bkirki, al-Rahi prayed for the immediate election of a president. He also hoped that parliament would stop legislative work in accordance with article 75 of the Constitution, in reference to a wage hike draft-law under discussion by the legislature. Al-Rahi has rejected the vacuum in the country's top Christian post following the failure of rival MPs to elect a successor to President Michel Suleiman after the expiry of his six-year term on May 25.

He reiterated his warning that the government of Prime Minister Tammam Salam indefinitely replacing the president would amount to a violation of the power-sharing agreement of 1943. The National Pact has divided power equally between Muslims and Christians. [Link]