Former Prime Minister, billionaire businessman Najib Mikati, is seen as a likely candidate to take the reins as PM-designate and handle the grueling task of forming a rescue government in line with the French initiative.
Lebanon has been without a fully functioning government for almost a year, and two designated PMs (Mustapha Adib and Saad Hariri) have already resigned.
They both stepped down citing difficulties reaching an agreement with President Michel Aoun on the Cabinet formation.
For similar reasons, Mikati is reportedly against taking the position.
However, quoting parliamentary sources, London-based Saudi newspaper Asharq al-Awsat reported that Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri might seek to convince Mikati.
Berri is against forming “a one-sided government that resembles the current resigned government and he might become obliged not to take part in the new government in order not to grant it political cover,” the sources told the newspaper.
Mikati served as PM twice; once briefly in a caretaker capacity in 2005 and another time from 2011 until resigning in 2014.
He is #1249 on Forbes’ Billionaires 2021 list with a current net worth estimated at $2.7 billion.
