The Lebanese Parliament held a legislative session on Wednesday, in which MPs voted on several important laws. One of these laws is the removal of banking secrecy in Lebanon, which the majority of Lebanese officials voted against.
The legislation was proposed to Parliament by MP Michel Daher, who deemed it necessary that the financial crisis is addressed.
During the session, Daher said: “There is no money in the banks. History will hold us accountable. We have to face people with the truth, and we cannot resort to ‘haircut’ for all people.”
The official pointed out that there is a lot of tax evasion taking place in the country and criticized the Lebanese banking sector, which is unable “to attract deposits.”
When it was time to vote, most Members of Parliament voted against the law to lift banking secrecy, and the law was referred to the parliamentary committees.
Notably, the removal of bank secrecy in Lebanon has been one of the most dominant demands of the Lebanese revolution since its beginning on October 17th, 2019.
In the press conference held after the legislative session, Prime Minister Hassan Diab was asked about this matter and its direct effect on the Lebanese people’s trust in this government.
Diab’s answer concerning the people’s trust was: “The Lebanese have the right to give their opinion, whether or not they trust [the government].”
“I am with every suffering Lebanese,” he continued, “but there is a difference between saying that the government does not work when it’s working day and night and is 70 days old since it gained confidence.”
The presence of banking secrecy makes it more difficult for people to hold officials accountable, which is why the Lebanese people have been very vocal against it for months.
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