A few months ago, the nonpartisan Lebanese celebrated their win when an independent candidate, Melhef Khalaf, became the head of the Beirut Bar Association. Now, another partisan vs. independent electoral battle is on the horizon.
On March 8th, the elections for the Order of Engineers and Architects (OEA) in Tripoli will commence. As with the Beirut Bar Association, there will be several candidates affiliated with different political parties as well as independent contenders.
Since its establishment in 1951, the OEA has been one of the most prominent syndicates in Lebanon and the most eminent association for the profession of engineering in the country.
The order constitutes of two syndicates: The Beirut Syndicate, which consists of members from across Lebanon, and the Tripoli Syndicate, which is composed of engineers in the Northern Governorate of Lebanon.
The Tripoli syndicate, of which the elections will be held early next month, is currently headed by Engineer Bassam Ziade who won the last election and became its president in 2017.
Ziade, along with all the members of his winning list, was backed by 5 political parties, including the Lebanese Forces and the Future Movement.
This time around, the Lebanese revolutionaries are preparing to score another achievement by supporting the independent member(s) throughout the elections.
After the independent Melhem Khalaf won the BBA elections and became the association’s president, he immediately went to work with dedication and consciousness towards the people and has since been praised for his respectable endeavors in the legal.
This is because Khalaf is not only qualified for the job but he wasn’t backed by this nepotist or that party leader. He was backed by the people who knew his fitness for the position and his mindful stance towards his duties and his mission as a lawyer.
And this is what the revolution is seeking to achieve now with the upcoming OEA elections, and with any and all elections onwards.
The Lebanese people of the revolution crave for independent, mindful, honest, and qualified leaders to run the country’s affairs, not only in the government body but in all aspects of governance related to the country and its people.
Henceforth, they have started campaigning and working towards having a completely independent and qualified new president of the Tripoli syndicate, who fits the criteria and away from political influence.
The names of the candidates have not yet been revealed, but they should be soon.
Daleel Thawra, which is also campaigning in that regard, stated the following: “Dear revolutionary engineers; if you are not in the union yet then please pay your dues and join. The elections are coming up, and we all want a free union that carries all the issues of the engineers and strengthening the revolution.”
When the candidates are announced and the elections begin, every independent voice must rally behind their true representatives to claim another victory for the nonpartisan civil society.