NNA – Caretaker Minister of Public Works and Transportation, Dr. Ali Hamieh, on Friday held a press conference at his ministerial office, during which he discussed the four laws that have been approved by the Parliament’s General Assembly in their capacity as reform laws “par excellence”.
The four laws are within the scope of Lebanon’s ports and airport sector, which should generate revenues worth hundreds of millions of dollars in support of the treasury, without compromising citizens’ pockets.
“If we calculate the revenues to be collected as a result of the amendments that took place with the adoption of these laws, an amount of approximately USD 350 million should be ensured. If we do the math, the amount of USD 350 million is equivalent to LBP 9 thousand billion at Sayrafa rate, which is close to the current budget deficit of LBP 10 thousand billion,” Hamieh explained.
The Caretaker Minister also stressed that the aforementioned figures were an outright indicator that Lebanon was far from being a poor or a powerless country. “What we are talking about is only a part of the revenues of some public utilities affiliated to the Ministry of Public Works and Transportation, which could cover the entire budget deficit and secure the salaries of the public sector in all its institutions,” Hamieh added.
============R.H.