President of the Republic, General Michel Aoun, asserted that “Lebanon will be able to overcome the difficult circumstances it is currently going through at various levels, because events have proven that the will of life among the Lebanese has always enabled them to overcome many difficulties in the past”. The President emphasized the bet on young generations in building the future of Lebanon, “Which is what we want”.
President Aoun also stressed that “Nothing should discourage the Lebanese despite the severity of what they are exposed to”, promising to exert every effort to get out of the successive crises they suffer from.
The positions of President Aoun came while meeting a delegation from Notre Dame University headed by the new president of the university, Father Bechara El Khoury, and the membership of the vice president for administrative and financial affairs, Abbot Samaan Abu Abdo, the vice president for academic affairs, and Director of Public Affairs and Protocol, Majid Abu Hadeer, today at Baabda Palace.
The delegation also included the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Roni Farra, member of the Executive Board, former Minister Ziad Baroud, and the Secretary, Mrs. Mona Kanaan.
At the beginning of the meeting, President of the University, Father Bechara El-Khoury, thanked the President for sending the General Director of the Presidency to represent him at the ceremony of assuming the duties of the Presidency of the University, and for the support he showed to the University.
Father Al-Khoury pointed out that the cooperation between President Aoun and the university is not new, and just as the Presidency of the Republic in the person of the president is a university for Lebanon, the University of Louaize aims to bring together the Lebanese of different sects, affiliations and religions.
“We are here today to renew what the Church decided in 1836 in the Lebanese Synod regarding the adoption of education as a mission, and we are entrusted with this matter and we reaffirm it at every historical turning point, to contribute, with your Excellency’s message, to the consolidation of the goals, which are the country, the constitution and values” Al-Khoury stated.
“We are trying to be the executive frameworks for what our country represents in terms of being a meeting of civilizations and not a struggle for them” Father Al-Khoury added stressing that the university and the Presidency of the Republic will remain on the same line as long as the goal is to build the person and the nation.
In addition, Father Al-Khoury pointed out that the university renews its affiliation with the values represented by the President of the Republic, and to the ancient country, despite the existing “turbulence”, which we have always managed to overcome over the past years.
President Aoun:
For his part, President Aoun responded welcoming the delegation, and praised the values adopted by the University of Louaize “in its upbringing of Lebanese generations, which we are working to complete intellectually. Therefore, we took the initiative and obtained international recognition for the “Academy of Man for Meeting and Dialogue”, which includes all religions and civilizations”.
“What we witnessed in terms of health events and other problems led to delays in the Academy’s work, but today we are restoring momentum to this issue with the 167 countries out of 169 that voted in favor of accrediting Lebanon as a center for this academy” the President said.
Moreover, President Aoun pointed to the great role played by the University of Louaize, counting on the continuation of this role in the future, because its success is a success for Lebanon.
President Aoun also called for focusing on the importance of the necessity of integrating science and religion in improving the conditions of human encounter, in order to combat attempts to take religions to destinations that do not reflect their true values and principles.
Finally, President Aoun addressed what is said about civil rule, considering that this matter can only be established through the unification of laws, the most important of which is the Personal Status Law because of its equality for all, “And it requires the cooperation of all Lebanese parties and the collection of different ideas”.
Al-Adha Congratulations:
President Aoun also received congratulation telegrams on the blessed Eid Al-Adha from a number of heads of state.
Iraqi President:
Iraqi President Barham Salih stated:
“On the occasion of the blessed Eid al-Adha, I extend, on behalf of the Iraqi people and in my own name, to your Excellency and through you to the brotherly Lebanese people, the best blessings, asking God Almighty to grant you health and success, blessing you with further progress and prosperity.
On this blessed occasion, we affirm Iraq’s keenness to continue strengthening brotherly relations and joint cooperation between our two brotherly countries and peoples in various fields.
Iranian President, Hassan Rouhani, and Kuwaiti Crown Prince, Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, also sent congratulation cables.—Presidency Press Office
Source: National News Agency