Parliament Postpones Session to Discuss Corruption Allegations in Telecommunications Sector
According to L’Orient Today, “The parliamentary session scheduled for Wednesday to discuss the thorny issue of corruption allegations in the telecommunications sector was postponed, Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri’s office said in a statement on Tuesday.” [L’Orient Today]

Finance and Budget Committee Convenes, Discusses Salary Taxes and Other Measures
According to Naharnet, “The Finance and Budget parliamentary committee, headed by MP Ibrahim Kanaan, convened Tuesday to discuss circulars and decisions issued by Finance Minister Youssef Khalil. After listening to the minister, the committee decided to delay the implementation of two salary taxes resolutions.” [Naharnet]

Mercy Corps Report Says Lebanon Most Remittance-Dependent Country in the World 
According to the National “The Mercy Corps’ 2021 findings [showing Lebanon as the most remittance-dependent country in the world] are in stark contrast to the previous year when Lebanon ranked as the 12th-most remittance-dependent nation globally. The report, published on Tuesday, defines the struggling country’s dependence on remittances as a coping strategy in the absence of political decisions to enact a recovery plan or bring about economic reforms.” [The National]

Reports of Political Tension between FPM and other Political Groups Over Constitutional Crisis
According to Naharnet, “Will (caretaker) PM (Najib) Mikati settle for the signatures of the ministers who attended the session, adopting a constitutional interpretation that says that the signatures of two thirds of ministers are enough to cover for the president’s signature?’ the sources wondered in remarks to al-Binaa newspaper published Tuesday. The sources reminded that the governments that existed following the tenures of each of Emile Lahoud and Michel Suleiman had established a “norm” stipulating that the signatures of ‘all ministers’ are necessary to substitute for the president’s signature during a presidential void period.” [Naharnet]

Antonios writes, “For several weeks, prisoners’ relatives have been denouncing on social media the outbreak of numerous skin diseases in Lebanon’s prisons, especially in Roumieh (the largest prison in the country). Denouncing the atrocious health conditions of the prison environment, these images show men with pimples from head to toe and others suffering from gaping and pustular wounds on the arms, legs or soles of the feet. Diseases are ‘due to the quality of the water that is dirty and polluted in Roumieh,’ and ‘the lack of care,’ according to some prisoners who spoke to L’Orient-Le Jour.” 

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Taha writes, “Public e-procurement is the application of information and communication technology, such as internet-based systems, by governments in conducting their procurement relationship with bidders to meet the public sector’s needs of goods and services. In Lebanon, Public Procurement Law No. 244/2021 (PPL) laid the foundation for a gradual transformation of public procurement into a digitized process. Article 66 of the law creates the central electronic platform that should host all public procurement activities and which will be managed and owned by the Public Procurement Authority (PPA). There are doubts, however, about the capacity of government institutions to transition to an electronic procurement system. Moreover, past attempts to digitize the public sector and institute e-governance are not encouraging, as most were discontinued. Skepticism is especially more pronounced in the case of municipalities, which are experiencing a sharp drop in their revenues and a widening set of other social and economic challenges, primarily due to Lebanon’s ongoing financial meltdown.”

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