The Progressive Socialist Party Thursday submitted an appeal to the Constitutional Council contesting the controversial naturalization decree.
The PSP is the first party to submit such an appeal, although many political parties and officials have criticized the decree and the secretive manner of its passage.
"We demand that the decree be overturned and we hope that the judiciary will reveal whether there was any hidden agenda, and clear up the matter," the party said, according to local radio station Voice of Lebanon (93.3 FM).
The Interior Ministry began registering the naturalization candidates named in the decree as Lebanese citizens Wednesday, although a presidential palace source said that General Security had not yet finished vetting those named.
The decree was published in full last week.
A statement from the PSP released Wednesday referred to the decree as a “scam.” According to the statement, the party has concerns over the lack of transparency surrounding the decree, in addition to the lack of clarity as to how the individuals slated for Lebanese citizenship were selected.
The PSP also raised questions about the political and financial connections of some of those individuals.
“[Some] names are associated with the economic and financial system of [Syrian President] Bashar Assad ... for example, Farid Bejawwi, who is said to be accused of stealing more than $2 billion from Algeria, and one of [the individuals is] involved in the Sonatrach scandal,” the statement read.
Sonatrach is Algeria’s state energy company, which has been implicated in a number of corruption cases.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
