The Information office of Deputy Prime Minister and Health Minister Ghassan Hasbani issued the following statement:

With parliamentary elections looming, some may seek to falsify or misrepresent facts in files related to the Ministry of Public Health to burnish the image of a candidate or slander another. In this context, some circulated false news concerning Deir El Qamar Governmental Hospital, in which the Minister of Public Health Ghassan Hasbani and the Lebanese Forces were accused of trying to stop the work in that hospital. We should like to stress the following:

*On 5 April 2017 we submitted a request to the cabinet to move funds of LBP10 billion from the public budget to the Health Ministry Budget for 2017, and transfer it to the council for Development and Reconstruction to complete the project for the establishment of Deir El Qamar Governmental Hospital. This was not included in the Cabinet’s agenda, and we are pursuing our efforts in this regard.

*The Minister of Public had a field visit to the premises of the hospital to follow up the developments in its establishment and the additional requirements for its finalization. We submitted requests to international donors to contribute in this project.

*we determined amounts for the equipment of the governmental hospitals with and worked to ensure assistance from the World Bank which approved the same. However, local obstacles are impeding the work towards the approval of the aid, and we will continue our quest to ensure this aid.

Health Minister brought up this subject in a statement he delivered in Deir El Qamar before the presidents of municipalities.