BEIRUT: Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea urged the government Friday to resign for the sake of Lebanon and the reputation of its lawmakers, citing cracks in the government which he said had became apparent in recent Cabinet sessions.

“The government should resign today as an act of mercy for Lebanon and for the sake of the Lebanese state and the reputation of the people involved in it,” Geagea told reporters at his residence in Meraab.

“After the recent Cabinet session, it appeared that the government no longer has the components of a government that is without political rivalry,” he added.

A verbal altercation between ministers from the Progressive Socialist Party and Free Patriotic Movement ministers dominated the Cabinet session Wednesday.

Two days later, Public Works Minister Ghazi Arisi said the government was not in good shape, but that political bickering should not hamper the work of the government.

The government is also split over the issue of financing the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.

PSP representatives, Prime Minister Nabjib Mikati and President Sleiman support paying Lebanon’s $32 million share of the U.N.-backed court’s budget, but FPM and Hezbollah ministers have vowed to block any attempt to finance the tribunal which has accused four Hezbollah member of involvement in the 2005 assassination of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.

Geagea also accused the government of being concerned with a grand Middle Eastern strategy rather than with the needs of the Lebanese citizen.

He emphasized the need to resolve the harsh living conditions of Lebanese in a way that is compatible with the needs of the private sector, and suggested the creation of a committee that includes representatives of the sector, plus labor unions and government officials, in order to reach a reasonable resolution.