The State Shura Council has roughly 50 judges and 25 employees. It occupies the fifth floor covering about 600 square meters in the Justice Palace building in Beirut, which was constructed in the early 1960s. The number of justice magistrates did not exceed 200 in all of Lebanon’s courts at that time. Today though, the number has risen to 650, more than 200 of which are in Beirut alone. The juridical judiciary has thus become in dire need of the floor occupied by the Shura Council. 

 

In view of this reality, the State Shura Council decided to request the establishment of independent headquarters for its operations. An engineering office submitted a technical study on the prospective building, which would consist of:

-    Two underground floors used for parking, each covering 3160 square meters. 

-    A ground floor dedicated for meeting halls with a surface of 875 square meters.

-    A first floor hosting a library and a registrar’s office covering 865 square meters.

-    A second and a third floor, each containing 22 offices, the surface of each is roughly 35 square meters. i.e. a total of 1870 square meters. 

-    A fourth floor containing 22 offices and covering 895 square meters.

-    A fifth floor containing 18 offices and covering 895 square meters.

-    A sixth floor containing a division assigned for the Council’s president and 8 rooms with a surface area totaling 960 square meters.

-    A roof with two ceremony halls stretching across 745 square meters.

 

The total surface area of the building, parking floors excluded, would thus be 7105 square meters, which is way beyond the Council’s need. The cost of the building has been estimated at USD 9,100,000 million, with USD 350 paid per square meter underground and USD 750 per square meter above ground.

 

The establishment of a building for the Shura Council seems necessary amidst the existing overcrowding of the Justice Palace. What seems unnecessary though is the high cost and unreasonable size in excess of the current needs of the Council or any needs that might arise in the short or long run.

 

This article was written based on the Cabinet’s minutes of meetings on September 18, 2014.