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One item that did not make it to Parliament’s agenda was a draft for a capital control law, which failed to pass a joint committee yesterday. The heads of the legislature’s finance and justice committees sharply criticized the latest draft of the long-awaited capital control law, which has been in the works for over two years. Discussions were postponed at the previous joint committee session, held on December 1, due to unresolved issues with the International Monetary Fund regarding the capital controls issue. The draft, introduced by MP Nicolas Nahas (Azm Movement/Tripoli) contains articles that consolidate power in the hands of the central bank. Nahas is, unofficially, part of Premier Najib Mikati’s negotiating team with the IMF. The draft would also retroactively legalize large transfers outside the country made by elites while ordinary citizens watched the value of their deposits crumble.