MP Saleh: We Respect the Law, Reject Military Council Maneuvers on Political Rights Bill

MP Saleh: We Respect the Law, Reject Military Council Maneuvers on Political Rights Bill

MP Sobhi Saleh, Deputy of the Committee on Constitutional and Legislative Affairs at the Egyptian People’s Assembly, speculated that if the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) did not ratify the political isolation law (Disenfranchisement Law), there are two possible scenarios for it to deal with the law reform recently passed by Parliament to sideline former regime figures and bar them from exercising their political rights: first, it could reject the bill outright; the second is to refer it to the Supreme Constitutional Court to disrupt its natural course in terms of implementation before the start of the election.



Saleh added that the scenario of turning the bill over to the Supreme Constitutional Court to take its opinion is the more likely scenario, in order to block the law for two weeks or more in a seemingly legal manner.



Further, Saleh said that generally a scenario in which SCAF rejects the law will not be in SCAF’s favor. It knows very well that if it rejects the law, parliament can vote on it once again, and it can be passed finally by two-thirds majority – without SCAF’s consent. Hence, it will not reject the bill. Meanwhile, if SCAF ratifies the law, it will be issued as a formal law and will be published in the country’s official paper.


Out of respect of the law, Saleh admitted, if SCAF makes the Constitutional Court stalling maneuver, there is nothing parliament can do. But the ultimate arbitrator will be the Egyptian people, who will confirm their awareness and intelligence by not allowing anyone to trick them into accepting a re-make of the old corrupt regime.


Earlier, on Thursday, the Egyptian parliament voted its final approval of an important reform in the Disenfranchisement Law that deprives of political rights all those who during the ten years prior to February 11, 2011 worked as president, prime minister, president of the dissolved National Party, secretary-general of said party, a member of its political office or its General Secretariat, for a period of ten years from the date indicated.