CAIRO: Mohamed Esmat El-Sadat s appeal against the People’s Assembly’s decision to revoke his parliamentary membership was not intended to reinstate him but rather to expose how things truly work in the Egyptian system, El-Sadat told The Daily Star Egypt.
The former MP – also nephew of former President Mohamed Anwar El Sadat and head of the head of The Independent opposition party – was expelled from parliament after allegations of bankruptcy marred his reputation.
The recent court ruling will halt the PA s decision to drop my membership, said El-Sadat, adding that the court revealed the error in the PA s ruling, which hastily expelled him without verifying the bankruptcy claim.
The Court of Cassation ruling will force the PA to reconsider their decision to revoke El-Sadat’s parliamentary status and decide whether or not they will allow him to participate in the 2009 legislative elections.
The assembly’s decision to revoke El-Sadat s membership was more of a political trade-off and score settling on the part of the ruling National Democratic Party [NDP], said Hamdy Hassan, a Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated MP.
According to El-Sadat, the PA will sometimes overlook legal violations with some MPs.
He mentioned the example of Emad El Gilda whose membership was supposed to be revoked but instead the PA asked him to resign, despite the fact that PA Speaker Fathi Sorour had said that it is against the law. This, he added, raises suspicions regarding who holds true power in the assembly.
They want to get rid of me as the head of an opposition party, and they were provided with a perfect opportunity, said El-Sadat, I don t really expect to get my membership again for political reasons, as well as legal loopholes they might use.
According to Mohamed Khalil Kwaitah, an NDP and MP, once a PA’s membership has been dropped then it cannot be reinstated. However since the appeal was approved by the cassation court, El-Sadat will be able to exercise his right to vote in the PA and also run for the assembly s elections pending a decision by the PA.
All I care about is for the public to know what happened, especially the speed with which my membership was dropped, El-Sadat told The Daily Star Egypt.
