Parliament in Egypt gets legislative powers

CAIRO

Egypt’s ruling military Jan. 23 handed legislative powers to the new Islamist-dominated lower house of parliament, which convened for the first time since a popular uprising ousted Hosni Mubarak.

“Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, the head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, has announced in a letter to the people’s assembly the transfer of legislative power to the assembly,” the cabinet said on its Facebook page, Agence France-Presse reported. A year after the uprising, many. In their first act, newly elected deputies voted in Saad al-Katatni, leading member of the Musim Brotherhood, as the new speaker of parliament.

Message from Turkey

The MPs also elected two deputy speakers: Ashraf Thabet from the conservative Salafist Al-Nour party and Mohammed Abdel Alim Daoud of the liberal Wafd party. For his part, Turkish President Abdullah Gül said democracy in Egypt will provide a beacon for other Arab countries. “Democracy in Egypt, with all its traditions and institutions, will enlighten the future of other Arab countries,” Mustafa İsen, secretary-general of the Turkish Presidency, said in a statement on behalf of Gül at a reception that took place at the Egyptian Embassy in Ankara on Jan. 23 to celebrate the first anniversary of the Jan. 25 Egyptian Revolution, Anatolia news agency reported.