President Abdel Fattah al Sisi announced, in an interview with CNBC, that the Presidential elections in his country will take place upcoming March or April, while emphasizing that he will respect the constitution and not seek a third term. President al-Sisi said, “We are talking about next March or April for the elections to be held in Egypt. I would like to take the opportunity in this interview to say that the office of the president of Egypt has undergone big changes and this needs to be taken into account. No president will be able take office against the will of the Egyptian people. No president will be able to continue for another term against the will of the Egyptian people. Both mean the term is (limited to) eight years,” the Egyptian President emphasized.
Egypt’s constitution limits presidential time in office to two four-year terms. President Sisi, who came to power in 2014, a year after he led the military in ousting elected but unpopular Islamist President Mohamed Morsi who sought to gain executive powers to security his leadership beyond the eight years limit, did not say whether he intended to run for a second term. While human rights groups criticize the Egyptian President for what they claim to be “ongoing human rights violations,” President al-Sisi has managed to advance significant changes for his country, both economically, as well as militarily.
Meanwhile, Egyptian human rights lawyer and opposition leader Khaled Ali announced he will challenge President al-Sisi in the 2018 presidential election, provided he is not barred from running. Ali is expected to run on a socialist platform, aiming to end austerity and redistribute wealth, and fight terrorism without compromising freedom. Khaled Ali said, “Our decision today is to announce the start of our campaign, administration and organization, to prepare to run for the presidential race and prepare the documentation and agenda which will be presented to society for a discussion to provide alternatives to rescue Egypt from its dark fate,” he announced in a Cairo press conference. Ali said earlier on Monday security forces had raided a printing press and seized materials for his campaign, after Egyptian media reported he was expected to announce his candidacy. An Egyptian official explained to TV7 that a Cairo court sentenced Ali in September to three months in prison for “public indecency.” While Ali has appealed the verdict, denying the charges which he says are politically motivated, if the guilty verdict is upheld he will not be allowed to run, even if he is not jailed.