The El-Nour party has accused the newly appointed Prime Minister of sidelining the salafist party when forming his new cabinet.
Prime Minister Hesham Qandil offered El-Nour party member Gamal Allam El-Din the Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs but dissatisfied with the offer, the party decided to boycott the cabinet.
“The Ministry of Environment doesn’t comply with the size of El-Nour party, the second biggest party in Egypt,” spokesperson for the party Dr Yousry Hammad said.
A statement on the party’s Facebook page said all the political parties and movements collaborated to support Mohamed Morsy in the presidential elections, but since being elected, neither he nor the Freedom and Justice Party had any communication or consultation with El-Nour.
The statement said that the party expected a coalition government in accordance with the weight of each party in the political arena but the cabinet structure came as a surprise, as they were only offered one ministry.
“The Prime Minister met with some marginal and small political forces when he was forming the government to know their available competencies, and he chose some of them to be ministers. That didn’t happen with El-Nour,” Hammad said.
News reports saying the party would join the opposition were denied by Hammad, who instead said their next step would depend on how the FJP deals with them.
“Constructive criticism is always acceptable, but opposition that aims to bring down the President will never be our way,” Hammad said. “We’re cooperating with all political powers, because what we aim at is the welfare of Egypt, not positions and ministries.”
The party said that they will offer help whenever needed in any position. Their statement ended by paying respect to the Egyptian people, the President and the cabinet, wishing them success and prosperity.
Hammad also commented on the ongoing discussions in the constituent assembly saying that there is no understanding of the idea of implementing Shari’a; describing it as “a divine word” that every Egyptian should follow and apply in every aspect of his life.
“All the powers are demanding the addition of an article that allows non-Muslims to resort to their Shari’a, but Muslims can’t?” Hammad said.
The party is preparing for internal elections to be held after Eid. Their official website says they have formed a committee to prepare for and supervise the elections, and are assessing their political performance during the last year to support those who have proved their competency
