Meet the Mubarak-era ministers of Al-Sisi's first cabinet

“They are Mubarak’s men once again… sorry, I meant the men of the 3 July revolution,” an Egyptian social media user said in response to the return of Mubarak’s henchmen in the cabinet recently announced following the election of military coup leader Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi as president.

The composition of the new cabinet came as the last in a series of moves after the July 3 coup that brought to center stage icons of the Mubarak regime. Numerous names in the new cabinet had served in successive cabinets under Mubarak, and have been involved in corruption and illegal profiteering. Yet, if the prime minister himself, Ibrahim Mahlab, hails from Mubarak’s National Democratic Party, since he served as a member of its political bureau, then it would be no surprise for his cabinet to feature prominent figures of the Mubarak regime.

Below are some examples.

Minister of Culture: Gaber Asfour, served as a minister in Mubarak’s last cabinet, and maintained good relations with Suzanne Mubarak and the former culture minister Farouk Hosni.

Minister of Administrative Development: Adel Labib, known for his affiliation with the notorious State Security Apparatus, and a leading member in the disbanded NDP. He served as governor of Alexandria in 2007 until the outbreak of the January 25revolution in 2011.

Minister of Foreign Affairs: Sameh Shoukri, his history reveals his close links to the Mubarak regime. He served as Mubarak’s own Secretary of Information (1995-1999), then Egyptian ambassador in Austria and Egypt’s permanent representative at international organisations in Vienna (1999-2003), then director of the office of the foreign minister (2004-2005), then Egypt’s permanent delegate to the United Nations in Geneva (2005-2008).

Minister of Higher Education: Alsayed Abdel-Khalek, a former member of the NDP’s political bureau, famous for his hostility towards politically-active students. He started his tenure as a dean of the Law School at Mansoura University prior to the 2011 revolution by dismissing 13 students for their membership in the Muslim Brotherhood. Following the 2013 military coup, he allowed the arrest of 40 students from campus, and incited authorities to take harsh measures against detained students, including females.

Minister of Llabor: Nahed al-Ashry, former deputy of Mubarak-era Minister of Labour Aisha Abdelhady. She has been known for her hostile attitude towards workers, such as her controversial remark to workers: “hit your heads on the wall,” which triggered the anger of many workers at the time.

Minister of Transportation: Hany Dahy, specialises in petroleum and has held a number of positions in the petroleum ministry under Mubarak.