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Sisi seeks to expand his constitutional powers

September 2, 2014 at 12:02 pm

Aides close to Egyptian President Abdel Fatah Al-Sisi are seeking to amend the constitution to expand his powers, a report said.

The attempt to amend the constitution is aimed at expanding the legislative powers of the president and allow him to form a government without consulting the parliament, Almesryoon newspaper said, adding that the articles on the system of governance will also be subject to amendments.

According to article 226 of the Egyptian 2014 constitution, the president can request the amendment of the constitution only if a third of the parliament approves the request, by specifying the articles that require amendment and the reasons for this request, and the parliament should discuss it within 30 days, then approve or reject the request with a majority vote.

Former council of state president, Judge Mohamed Hamed Al-Gamal, said that President Al-Sisi does not have the right to amend the current constitution unless there is a parliament in place. He pointed out that Al-Sisi has temporary legislative powers until the election of a parliament, and that he can only use these powers to issue laws, but not to amend the constitution.