Egypt politician who supported coup, opposes constitutional amendments

An Egyptian politician who is known for having supported the bloody coup which ousted the country’s first freely elected president in 2012, has expressed his opposition to the constitutional amendments that would allow putsch leader Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi to stay in power until 2034.

In an interview with the Anadolu Agency, Kamal El Helbawy called on Egyptians to vote no in the upcoming referendum on the grounds that they would be enabling Al-Sisi to remain in office until 2034.

Formerly a member of and spokesperson for the Muslim Brotherhood, El Helbawy left the group in 2012. He took part in the protests against Morsi, who hails from the Brotherhood, in 2013 and became a vocal supporter of the military coup that ousted the former president. He said that “some call this a military coup but I see a full revolution in [the protests of] 30 June.”

READ: Germany concerned over constitutional changes in Egypt

Commenting on the regional level, El Helbawy told the Anadolu Agency that he wishes for a rapprochement between Egypt and Turkey. Relations between the two countries were severed as a result of the coup, with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan repeatedly condemning Egyptian authorities’ crackdown on Muslim Brotherhood members and supporters.

Constitutional proposals could allow Sisi to stay in power till 2034
– Cartoon [AlArabi21News]