(AFP File Photo / Marco Longari)
There is no room for objection to rulings from the Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC), said Major General Mamdouh Shahin, Assistant Minister of Defence.
During a meeting with the Shura Council’s Committee on Constitutional and Legislative Affairs, Shahin said that soldiers participating in elections would threaten national security, as it would require calling military personnel from posts at the border, which could create issues, according to state-owned Al-Ahram.
The assistant minister added that including personal data information of officers and members of the Armed Forces in the voter database could also jeopardise national security. However, Shahin said that the Armed Forces had proposed a text to the Shura Council that would potentially resolve these issues.
Minister of State for Legal and Parliamentary Affairs Hatem Bagato added that including the private residences of police and army personnel on the database could create serious problems to national security.
Bagato went on to say secure framework could be put in place allowing police and army to vote by July 2020.
Last month the SCC found nine articles in the political participation bill unconstitutional, including articles banning police and military personnel from voting.
Following the SCC’s ruling, Bagato stood by the decision, but said he had “wished military personnel were not allowed to vote, especially during this period.” He also said that the Shura Council would not challenge the SCC’s ruling on military and police voting.
The constitution does not explicitly forbid police and military personnel from voting. Article 55 says that every citizen shall have the right to vote, and that the state is responsible for including the name of every eligible citizen in the voters’ database.
