Rumor of a possible train drivers’ strike reported by Al-Masry Al-Youm
CAIRO: A minor shuffle in the cabinet is in effect, read Monday’s headlines. Three ministries out of the 31 headed by Prime Minister Ahmad Nazif have been restructured.
Nazif remains in office despite previous reports falsely predicting his discharge.
According to Al-Ahram newspaper, President Hosni Mubarak has appointed three new ministers and three governors. The new members of cabinet took the oath of office on Monday.
When former Justice Minister Mahmoud Abu Leil submitted his resignation from office less than two weeks ago, Mubarak accepted it and issued a decree appointing Mamdouh Marie in his stead.
Marie was previously the head of the supreme constitutional court. He was also head of the 2004 presidential elections commission, a government-established entity that supervised the elections, registered and approved candidacy, set rules for campaigning and arbitrated conflicts.
Othman Mohammed Othman, who was formally the Minister of Planning, was chosen for the newly founded post of minister for economic development. Mohammed Mahgoub, former governor of Alexandria, took Othman’s old post.
The new governors are Mohammed Shaarawi for the city of Beheira, Adel Labib for Alexandria, and Mohsen Al-Noemani Hafez for Sohag, in southern Egypt.
Rumors, reported by independent newspapers (mainly Al-Masry Al-Youm), that Nazif was going to be sent home seem now to be just that, as the cabinet changes are finally revealed. Al-Masry Al-Youm had reported that Nazif was facing swelling opposition among the members of the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP) and that the prime minister might “very likely be relieved of his post in “the coming cabinet reshuffle. Al-Masri Al-Youm had implied that unnamed insider sources from the NDP had confirmed the piece of information.
For many, the most significant of the changes is that of Minister Abu Leil, whose reason for resignation was not explained. Press reports carried no details. Abu Leil, however, had been harshly criticized by the press and many political forces for calling a disciplinary hearing for two judges who had blown the whistle on vote rigging and corruption in last year’s presidential elections.
Following this decision, fierce protests erupted and the political scene experienced a period of unrest and instability as people from different political affiliations rushed to the streets to demonstrate in solidarity with the judges. The judges were seen as heroes and the minister of justice was deemed “a puppet in the hands of “an oppressive regime. Banners and signs during protests featured pictures of Abu Leil crossed out with Xs, along with captions slamming the cabinet official and calling for his resignation. The security police’s attitude additionally inflamed anger because of the harsh treatment protestors received, often being harassed, beaten and arrested.
Also in the news are updates of the aftermath of a train tragedy that killed at least 50 and wounded around 140 people in the city of Qalyoub. According to Al-Masry Al-Youm, Egypt’s principle railway station experienced major disorder as many of the trains were delayed with around 50 percent of passengers canceling their seat reservations as a result.
The newspaper mentions talk of a possible strike by all 600 station workers and drivers, but gave no further details. Officials at the station, however, ruled out the possibility, saying that the “confusion arose when the Minister of Transportation issued instructions urging the station to keep all trains out of service that had not gone through a complete safety check. The decision caused a traffic jam and resulted in some delays, said Al-Masry Al-Youm’s official sources.
