CAIRO: The Prosecutor General on Tuesday referred the former ministers of finance and information to a criminal court on charges of misusing public funds, the official MENA news agency reported.
"Prosecutor General Abdel Meguid Mahmoud has ordered former information minister Anas El-Fiqqi and former finance minister Youssef Boutros Ghali to appear before the Cairo criminal court, accused of deliberately wasting public funds," the prosecutor’s office said.
Investigations indicated that Ghali agreed to give Fiqqi LE 36 million ($6 million) from the state budget for election coverage in state media, the prosecutor’s office said.
Fiqqi and Ghali are the latest officials to face criminal charges as part of sweeping corruption investigations since an 18-day uprising triggered the resignation of long-time president Hosni Mubarak on Feb. 11.
The former ministers of interior, housing and tourism are also being prosecuted for alleged corruption and fraud, along with several members of the once ruling National Democratic Party.
A military council has ruled Egypt since the nationwide protests demanding political and economic change forced Mubarak to step down.
The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces, which is overseeing a six-month transition period, has vowed to pave the way towards democracy and to bring to justice all officials found guilty of abuse.
