Hussein reports: "Egypt continues to reel from the political ambiguity engulfing it ahead of the hotly anticipated announcement of the results of its presidential race."



Supporters of Muslim Brotherhood presidential candidate Mohamed Morsi in Tahrir square, as the nation awaits the results of the election, 06/23/12. (photo: Getty Images)

Egypt's Whirlwind Week of Political Maneuverings

By Abdel-Rahman Hussein, Guardian UK

gypt continues to reel from the political ambiguity engulfing it ahead of the hotly anticipated announcement of the results of its presidential race. Friday saw a huge turnout in Tahrir and political manoeuvrings from the actors involved as the fate of the transitional process hangs on the delayed result.

In a whirlwind week, the main events included a presidential election runoff between the former regime affiliate Ahmed Shafiq and the Muslim Brotherhood's Mohamed Morsi, a supreme court ruling that dissolved the Brotherhood-dominated parliament and a new constitutional declaration unilaterally issued by the supreme council of the armed forces (Scaf).

"We are now in the final chapter," the journalist and political commentator Firas al-Atraqchi told the Guardian. "Egypt today is a product of squandered opportunities to form powerful coalitions that could have stood up to Scaf."

On Friday, hours apart, Scaf issued a statement defending its position in issuing a new constitutional declaration and labelling the Brotherhood's release of preliminary results in the presidential race as unjustifiable. For its part, the Brotherhood held a joint press conference with liberal and revolutionary forces aiming to present a consensus.

Interspersed throughout the day came leaks by government sources in the state press that Shafiq would be declared the winner, despite the Muslim Brotherhood releasing tallies that suggested Morsi had won the majority of votes. The electoral commission was due to announce the result on Thursday, but due to the high number of complaints submitted by both camps the announcement has been delayed to either Saturday or Sunday.

Scaf criticised the Muslim Brotherhood for its premature announcement of the results and stated it was "one of the main causes of division and confusion prevailing the political arena". Defending its issuing of a constitutional declaration that gives it sweeping executive and legislative powers, it said this "was necessitated by the needs of administering the affairs of the state during this critical period in the history of our nation."

With the loss of parliament the Brotherhood lost the constituent assembly that is to draft Egypt's future and permanent constitution. And this, contended the chief editor of the Egypt Monocle, Rania al-Malky, was Scaf's plan all along.

"The endgame is about the constituent assembly, the Brotherhood have realised that they've lost the presidency, so now they're eyeing the assembly, and so is Scaf," she said. "The new constitutional decree is illegitimate, and Scaf wanted to pass through a similar document a few months ago but couldn't due to a standoff with the Brotherhood. That's what first sparked the confrontation between them, and today they're making it happen."

As representatives of Egyptian liberal forces crowded around Morsi during his media conference, he offered a conciliatory approach to to those disturbed by the Brotherhood's positions on numerous issues. "The results are already known and we cannot allow anyone to tamper with the results," he said, and then he made a series of promises if he assumes power, including appointing a prime minister who would be an independent national figure with no affiliation to the group.

The assembled representatives evoked the alliance of political opposition that existed in 2010 under the deposed president Hosni Mubarak, in a stagnant era for political action that was stymied by an oppressive security apparatus. Two years on and with the situation radically changed, offering concessions after voting had ended seemed a strange position to take for the Brotherhood, which led some to speculate that the group knew it had already lost to Shafiq.

It also enflamed the sensibilities of other revolutionary forces, who believe the Brotherhood has often acquiesced to Scaf narratives against them and chases its own interests rather than broader national ones.

The Brotherhood "operated under the mandate of what best serves their movement and not the state or the people. They allied with Scaf when it was opportune; switched sides when inconvenient," Atraqchi said. "Such flip-flopping ultimately batters at the Brotherhood's legitimacy and reliability. Unfortunately, the Egyptian people have been betrayed by party politics.

"Scaf is banking on public fear and distrust of the Muslim Brotherhood – this has been a central strategy all along. And the Muslim Brotherhood has fallen into the trap far too many times," Atraqchi added.