Three governments in less than a year: Reem Leila looks back at 12 months in which forming a cabinet seemed like a frenetic version of the children's game musical chairs Ahmed Shafik (29 January-3 March 2011) In the dying days of the Mubarak presidency Ahmed Shafik was appointed prime minister, replacing Ahmed Nazif, who had headed the government since December 2005, on 29 January 2011. Shafik created the post of deputy prime minister which was given to Yehia El-Gamal, a member of the National Democratic Party (NDP) and professor of constitutional law, and eliminated the Ministry of Information. Assistant minister of the interior Mahmoud Wagdi replaced his boss Habib El-Adli. Shafik appointed Samir Radwan as finance minister and kept Ahmed Abul-Gheit as foreign minister, Mamdouh Marei as minister of justice, Hassan Younis as minister of electricity and Maged George as environment minister. Though his cabinet included some representatives of licensed opposition parties the reshuffle was too limited to placate protesters who, following Mubarak's removal on 11 February, argued a prime minister appointed by a toppled president could have no legitimacy. Shafik's term in office was one of the shortest in Egyptian history. He submitted his resignation to the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) on 3 March. Almost immediately it was announced that he would be replaced by the former transport minister Essam Sharaf. Opposition figurehead Mohamed El-Baradei welcomed Shafik's resignation. "Now I can say we are on the right path," he was quoted as saying. "I would like to express my appreciation to SCAF for responding to people's demand." Essam Sharaf (3 March-2 December 2011) Essam Sharaf's appointment as prime minister was initially welcomed by the protesters. He had actually joined demonstrators in Tahrir, and had enjoyed a reputation as an efficient technocratic during his short tenure as minister of transport. Yet by the end of his premiership he had been denounced by activists as a counter- revolutionary. On taking over from Shafik, Sharaf sacked Ahmed Abul-Gheit as foreign minister and introduced a number of opposition figures to government. criminal prosecution of Mubarak and members of his regime and there was widespread public discontent over the export of subsidised natural gas to Israel. Matters came to a head when protesters returned to Tahrir Square for two weeks to demand the dismissal of Sharaf and his government which was now seen as no more than a SCAF puppet, following the military council's, and not the revolution's, mandate. Sharaf, who had submitted his resignation to SCAF on three separate occasions, did so again on 21 November, just one week before Egypt's first democratic parliamentary elections. This time it was accepted, though the government remained in office until Sharaf's successor, Kamal El-Ganzouri, was able to announce his own cabinet. Sharaf's last day as prime minister was 2 December. Kamal El-Ganzouri (7 December- ) SCAF appointed Kamal El-Ganzouri as prime minister on 24 November, tasking him to form a national interim government. By 3 December the new prime minister had formed a cabinet. He was sworn in on 7 December. SCAF announced that all presidential powers, except those concerning military and judicial affairs, would be transferred to the prime minister's office. El-Ganzouri, who had served as prime minister in the 1990s under Mubarak, faced early problems selecting a cabinet. He retained the Mubarak-era ministers Hassan Younis and Fayza Abul-Naga. He appointed Nadia Zakhari as minister of scientific research, Major General Ahmed Anis as minister of information and Adel Abdel-Hamid as minister of justice. Mahmoud Ibrahim became minister of the interior and Momtaz El-Said took over at finance. El-Ganzouri has attempted to cut government expenditure, has rescheduled farmers' debts, and has made moves to increase government revenue by attempting to cut down on tax avoidance, thought to cost LE60 billion a year. Yet in the eyes of many protesters he is tarred by having served under Mubarak. For weeks they prevented him from accessing his office. Currently El-Ganzouri is working out of the Ministry of Investment. Mounir Fakhri Abdel-Nour became minister of tourism and Gouda Abdel-Khaleq minister of social solidarity. Mansour Eissawi became interior minister. Yet Sharaf retained a number of Mubarak era ministers, including Fayza Abul-Naga as minister of international cooperation and planning and Hassan Younis as minister of electricity. Faced with protesters demanding faster reform Sharaf was soon obliged to reshuffle his cabinet. His deputy Yehia El-Gamal was replaced by Wafdist leader Ali El-Silmi and veteran economist Hazem El-Biblawi took over from Radwan at the Finance Ministry. Under Sharaf a new portfolio -- African Affairs -- was also created. The problems Sharaf's government faced, though, were overwhelming. The cabinet failed to address the crucial issue of safety on the country's streets. The security apparatus went largely unreformed, though 500 senior officers were removed, and sectarian tensions were allowed to fester. Wages remained more or less static, and there were no coherent plans to improve the discredited state-owned media. Sharaf reintroduced an Information Ministry and appointed Osama Heikal as its head. The state-owned media's biased coverage of the army's attack on Coptic protesters in front of state TV's Maspero headquarters which left 27 demonstrators dead, many crushed beneath the wheels of armoured vehicles, left activists despairing that nothing had changed. It was a feeling compounded when incidents of sectarian violence, including the burning down of churches, suddenly dominated the headlines. Sharaf's deputy, El-Silmi, came under fire from forces across the political spectrum for what came to be called the "El-Silmi document", a controversial plan which sought to entrench the military, preventing parliamentary oversight of its budget and effectively placing SCAF beyond the constitution. As the months passed it became ever more clear that Sharaf's hands were tied and that real power remained with the military council. The transitional period seemed to stretch on interminably as protesters and activists accused the prime minister of failing to meet their demands. The government was seen as dragging its heels over the
